Olympics highlights: Track surprise, another swimming medal for U.S.

While action at the 2024 Paris Olympics is winding down at the pool, the track is just starting to heat up.

U.S. distance runner Grant Fisher raced his way to a bronze medal in the 10,000-meters to become the fourth American man to medal in the event in Olympic history.

Swimmer Regan Smith picked up her third silver medal of the Paris Games in the 200-meter backstroke final. Although she’s still in pursuit of her first-ever Olympic gold medal, Smith said she’s “thrilled” to add more hardware to her collection, no matter the color. Team USA also picked up silver medals in shooting and equestrian team jumping, in addition to bronze medals in sailing and archery to bring the U.S. Olympic medal count to 43.

Meanwhile, the U.S. men’s national soccer team was knocked out by Morocco in a 4-0 loss on Friday, ending the team’s best run in the Olympics in almost 25 years. The men's 3x3 basketball team, on the other hand, picked up its first two wins of the Paris Games against China and France after suffering four straight losses.

Catch up on everything that went down Friday with USA TODAY Sports' highlights and more from throughout the day.

Do future Olympics become hunt for those who are different?

PARIS – There’s a term we use a lot in sports for people who have a natural gift so unique, and so far above what we expect to see even from the best athletes in their field, that they immediately stand out as different.

We call them freaks.

I’ve been thinking about that a lot ever since the usual bad-faith actors began to attack a young woman – yes, woman – from Algeria, needing little more than a short video clip, a vague piece of propaganda from a discredited and Russian-backed sports organization and their own biases about what a female body is supposed to look like. - Dan Wolken

Read Dan Wolken's column on boxer Imane Khelif

Caeleb Dressel isn't the swimmer he was in Tokyo, and that's OK

Caeleb Dressel, the American swimming superstar of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, stood bare-chested, just off the pool deck, earnestly trying to put into words what had just happened to him over 45 minutes Friday night at the Paris Olympics.

“I’d like to be performing better,” he said. “I’m not. I trained to go faster than the times I’m going. I know that so, yeah, it’s tough, a little heartbreaking, a little heartbreaking for sure.”

In the final of the men’s 50 freestyle, an event in which he set the Olympic record in winning the gold medal at the last Olympics, Dressel finished a disappointing sixth. His time of 21.61 seconds was well off the 21.07 he swam three years ago, and also slower than the 21.41 he swam at the U.S. trials in June. - Christine Brennan

Read Christine Brennan's column here.

Ice Cube challenges Olympic 3x3 basketball winner to play Big3

The United States is struggling more than expected in the 3x3 basketball competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and Ice Cube believes he has the solution. The rapper and actor, who founded the Big3 basketball league seven years ago, thinks his best players need to be included when the Olympics come to Los Angeles in 2028.

Ice Cube is so confident about this that Friday, during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” he challenged the gold medal winner in men’s 3x3 basketball this year to a high-stakes exhibition game later this month before the Big3’s championship game takes place in Boston on Aug. 18.

McAfee offered to give the winning team $100,000. Ice Cube pledged to pay all expenses and chip in additional money for the winning team. - Mark Gionnotto

Regan Smith thrilled with silver, will keep fighting for gold

NANTERRE, France — With six Olympic medals over two Games, American swimmer Regan Smith has the kind of hardware that would make any Olympic hopeful or daydreaming wannabe envious.

Her five silvers, including three at the Paris Olympics, and a bronze are more than enough for her to be proud of, with strong times accompanying them. That’s how she said she felt after silver No. 4 in the women’s 200-meter butterfly Thursday, and again after silver No. 5 in the 200-meter backstroke Friday.

"If I had gotten a silver medal and I had been a second slower, I think I would have been really disappointed in myself because that wasn't putting my best foot forward, that wasn't what I was capable of doing," Smith said about the 200 back final and the second time she finished behind Australian gold medalist Kaylee McKeown.

"So I think you get to 2:04.2 – that’s one of my fastest times ever, and I think I really gave Kaylee a run for it, and I made things really close and exciting. So I’m thrilled with it." - Michelle R. Martinelli

France beats Argentina, reaches men's soccer semifinals

PARIS - France got the better of Argentina this time.

