By Lucas Camacho
It has been an exciting couple of days from Paris. Let’s catch you up on some of the stories that have been blurred during this year’s exciting Summer Olympic Games.
GRAND OPENING
Reports coming in said that viewership for Opening Saturday went up 83% compared to the Tokyo Olympics. This comes close on the heels of the most watched Olympics Opening Ceremony since the London games in 2012 (and one of my personal favorites if I may add). Then the Olympics followed that up with 31 million viewers for Opening Monday. Overall, the viewership average has surpassed the Tokyo Olympics by around 77%. To quote the late great Vin Scully: “Not a bad opening act.”
US MEN’S SOCCER TEAM SHOCKS THE WORLD
Maybe the world is flat after all. The US Men’s U23 team is heading to the knockout rounds for the first time in 24 years. After dropping their first game against the powerful host nation France, the United States got big wins against New Zealand and Guinea. It may be too soon to see if this team can bring home a medal, but it is a huge relief to many weary fans. The US plays Morocco on Friday.
US WOMEN ON TOP OF THE WORLD
What a comeback for some of the women’s teams looking for redemption. In gymnastics, Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Jade Carey returned to the top of the podium after earning the gold in the Women’s Gymnastics Team Final. In soccer, the USWNT looks back to their dominant selves after clinching a spot in the knockout round with a very convincing win over Germany 4-1. In rugby, the US women’s team won their first ever medal in rugby after scoring at the last minute in the Bronze Medal Match against Australia. And in basketball, the US Women’s team, led by Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson, showcased their dominance by utterly devastating Japan 102-76.
SCANDALS UPDATE
The Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed Canada’s appeal of their points deduction at the Paris Games. That means, despite winning their first two games, Canada has zero points going into their final game against Colombia. Also, in the last salvo concerning the Chinese doping scandal, a bipartisan group of US lawmakers are threatening to cut US funding for the World Anti-Doping Agency, after the IOC threatened the US hosting the 2034 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
