Day 4 roundup: Stunning gymnastics loss, 50 straight women's hoops wins
There's a whole lot going on every day at the Tokyo Olympics. Here, we'll keep you up-to-date with everything you need to know.
Story of the day
In a development that changed the entire course of the Olympics for Team USA, Simone Biles withdrew from the gymnastics team competition after just one of four rotations. Without the greatest gymnast of all time in their corner, Team USA battled but couldn't keep pace with Russia, ultimately winning silver instead of the predicted/expected/anticipated gold. Why did Biles withdraw? USA Gymnastics is calling it a "medical issue," though further info will surely be forthcoming, as well as Biles' status for individual competition. This was a monumental turn of events for Team USA, and — depending on Biles' story — possibly much more.
Revenge denied
At roughly the same time Team USA's gymnasts were trying to catch Russia in the gym, another group of Americans were trying to run down Japan on the softball field. That effort also fell short, as Japan won the gold medal game 2-0. This marks the end of softball's brief run in the Olympics, though the sport's supporters hope it will be back on the docket for Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028. This was a revenge game of sorts — the U.S. fell to Japan in 2008 after winning three straight gold medals — but with the same pitchers on the mound for both teams, the same result ensued.
The big 5-0
It wasn't all bad news for Team USA Tuesday. The women's basketball team won its 50th straight Olympic game, defeating Nigeria 81-72. Dating back to the 1992 bronze medal game, Team USA has won every game — like, literally every single one — en route to garnering enough gold medals around the team's necks to cause back strain issues. With six first-time Olympians, this victory came a little tougher than most others, but the U.S. remains in position to run that number up to 55 en route to another gold.
Alaskan swimmer comes for the King, doesn't miss
Lydia Jacoby is a 17-year-old, bass-playing, bluegrass-singing Alaskan who as recently as 18 months ago was only planning to come to the Tokyo Games as a tourist. Tuesday, she picked up the ultimate souvenir, winning a gold medal in the 100-meter breaststroke by defeating reigning champion Lilly King. Read this Henry Bushnell story for more on Jacoby's history in the Alaskan town that went crazy when she won.
Who wants an Olympics in their town? You?
Just before Tokyo 2020 began, the IOC announced that Brisbane, Australia would host the 2032 Games — not exactly a surprise, given that no other cities even sought the "honor." As Dan Wetzel notes, the prestige of hosting an Olympics has vanished as cities recognize that the glory comes with strings that can stretch for decades afterward.
"The IOC was once the belle of a global ball, with famed and beautiful metropolises begging for the chance to host their Games," Wetzel writes. "The last time Australia hosted — 2000 in Sydney — it defeated eight competing cities, including five finalists. To the coveted goes the corruption, though, and the IOC's bid process quickly led to wining, dining and plenty of bribing — not to mention outrageous budgets, cost overruns and a string of white elephant projects left behind."
The world's loneliest DJs
If a DJ spins in an empty arena, does it make a sound? Hannah Keyser spoke to some of the DJs responsible for keeping up the atmosphere at beach volleyball matches, even though there are no bodies in the stands to groove along. "Part of it is for the broadcast, giving beach volleyball a similar sound to what it’s had in other Olympics," Keyser writes. "But it’s also about the sport itself. The athletes are accustomed to a certain gameday soundtrack to reflect the stakes. Recreating that in the absence of audience cheers is part of the competitive integrity of trying to pull this whole thing off under the circumstances."
Photo of the day
Singapore's Yu MengYu keeps her eye on the ball as she serves to Taiwan's Cheng I-ching.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter at @jaybusbee or contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com.
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