Jean-Philippe Mateta ensured the rematch would not have the same drama as the 2022 World Cup final in Qatar, when Lionel Messi and Argentina beat France in a penalty shootout. Mateta scored in the fifth minute Friday, and goalkeeper Guillame Restes made four saves to secure the 1-0 win that sent France into the semifinals of the Olympic men’s tournament.

Michael Olise appeared to give France a second goal in the 81st minute but it was disallowed after VAR determined there had been a foul in the buildup.

The hosts will now play Egypt on Tuesday in Lyon after Egypt beat Paraguay on penalties.

In the other semifinal, Morocco will face Spain on Tuesday in Marseille. The Atlas Lions routed the U.S. men 4-0 while Spain made easy work of Japan, 3-0.

Alise Willoughby comes up short of medal stand in BMX

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France – American Alise Willoughby came up short of the medal stand in her fourth trip to the Olympics.

Willoughby, the reigning women's world champion in BMX racing, finished sixth in the event Friday at BMX Stadium.

Australia's Saya Sakakibara won gold in a time of 34.231 seconds. The Netherlands' Manon Veenstra (34.954 seconds) won silver and Switzerland's Zoe Claessens took bronze in a match attended by French president Emmanuel Macron.

Willoughby (36.171 seconds) got off to a fast start but got caught in traffic on the first turn and couldn't catch Sakakibara, who won all three of her semifinal heats and was the No. 1 seed in the finals.

"It was just a tough one, it's a tough one to swallow," Willoughby said. "I thought I rose to the occasion and unfortunately the turn was what it was and it's kind of just racing action. So yeah, just disappointed obviously, but chin's still up. I know how fast I was." - David Birkett

Grant Fisher wins bronze in men's 10,000 meters

SAINT-DENIS, France — In a photo finish, American Grant Fisher finished the men’s 10,000 meters in 26:43.46 Friday night to claim bronze, finishing just barely behind Ethiopia’s Berihu Aregawi, who ran a 26:43.44.

Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei won in 26:43.14, shattering the previous Olympic record of 27:01.17.

It was a season best for Fisher, who ran a 26:52.04 in March. After the race, a jovial Fisher, 27, took a victory lap around Stade de France with the American flag draped over his shoulders and a smile stretched across his face.

It was the first medal in the 10,000 meters for Team USA since Galen Rupp won the silver at the 2012 London Olympics. - Lindsay Schnell

Rent paid, but USA's Veronica Fraley falls short in discus qualifying

SAINT-DENIS, France − Team USA women's discus thrower Veronica Fraley let it fly in the right frame of mind Friday, but it didn't fly quite far enough. Fraley's best throw among three went 62.54 meters (205.2 feet), leaving her ranked 13th in qualifying, one spot short of a 12-team field for medal finals.

As recently as a couple days ago, she wasn't sure the right frame of mind would even be possible.

The Vanderbilt student, who will graduate later this month with her second masters degree, made news via social media Thursday with some honesty about her personal finances that proved to stir the right people. She took to her X account to reveal that Vanderbilt had only assisted with 75% of her rent, and rapper Flavor Flav and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian came to the immediate rescue with a pledge to get Fraley's shortfall covered. As it turned out, they not only covered her rent for the month, they picked up the tab for the remainder of the year. - Chase Goodbread

USA's Valarie Allman dominates in discus qualifying

Team USA's Valarie Allman blew away the field Friday in the Paris Olympics women's discus qualifying, unleashing a throw of 69.59 meters on her first attempt that proved to be the best distance of the competition. Allman knew she wouldn't have to make her second or third attempts immediately, turning to the back of the cage and acknowledging fans with two arms raised high.

The automatic qualifying distance was 64.0 meters, but only six of 12 athletes who reached the finals surpassed it. Allman, who won gold in the event at the Tokyo Games in 2021, looked primed for back-to-back gold medals, beating the next best throw of the day by 3.96 meters (Sandra Elkasevic, Croatia). Medal finals of the women's discus throw will be held Aug. 5. - Chase Goodbread

BMX racer Kye White leaves on stretcher after Olympic crash

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France – BMX racer Kye Whyte of Great Britain was taken off the course on a stretcher after crashing in the second run of men’s semifinals Friday at the Paris Olympics.

Whyte was injured seconds into his second run of the night when he clipped the back tire of another racer after the first jump.

Whyte finished fifth in Heat 2 of the first run of the semifinals in a time of 38.808 seconds. He won silver in BMX racing at the Tokyo Olympics.

