Paris 2024 Wednesday wrap. China’s Pan Zhanle broke his own world record, finishing in 46.40 seconds ahead of Australia’s Kyle Chalmers and Romania’s David Popovici.
China’s Pan Zhanle broke his own world record to win the men’s 100-metre freestyle on Wednesday night, finishing in 46.40 seconds.
His victor keeps China on top of the medal table with nine golds, followed by Japan, and hosts France, thanks to golds in men’s swimming and a historic triathlon race in the Seine.
“It was a magical moment, really magical,” said 19-year-old Pan Zhanle.
“The record was not just for the Chinese team, but for the world”.
In one of the most ferocious contests in swimming, Pan edged Australia’s Kyle Chalmers, who clocked a 47.48 for silver, and Romanian bronze medalist David Popovici in 47.49.
In tennis, Novak Djokovic remains on course to reach his first-ever Olympic gold, while Rafa Nadal waves a definitive goodbye to Paris after he and Carlos Alcaraz get knocked out in the men’s doubles.
Off the competition grounds, Canada’s women’s football team’s appeal to overturn a six-point deduction on spying charges was rejected, while Pizza Hut has marked a referee controversy between Hong Kong and Italy by giving out free pineapple toppings.
More details on that and the competitions below.
Triathlon postponement drama ends with France and GB victory
After days if not weeks of concerns over the Seine’s water quality, triathlon competitions finally got underway on Wednesday, with France’s Cassandre Beaugrand and Britain’s Alex Yee winning gold medals respectively in women’s and men’s competitions. Races finished in spectacular fashion, down the Alexandre III bridge, spanning the famed waterway with the Eiffel Tower in the background.
Djokovic continues quest for first Olympic gold medal
After beating Rafa Nadal in the second round, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic got past Germany’s Dominik Koepfer to earn a spot in the men’s singles quarterfinals.
The gold medal is the only significant achievement missing from his remarkable resume.
Next up for Djokovic will be a familiar foe in a familiar setting: On Thursday, he meets Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece for a spot in the final four.
Meanwhile, Nadal ended his Olympic games with a defeat in the men’s doubles quarterfinals, as he and Carlos Alcaraz were eliminated by the American duo of Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram.
Second gold for France’s Marchand as Katie Ledecky cements dominance in women’s swimming
Team US Katie Ledecky won her seventh individual Olympic gold medal with a runaway victory in the 1,500-meter freestyle, tying fellow Americans Dara Torres, Natalie Coughlin and Jenny Thompson for the most medals ever by a female swimmer.
In men’s races, Léon Marchand surged past defending Olympic champion and world-record holder Kristóf Milák to capture his second gold medal of the Paris Games with a victory in the 200 butterfly, following the victory in the 400 individual medley.
Gymnast-turned-shooter wins Guatemala’s first Olympic gold
Guatemala’s Adriana Ruano was hoping to become a successful gymnast when she damaged six vertebrae at 16. Her doctor recommended she take up shooting to avoid aggravating her injured back. Thirteen years later, Ruano won gold in the women’s trap, achieving a record Olympic score of 45 out of 50 and Guatemala’s first-ever gold medal at the Summer Games.
Canada’s women’s football team lose appeal over spying scandal
FIFA authorities said spying was something the Canada women’s team had “always done’” detailing evidence and witness statements to help explain the verdict.
The team’s head coach was suspended last week – along with two other senior members of staff – after being accused of using drones to spy on training sessions of one of their Olympic opponents, New Zealand.
The team also had six points deducted and was handed a fine of over €200,000.
The scandal risks tarnishing the country’s reputation ahead of their co-hosting of the 2026 men’s FIFA World Cup with the US and Mexico.
US and Spain top women’s football groups
Trinity Rodman and Korbin Albert both scored and the United States remained undefeated at the Olympics with a 2-1 victory over Australia to conclude the group stage.
The Americans, who already qualified for the quarterfinals, will play Japan on Saturday.
Athenea del Castillo and Alexia Putellas both scored to help Spain defeat Brazil 2-0 in an Olympic group finale that was spoiled for the Brazilians when captain Marta was sent off with a red card late in the first half. Spain remain undefeated.
Drag queen Paloma has ‘no regrets’ on opening ceremony controversy
“It was a really important moment for the French people and the representation of France around the world,” said Hugo Bardin, AKA Drag Race France winner – Paloma.
The scene he took part in drew furious criticism – including from US presidential candidate Donald Trump in the United States, who called it “a disgrace”, while French bishops accused organisers of making a mockery of Christians.
It also sparked a wave of abuse on social media on the main character in the segment, LGBTQ+ icon DJ Barbara Butch, which French police are currently investigating.
Japan win men’s all-around gymnastics title
Japan’s Shinnosuke Oka won the men’s all-around gymnastics title, upsetting the two main favourites in a nail-biting contest.
The former junior world champion won with a total of 86.832 points ahead of Zhang Boheng and Xiao Ruoteng, both Chinese.
The women’s all-around final will take place Thursday. Simone Biles and her US teammate Suni Lee are set to become the first two Olympic all-around champions to face one another in the competition.
Hong Kong vs Italy fencing controversy ends up in pizza mockery as Pizza Hut weighs in
Hong Kong fencer Cheung Ka-long beat Italy’s Filippo Macchi 15-14 in the men’s foil, making him the first Hong Konger to bag two gold medals.
But the match was marred by controversy, as the Italian federation announced it would file a complaint about what it called “unacceptable” refereeing.
Italy’s Olympic Committee President Giovanni Malagò suggested the selection of referees was problematic, saying “the two judges were from Taipei and Korea in a final between Italy and Hong Kong.”
Macchi’s fans also left comments on Cheung’s Instagram account to express their anger.
In a mockery response, Hong Kong supporters replied with comments on Instagram about their love for pineapple pizza to defend Cheung and said they would have a lot of pineapple pizzas to celebrate the win.
Pizza Hut weighed in offering free pineapple toppings in Hong Kong and Macao.
Gold for China and Argentina in freestyle BMX
China added to their medal tally thanks to Deng Yawen’s brilliant run in the freestyle BMX competition, finishing with 92.60 points at the urban sports park built at Place de La Concorde. Deng’s medal came after the Chinese team had failed to qualify anyone for Tokyo 2020. Five-time US world champion Hannah Roberts wound up crashing on a front flip in her first Wednesday run.
In the men’s freestyle BMX, José Torres won a surprising gold medal for Argentina with an excellent first run that withstood the best efforts of British world champion Kieran Reilly and French legend Anthony Jean-Jean.
