By JENNA FRYER
PARIS (AP) — Simone Biles and Katie Ledecky led a strong showing for the United States at the Paris Olympics as both Americans added to their gold-medal collection on Saturday on Day 8 of the Games.
Biles nailed her eponymous Yurchenko double pike vault to win the gold medal, the seventh of her Olympic career. She has 10 total medals so far, and has won gold in Paris in the team final, the all-around and the vault.
Following another winning performance, the 27-year-old Biles would not rule out a return to the Games when they are in Los Angeles in 2028.
Ledecky joined Michael Phelps as the only swimmers to win an event at four straight Summer Games.
Taking the 800-meter freestyle for the fourth time, Ledecky won her ninth Olympic race to match four others for second in any Games. Summer or Winter. Phelps holds the record with 23 gold medals.
The U.S. swim team also set a world record in the 4×100 mixed medley relay. Ryan Murphy, Nic Fink, Gretchen Walsh and Torri Huske held off China for a winning time of 3:37.43, breaking the mark of 3:37.58 set by Britain when it won gold in the event’s Olympic debut three years ago.
It wasn’t such a golden night at rain-soaked Stade de France, where American sprinter Sha’carri Silver won silver in the women’s 100-meter dash.
Richardson was beat by Julien Alfred, who gave Saint Lucia its first ever Olympic medal with her victory. Alfred got off to a fantastic start, then powered through the rain and beat Richardson by .15 seconds — about three body lengths. It was the biggest margin in the women’s Olympic 100 since 2008.
The Americans settled for silver and bronze for Richardson and Melissa Jefferson.
Earlier in the day, Noah Lyles finished second in a sluggish first-round qualifying heat to make the semifinals in the men’s 100. The semifinals and finals for that race are set for Sunday.
In another defeat, the Americans’ 4×400 mixed relay was beat by the Netherlands a day after it set a world record in qualifying. Kaylyn Brown was chased down over the final 10 meters of the anchor leg by Dutch runner Femke Bol in the mild upset.
There was still one American victory at athletics: Ryan Crouser won his third straight gold in shot put by once again holding off countrymate Joe Kovacs, who took silver.
A look at other events that happened on Day 8 of the Paris Games:
Imane Khelif clinches medal at Paris Olympics
Boxer Imane Khelif of Algeria clinched a medal following days of sharp scrutiny and online abuse as misconceptions about her gender have exploded into a larger clash about identity in sports.
Khelif defeated Anna Luca Hamori of Hungary 5:0 in the quarterfinals of the women’s 66-kilogram bout.
Khelif will win at least a bronze medal after defeating Hamori for the second victory of her tumultuous second trip to the Olympics.
U.S. men’s basketball rolls
The U.S. has the No. 1 seed going into the men’s basketball medal round.
Anthony Edwards scored 26 points, and the Americans wrapped up the top spot coming out of group play with a 104-83 win over Puerto Rico.
The Americans are 3-0 in these Olympics and 8-0 so far this summer. They face Brazil in the win-or-go-home quarterfinals in Paris on Tuesday.
It was the first Olympic matchup between the U.S. and Puerto Rico since the Athens Games in 2004, when Puerto Rico ran away in the second quarter and went on to embarrass the Americans 92-73.
Zheng wins women’s singles gold
Zheng Qinwen won China’s first Olympic tennis singles gold medal with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Donna Vekic of Croatia at Roland Garros.
It is the biggest win of the 21-year-old’s career. Zheng is ranked No. 7 in the world and was the runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka at the hard-court Australian Open in January.
International Tennis Hall of Fame member Li Na is the only Chinese player to win a Grand Slam singles title — at the 2011 French Open and 2014 Australian Open — and served as inspiration for Zheng when she was a kid learning the sport.
Schauffele and Rahm share men’s golf lead
A rowdy crowd at Le Golf National watched double major winner Xander Schauffele and Jon Rahm move into a tie at the top of the 54-hold leaderboard in Olympic men’s golf.
Schauffele had a 68 and Rahm a 66 to share the lead. They are one shot ahead of Britain’s Tommy Fleetwood. Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark tied the course record with a 62 and is three behind. So is Hideki Matsuyama.
Not to be overlooked were Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. They were only four back going into the medal round Sunday.
US beats Japan in women’s soccer to advance to the semifinals
The U.S advanced to the semifinals of the women’s soccer tournament after beating Japan 1-0 on Trinity Rodman’s goal in extra time.
The Americans will next face Germany on Tuesday with a spot in the final on the line.
American shooter wins fourth gold medal
U.S. shooter Vincent Hancock beat Conner Prince, his student, to capture his fourth Olympic gold medal in men’s skeet.
Hancock coaches Prince, a first-time Olympian, and turned around to share a hug with his silver medal-winning student after making his last two shots to ensure the gold. He hit 58 out of 60 shots to Prince’s 57.
Hancock won skeet gold at the Olympics in 2008, 2012 and 2021 and is the only skeet shooter to take the Olympic gold more than once.
10-time Olympian retires
Pistol shooter Nino Salukvadze has competed at the Olympics a record 10 times over 36 years and said Saturday she’s retiring.
The 55-year-old from Georgia participated in the Paris Olympics to honor her late father, who was also her coach, and died at the age of 93 this year after seeing his daughter qualify for her 10th Olympics.
Salukvadze has three Olympic medals: one gold, one silver and one bronze. In Paris, she placed 38th in the 10-meter air pistol event and 40th in the 25-meter pistol.
Salukvadze’s last Olympic medal — and her first for an independent Georgia — was in Beijing in 2008.
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For more coverage of the Paris Olympics, visit https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games.
Originally Published: August 3, 2024 at 2:43 p.m.