American racer Kamren Larsen also crashed in his second run of the semifinals. Larsen walked off the course under his own power after the crash, which occurred when he hit the elbow of another rider on the first turn.

All three Americans advance to final in shot put

SAINT-DENIS, France — Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs and Payton Otterdahl advanced to Saturday’s men’s shot put final.

Crouser threw 70 feet, 6¼ inches on his first attempt and exited the qualifying round. Otterdahl stopped after his first attempt of 70 feet, 7¼ inches was good enough to advance.

Kovacs took all three first-round throws, but qualified with a toss of 69 feet, 8¼ inches.

Italy’s Leonardo Fabbri’s throw of 71 feet, 4¾ inches was the best mark of the opening round.

The men’s shot put final is Saturday at 1:35 p.m. ET.

Crouser, the two-time Olympic champion, is trying to become the first shot putter ever to win three Olympic gold medals in the event. - Tyler Dragon

2 Americans advance in women's 800

SAINT-DENIS, France — Two Americans have advanced to the semifinals of the women’s 800, with Nia Akins and Juliette Whittaker finishing in second and third, respectively, in their 800 heats.

Akins ran a 1:59.67 and Whittaker finished in 2:00.45, good enough for 17th and 28th overall in the six total heats.

The 800 was the surprise race of the 2024 Olympic track and field trials, held in Eugene, Oregon. There, defending gold medalist Athing Mu, whose long, loping stride is as recognizable as her megawatt smile, tripped and fell, finishing last. Mu and her coaches filed multiple protests but they were denied, along with her appeal. Though eligible, she was not selected for 4x400 relay pool either.

American Allie Wilson, who finished sixth in her heat (1:59.69) advanced to the repechage round, a new feature at the Paris Olympics. What is the repechage round, you ask? Let us explain. -Lindsay Schnell

Caeleb Dressel doesn't qualify for 100 butterfly final

Caeleb Dressel had a tough day in the pool Friday.

Dressel finished in sixth place off the podium in the 50-meter freestyle, an event he won gold in at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Nearly 40-minutes later, Dressel was back in the pool for the men’s 100-meter butterfly semifinals, another event he brought home gold in at the Tokyo Games. However, Dressel didn’t qualify for the final after finishing fifth in his semifinal heat at 51.57. He did not advance with his time either.

Dressel was visibly upset after not qualifying for the final to defend his title.

It ended a busy day for Dressel. Earlier Friday, he raced for Team USA in the mixed 4x100-meter medley relay heats. Dressel will have another chance in the pool in the mixed 4x100-meter medley relay final on Saturday. - Cydney Henderson

France's Leon Marchand wins fourth gold

French swimmer Leon Marchand is golden, again.

Marchand picked up his fourth Olympic gold medal in the pool on Friday by winning the 200-meter individual medley and nearly set a world record in the process. Marchand finished just 0.06 seconds off American Ryan Lochte’s world record set in 2011. Marchand’s time of 1:54.06 was still good for an Olympic record.

Marchand becomes only the fourth swimmer in Olympic history to win four individual gold medals at a single Olympic Games, joining Americans Michael Phelps, Mark Spitz and German swimmer Kristin Otto.

Phelps and French president Emmanuel Macron were among the spectators in the crowd cheering on Marchand. And despite the world watching, Marchand said he was “more relaxed than usual.” Why? “Because I’ve won like three gold medals before,” he said.

Great Britain’s Duncan Scott finished with silver and China’s Wang Shun got bronze. American Carson Foster finished just off the podium in fourth place. - Cydney Henderson

Kaylee McKeown sweeps backstroke gold; Regan Smith takes silver

NANTERRE, France — Australian star Kaylee McKeown swept the women’s backstroke events at the Olympics for the second consecutive Games, winning Friday’s 200-meter backstroke final with a time of 2:03.73, an Olympic record.

She also won the women’s 100-meter backstroke — she finished ahead of Team USA’s Regan Smith with silver — earlier this week and was golden in both events three years ago at the Tokyo Olympics.

Smith finished second to win silver with a 2:04.26 race, while Canadian Kylie Masse was fast enough for bronze. - Michelle R. Martinelli

Cameron McEvoy wins 50 free; Caeleb Dressel finishes sixth

NANTERRE, France — The title of fastest swimmer in the world now belongs to Australia's Cameron McEvoy, Friday’s Olympic gold medalist in the men’s 50-meter freestyle, the shortest and fastest event in the pool.

