Swimming:
Olympic swimming concluded this weekend with amateurs making names for themselves and veterans continuing to dominate the pool.
Highlights from women’s swimming showcased an upset by Australian Ariana Titmus winning against Katie Ledecky in the Women’s 200-meter freestyle final. Although, Ledecky is also known for her endurance swimming which was demonstrated by her gold medal feat in the historic women’s 1,500-meter freestyle final.
This Olympics is the first to host the women’s event, while men have been swimming the 200-meter freestyle since the 1920’s.
Fellow U.S. team member, Erica Sullivan, brought the silver back in the 1,500 final, creating an additional lift to Ledecky’s gold. Ledecky also won gold in the 800-meter freestyle final and received silver in the 400-meter freestyle final.
The women’s 100-meter breaststroke final showed a strong debut by Lydia Jacoby, 17, from the U.S. Jacoby made history as the first swimmer from Alaska to medal in the Olympics.
The women’s team from Australia swiped several gold medals from the Americans, including relay events in the 4×100 freestyle relay and the 4×100 medley relay.
Men’s swimming spotlighted Caleb Dressel and Bobby Finke.
Dressel brought home five gold medals in the men’s 50-meter freestyle final, 100-meter freestyle final, 100-meter butterfly, 4×100 freestyle relay and 4×100 medley relay. He set an Olympic record for the 100 freestyle with a final of 47.02 and made a world record in 100 butterfly with a time of 49.45.
Finke showcased his endurance, winning both the 800-meter freestyle and 1,500-meter freestyle. The U.S. men’s team brought home gold in both the 4×100 freestyle relay and the 4×100 medley relay. Their major competitors were Great Britain and the Russian Olympic Committee.
Gymnastics:
The U.S. Women’s Gymnastics team won silver in the team all-around. Controversy was sparked after American favorite, Simone Biles, withdrew from the team competition. She continued to remain out of competition during the individual all-around, which was won by U.S. team member Sunisa Lee. Lee also made history as the first Hmong-American gymnast to bring home a gold medal.
Individual events continued while Biles remained out of competition, allowing U.S. team alternate, MyKayla Skinner, an opportunity to compete in the vault. Skinner succeeded in her chance, winning silver for the U.S.
Lee, won bronze in the uneven bars, winning a gold, silver and bronze medal in her first Olympic Games.
Biles returned to competition with the balance beam, qualifying for the finals. The floor competition was the last in the individual events. Biles ended up winning bronze.
Additional highlights
Several sports debuted in their first summer Olympics. U.S. Women’s three on three basketball brought home the gold in its first Olympic games. The team faced off against the Russian Olympic Committee team, claiming victory in the trailblazing event.
Surfing was recently added with American Carissa Moore winning the championship in the women’s shortboard competition.
Sierra Pesnell can be reached at [email protected]