The three gold medals, along with a bronze won by Jessica Morrison and Annabelle McIntyre in rowing, propelled Australia to a total of 21 medals at the close of play – 10 gold, six silver and five bronze.
Swimming
On a breathless evening at La Défense Arena, Kaylee McKeown entered the record books with a stunning victory in the 200m backstroke, completing a unique double-double and becoming the first Australian to win four individual Olympic gold medals. Remarkably, it came just eight minutes after Cam McEvoy put in an electric swim of his own to claim gold in the 50m freestyle, completing a late-career resurgence after quitting the sport in 2021. Read Kieran Pender’s report
BMX racing
Saya Sakakibara made up for her Tokyo 2020 heartbreak with a dominant win in the final in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, storming around the track to finish a whopping seven-tenths of a second ahead of her nearest rival, second-placed Manon Veenstra from the Netherlands, with Switzerland’s Zoé Claessens third. Read Jack Snape’s report
Rowing
Australia’s first medal of the day came in the water at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, where Jessica Morrison and Annabelle McIntyre were close to winning silver in the coxless pair final, but were pipped at line and instead left with bronze. Read Jack Snape’s report
Athletics
Having competed in the heats at the Stade de France, Australia-based Afghan 100m sprinter Kimia Yousofi had a message for girls back in the country of her birth. Yousofi, one of a six-person Afghan team, held up a piece of A4 paper with the words “education”, “sport” and “our rights” written on it. “Don’t give up, don’t let others decide for you,” she said. “Just search for opportunity, and then use that opportunity.” Read Jack Snape’s report
Swimming
Chinese state and social media have rallied behind swimming star Pan Zhanle, after comments made by the Australian coach, Brett Hawke, who said Pan’s world record 100m freestyle swim earlier this week was not “humanly possible”. Pan broke his own world record to deliver China’s its first gold medal of the Games, drawing scepticism from Hawke. But that has prompted a response and accusations that Hawke is a sore loser. Read Helen Davidson’s report
Judo
France rejoiced once more on Friday as one of the host nation’s favourite sports stars, Teddy Riner, met huge expectations and made history by winning his third individual Olympic medal in +100kg category. “Teddy Bam Bam!” roared the crowd in his home city as the popular colossus beat his final opponent Kim Min-jong. Read Angelique Chrisafis’s report
Other bits
A remarkable story of grit and determination has emerged out of the ashes of the Matildas’ all-too-brief Olympic football campaign – a travel odyssey of epic proportions undertaken by a group of fans who were forced to make a mad dash across France after their train from Paris to Marseille was cancelled. Spoiler: sadly, it doesn’t end well. Read Kieran Pender’s story
The gender eligibility row that is engulfing boxing at Paris 2024 has further escalated after the Hungarian Boxing Association protested over the decision to allow the Algerian fighter Imane Khelif to compete at Paris 2024, before her quarter-final bout with one of its boxers. Read Alexandra Topping’s report