McEvoy won with a time of 21.25 in a race that’s all about brute strength and power. He out-touched Benjamin Proud of Great Britain, who won silver, and France's Florent Manaudou, who won bronze.

Team USA’s three-time Olympian Caeleb Dressel, 27 — who was the defending Olympic champion in the 50, one of his eight total gold medals — finished sixth. - Michelle R. Martinelli

Olympic golf desperately needs a team format. Here's a proposal.

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France – This has been great, but something is missing.

Sure, the American men’s golfers at this week’s Olympics tournament, like other countries, have been wearing the same outfits and the Team USA hats.

But they aren’t a team. Not really. Not when it counts.

They are competing for an individual prize only. Short of practice rounds together earlier this week, the Americans’ routines haven’t been different from any other golf tournament.

There's no camaraderie, and that’s a shame. - Gentry Estes

Read the full column from Gentry Estes

Imane Khelif had to hide soccer training

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, ensnarled in an Olympics controversy surrounding gender eligibility, said earlier this year in an interview with UNICEF that it was her ability to dodge punches from boys that led her to take up boxing.

Khelif said that as a teenager she "excelled" at soccer, though boys in the rural village of Tiaret in western Algeria where she grew up teased and threatened her about it. Soccer was not a sport for girls, they said.

Read the full story from USA TODAY's Kim Hjelmgaard.

Olympics men's basketball quarterfinals update

USA, Canada, Germany, France, Australia and Brazil have qualified for the quarterfinals of the men’s 5x5 basketball event, the final two spots will be determined by the result of Saturday’s game between Serbia-South Sudan.

The winner of Serbia-South Sudan advances to the quarterfinals, and the loser of that game will be in a tiebreaker scenario with Greece for the final spot in the quarters.

Point differential is the tiebreaker, and Greece, which is done with group play, is minus-8 in that department. Headed into their game Saturday, Serbia is plus-15 and South Sudan minus-6. Greece and Giannis Antetokounmpo are rooting for Serbia victory by at least three points. — Jeff Zillgitt

US mixed 4x400 relay breaks world record in opening round

SAINT-DENIS, France — Vernon Norwood, Shamier Little, Bryce Deadmon and Kaylyn Brown qualified easily in the mixed 4x400 relay.

Running in the opening round, Norwood got things off to a good start on the first leg. He handed the baton off to Little in first place. Little extended Team USA’s lead and got the baton to Deadmon. Deadmon widened the lead and Brown took the race home with a world-record time of 3:07.41.

France ran a 3:10.60 to advance in second place and Belgium’s 3:10.74 was good enough for the third and final qualifying spot.

The top three in each heat, plus the next two fastest times advanced to the final. — Tyler Dragon

American Whittni Morgan advances to 5,000m final

SAINT-DENIS, France — Whittni Morgan turned in a season best 5,000-meter time Friday in the second heat of qualifying, advancing to the final after running a 15:02.14 and finishing sixth in her heat. Paris is Morgan’s first Olympics.

Two other American women, Elise Cranny and Karissa Schweizer, managed to sneak into the final, running the the last two qualifying times of the first heat. Cranny finished in 14:58.55 while Schweizer clocked a 14:59.64.

Schweizer, 28, finished 11th in the 5,000 at the Tokyo Games, while Cranny, also 28, finished 13th.

Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon, the gold medal favorite and defending world champion, turned in the fastest time of both heats, finishing in 14:57.56. Kipyegon is also the two-time defending gold medalist in the 1,500.

The 5,000 final is scheduled for Monday at 9:15 local time. — Lindsay Schnell

Italian boxer expresses regret for not shaking Imane Khelif's hand

The Italian female boxer who quit 46 seconds into her fight against Algeria’s Imane Khelif expressed regret for not shaking Khelif's hand following the controversial bout Thursday at the Paris Olympics, according to a published report.

"Actually, I want to apologize to her and everyone else," Italy’s Angela Carini told Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport. "I was angry because my Olympics had gone up in smoke."

Carini also said, "All this controversy makes me sad" and that if she could meet Khelif again she would "embrace her." — Josh Peter

Simone Biles takes jab at Donald Trump's debate comment

Olympic "GOAT" Simone Biles took a break from making history in Paris to take a jab at former President Donald Trump, who during a debate in June referred to occupations held by Black people as "Black jobs."

Biles, who has already won two gold medals in Paris, replied to an X post shared by singer Ricky Davila.

"Simone Biles being the GOAT, winning Gold medals and dominating gymnastics is her black job," Davila wrote on Thursday.

In response, Biles' X post on Friday morning said, "I love my black job."

Biles' comment pokes fun at a moment from the June 27 presidential debate between President Joe Biden and Trump. The Republican presidential nominee made his first "Black jobs" remark while explaining his thoughts on immigrants' impact on the U.S. economy. — Jonathan Limehouse

China's Huang Yaqiong gets gold medal — and marriage proposal

Huang Yaqiong teamed with Zheng Siwei to win the gold medal in the women's badminton mixed doubles competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics, beating Kim Wonho and Jeong Naeun of South Korea (21-8, 21-11). Then, once Yaqiong went through the medal ceremony, fellow Chinese badminton player Liu Yuchen had a surprise for her.

Yuchen – who won a silver medal in the men’s doubles competition at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and competed in men’s doubles again during these Paris Games – pulled out a ring, got down on one knee and proposed.

Already holding flowers in her hands from the medal ceremony, Yaqiong quickly said yes. The proposal was shown on the videoboard at the Porte de la Chapelle Arena in Paris and the crowd celebrated along with the couple. — Mark Giannotto

Schauffele, Matsuyama, Fleetwood top golf leaderboard

Defending Olympic men's golf champion Xander Schauffele is in excellent position to bring the gold home to the United States once again.

Schauffele, who has already won the PGA Championship and British Open this year, fired a 5-under 66 on Friday to join a three-way tie for the lead after two rounds of play.

For two days at Le Golf National, only one factor – big or very, very small – has seemingly been able to slow Schauffele: Got to watch out for those ants.

"It was an ant pile, or whatever you want to call it, in their home," he said. "So I didn't want to mess with it too much."

First-round leader Hideki Matsuyama of Japan shot a solid 3-under 66 at Golf Nacional in Paris to join Schauffele. And Great Britain's Tommy Fleetwood had the round of the day (a 7-under 64) to create the three-way tie at 11-under. — Steve Gardner and Gentry Estes

Police investigate death threats against opening ceremony director

Authorities in Paris have launched a hate speech investigation after the Paris Olympics opening ceremony artistic director Thomas Jolly filed a complaint, alleging he was the subject of death threats.

Jolly filed the complaint with the Paris prosecutor’s office Tuesday, four days after the opening ceremony. In the complaint, he said he had been defamed and endured "public insults."

The opening ceremony has been a source of controversy and scrutiny, featuring scenes of drag queens and another homage to a festival honoring the Greek god Dionysus that many thought was a parody of Leonardo Da Vinci’s painting "The Last Supper."

The online backlash caused organizers of the 2024 Paris Games to apologize earlier this week. — Scooby Axson

Russian athletes clinch first medals

Russia was banned to compete as a country in the Paris Olympics, but approved athletes were permitted to compete as Individual Neutral Athletes, or AINs.

And with only 15 of these athletes participating, there haven't been many opportunities for Russian Olympians to pocket medals. Until now.

Women's tennis players Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider advanced to the gold medal match of the women's tennis doubles, ensuring at least a silver at these Games. Andreeva and Shnaider beat Cristina Bucsa and Sara Sorribes Tormo of Spain in the semifinal, 6-1, 6-2, on Friday.

The Russian duo will play Sunday in the final at Roland Garros.

Meet the painter with the best seat at Paris Olympics most iconic venue

PARIS — Peter Spens, a London-based painter, has spent the past eight days at the Paris Olympics in a perch atop the media standard high above the beach volleyball court at Eiffel Tower Stadium overlooking the famous French landmark.

For the third consecutive Olympics, the International Volleyball Federation (FIBV) has commissioned Spens to paint a mural of one of the game’s fastest growing and most popular sports.

Spens started drawing this year’s painting last Friday and has been at the venue ever since, using oil paint to add striking detail to his work. When he’s done, the painting will hang at FIBV headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. Eventually, every beach volleyball winner will receive a signed print.

"It’s nice," Spens said. "It’s like for two weeks every four years I become a beach volleyball painter." — David Birkett

USMNT's loss in quarters shows how far it has to go

PARIS — It took all of seven minutes to end the best run by the U.S. men's soccer team at the Olympics in almost 25 years.

That’s how much time elapsed between second-half goals by Ilias Akhomach and Achraf Hakimi, both of which came off U.S. mistakes. What had been a close game became a rout, allowing Morocco to move onto next week’s semifinals with a 4-0 win.

While the Americans will try and find some comfort in making their deepest run since 2000, when they finished fourth in Sydney, this was yet more proof they remain very far away from contending with the best teams in the world.

Morocco was clearly the better team, finishing with a whopping 8-1 advantage in shots, and the Americans just as clearly had no answer for the Atlas Lions. Worse, both goals from the run of play were the result of U.S. miscues. — Nancy Armour

USA's Casey Kaufhold, Brady Ellison win team archery bronze

The United States' Casey Kaufhold and Brady Ellison combined Friday to win the bronze medal in the archery mixed team competition.

The Americans beat India 6-2 in the bronze medal match after losing 5-3 to Germany in the semifinals.

Against India, the U.S. opened with perfect 10 with the first arrow in all four sets.

The medal for Kaufhold, 20, is the first for a U.S. female archer since 1988 and a nice consolation after the world's No. 1 suffered an early upset defeat in the individual competition in the Paris Games.

It was the fourth medal for Ellison, 35, who is in his fifth Olympics and still searching for his first gol. He'll try for that Sunday in the final four rounds of the men's individual tournament. — Gentry Estes

Iga Swiatek wins bronze medal

Iga Swiatek knocked off Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia 6-2, 6-1 in the women's singles bronze medal match to become Poland's first tennis player to win an Olympic medal in tennis.

China's Qinwen Zheng and Croatia's Donna Vekic will face off in the gold medal match Saturday.

USMNT eliminated by Morocco

Morocco is moving on to its first ever men's Olympic semifinals.

Morroco beat the United States 4-0, getting a final goal when Mehdi Maouhoub converted a penalty kick. Team USA made it out of the knockout stage at the Olympics for the first time since 2000.

Morroco will play the winner of Japan vs. Spain in the semis.

Taiwan boxer wins Olympics opener

Lin Yu-Ting of Taiwan won her opening bout in the women’s competition as the issue of gender and eligibility criteria continued to generate anger and confusion. Capitalizing on her length and quickness, the 5-foot-10 Lin beat Uzbekistan's Sitora Turdibekova on points by unanimous decision.

Lin and Imane Khelif were disqualified from the 2023 world championships for reportedly failing gender eligibility criteria at an event run by the International Boxing Association. — Josh Peter

Morocco up 3-0 on USMNT

Hope is dwindling for the U.S. men's soccer team, which finds itself down 3-0 against Morocco.

Morocco extended its lead to 2-0 in the 63rd minute when Ilias Akhomach scored on an assist from Oussama Targhalline. Achraf Hakimi scored seven minutes later to give Morocco the 3-0 lead.

Chase Budinger, Miles Evans lose in straight sets

The men's beach volleyball tandem of Chase Budinger and Miles Evans lost 21-18, 21-11 to Spain's Pablo Herrera and Adrian Gavira. They are no longer in control of their own destiny, awaiting the results of the Netherlands-France match to find out where they place in pool and if they move on.

Carlos Alcaraz will play for gold

Spain men's tennis star and three-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz will get a chance to add a gold medal to his trophy case.

Alcaraz, 21, cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada to become the second-youngest man in the history of the Olympics to reach the men's singles final.

Morocco strikes first against USMNT

PARIS − A questionable penalty has the U.S. men in a hole.

Morocco leads the Americans 1-0 at halftime of their quarterfinal match Friday after Soufiane Rahimi converted a penalty in the 29th.

The Atlas Lions dominated the first half – four shots on goal to none, and a 66-34 edge in possession – and U.S. goalkeeper Patrick Schulte tipped a dangerous curling shot by Ilias Akhomachi over the crossbar in the 13th. But it took Rahimi’s penalty to get Morocco on the board.

In the 28th minute, Nathan Harriel and Oussama El Azzouzi were both going for a ball and Rahimi came in late. It looked as if Harriel got Rahimi on the underside of the calf, though the contact didn’t look severe. Still, there was contact and it occurred in the box, so a penalty was called.

Schulte actually guessed correctly, diving to his right. But Rahimi’s shot skirted beneath his fingers and into the net, putting Morocco ahead.

The U.S. men are trying to extend their best run in the Olympic tournament since 2000, when they finished fourth. − Nancy Armour

USA equestrian jumping team wins silver for second consecutive Olympics

VERSAILLES, France — For the second straight Summer Olympics, the United States equestrian jumping team has won silver.

The trio of Laura Kraut, Karl Cook and McClain Ward – and their horses Baloutine, Caracole de la Roque and Ilex, respectively – accomplished the feat Friday at the historic Chateau de Versailles, with the Grand Canal and palace in the distance. − Chris Bumbaca

Can Schauffele win back-to-back golds?

Xander Schauffele, who won gold at the Tokyo Olympics, heads to the clubhouse with another excellent round. He sits atop the leaderboard at 11-under-par after 36 holes of the Olympic golf tournament at Le Golf National. Japan's Hideki Matsuyama is tied with Schauffele through 13 holes. Tommy Fleetwood sits one stroke back.

US sailing duo claims bronze in skiff

Ian Barrows and Hans Henken gave Team USA its first-ever Olympic medal in men's skiff during sailing competition Friday in Marseille.

Barrows and Henken built on strong finishes earlier in the week and finished fourth in the medal race -- pushing them past Ireland for the bronze.

Spain earned the gold and New Zealand took silver. − Steve Gardner

Cunningham advances to high jump final

U.S. high jumper Vashti Cunningham didn’t think the qualifying round in her third Olympics would be challenging.

Cunningham cleared the bar at 6 feet, 3½ inches on her third attempt and had to wait for the final results to see if she had advanced to the final round.

Cunningham found out that she qualified into the women’s high jump final while speaking to reporters after the event. She let out a sigh of relief and was visibly emotional.

“Thank you, lord. I’m sweating right now,” Cunningham said. “This means that God isn’t done with me and has a plan. I knew he had a plan for me at the beginning. I didn’t know it was gonna look like this – third time clearances and scrapping to get into the final. But I’m just blessed.”

Thirteen women advanced to Sunday’s women’s high jump final. Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh is the No. 1 qualifier with a clearance of 6 feet, 4¾ inches. Cunningham and Serbia’s Angelina Topić were the final two qualifiers in the event.

Cunningham placed 13th at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and sixth at the 2020 Tokyo Games.

American Rachel Glenn wasn’t so lucky. Glenn finished in 15th with a jump of 6 feet, 2 inches and didn’t advance.  − Tyler Dragon

Win or go home for U.S. men's soccer team

PARIS − The U.S. men are facing Morocco, and a very hostile crowd, as they try to keep their best run in 24 years going.

This is the Americans’ first trip to the quarterfinals since 2000, when they finished fourth, their best showing in the Olympic tournament. They’re playing Morocco, which has two of the best players in the tournament in leading scorer Soufiane Rahimi and Achraf Hakimi, along with most of the fans at Parc des Princes.

The winner of this game advances to the semifinal Monday in Marseille, where they’ll play either Japan or Spain.

The other big quarterfinal is Argentina vs. host France, who also faced off in the World Cup final in 2022. Though the Olympics are a U-23 tournament for the men, teams are allowed three overage players and all three of Argentina’s are from that World Cup-champion team: Julian Alvarez, Thiago Almada and Geronimo Rulli, the backup goalkeeper. − Nancy Armour

Schauffele atop Olympic golf leaderboard

Hideki Matsuyama was atop the leaderboard after the first round of Olympic golf at Le Golf National. But Xander Schauffele, fresh off major victories at The PGA Championship and The Open Championship, has taken command of the lead in the second round with a two-stroke lead after 16 holes. He opened with a 6-under-par 65 in the opening round of the Paris Olympics.

Slovakian swimmer collapses after 200m individual medley

Slovakia swimmer Tamara Potocka is under medical assessment after collapsing following her women's 200m individual medley heat, a venue official said. The venue's media manager confirmed Potocka was conscious and under medical assessment.

Walsh, Douglass advance to semi's in women’s 200m individual medley

American's Alex Walsh and Kate Douglass made it to the semifinals in the women’s 200m individual medley. Walsh’s time of 2:10.48 was 0.58 slower than the 2:09.90 by Canada’s Summer McIntosh and 0.2 behind China’s Yu Yiting. Douglass swam a 2:10.70 to rank fifth among the qualifiers.

Disappointing day for USA in women's rowing

VAIRES-SUR-MARNE, France. − After Team USA won a gold medal in the men's four rowing event at the Paris Games on Thursday, disappointing finishes for the United States followed on Friday at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.

In an event being discontinued by the Olympics following the Paris Games, the Team USA tandem of Molly Reckford and Michelle Sechser finished last among six boats in lightweight women's double sculls action, with a time of 6:55.60. Great Britain won gold (6:47.06), followed by Romania (silver) and Greece (bronze). In the women's pair finals, Team USA's Azja Czajkowski and Jess Thoennes finished fourth with a time of 7:05.31 as the Netherlands (6:58.67) took gold, followed by Romania (silver) and Australia (bronze).

Medal competition in rowing concludes Saturday with four events, three of which Team USA has qualified for: women's single sculls, women's eight, and men's eight. − Chase Goodbread

Katie Ledecky cruises in 800 freestyle qualifying heat

Katie Ledecky cruised to a comfortable victory in her qualifying heat in the 800-meter freestyle. She owns the fastest 16 times in history in this event, though this (8:16:62) was not one of them.

She will be looking for an unprecedented fourth consecutive gold medal in the event − her final one at the Paris Olympics − which is scheduled to start at 3:09 p.m. ET (9:09 p.m. in Paris) on Saturday, August 3.

In addition, one more gold medal for Ledecky would be her ninth, breaking a tie with Jenny Thompson and giving her the most by any American woman in Olympic history. − Steve Gardner

Sha'Carri Richardson wins opening round heat in women's 100

PARIS − Sha'Carri Richardson had a fast Olympic debut.

Richardson won her opening round heat of the women's 100 with a time of 10.94. She had a decent start but surged by the other sprinters around 30 meters and cruised the rest of the way. Richardson ran in the first of eight heats. − Tyler Dragon

Sha’Carri Richardson set to run in opening round of 100

PARIS – The women’s 100 is underway in at the Olympics. Defending 100 world champion Sha’Carri Richardson is set to run in heat one of the opening round of the women’s 100. Richardson’s 10.71 is the top time in the world this year.

There are eight opening round heats in the 100. Americans Melissa Jefferson is running in Heat 3 and Twanisha Terry will race in Heat 6 .  − Tyler Dragon

USA's Cole Hocker, Yared Nuguse, Hobbs Kessler advance in men’s 1,500 heats

Americans Cole Hocker and Yared Nuguse advanced out of their opening heats in the men’s 1,500. Hocker was second in Heat 2, finishing in 3:35.27 with a strong kick at the finish. Nuguse was fifth in Heat 1 in 3:36.56. The top six in each heat advanced to the semifinal. Hobbs Kessler coasted to second in Heat 3, finishing in 3:36.87.

American Sagen Maddalena wins silver in shooting

Sagen Maddalena was a surprise medalist in the women's 50-meter three-position rifle shooting competition on Friday at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre.

Maddalena and China's Zhang Qiongyue shot an Olympic record of 593 in qualifying. Maddalena had a perfect score of 200 in shots from the prone position.

Switzerland's Chiara Leone won the gold medal with an Olympic-record score of 464.4, while Maddalena finished at 463. Zhang won the bronze with a score of 452.9.

The U.S. traditionally does well in the Olympic shooting events, but hadn't medaled through the first six days of competition.

Olympics schedule today

Here are some Olympic schedule highlights. Peacock is streaming every sport and event live as it unfolds in Paris.

(All times Eastern)

• Swimming heats start at 5 a.m. The finals — men’s 50m free, women’s 200m backstroke, men’s 200m IM — are back to back to back and start at 2:30 p.m. Caeleb Dressel will swim in the 100m fly heats, Katie Ledecky in the 800m free heats. NBC is airing the finals. USA Network is airing the heats.

• Track and field prelims, heats and qualifying rounds start at 4:05 a.m. and run through 2:50 p.m. E! is airing 4:05-7 a.m. and noon-3:50 p.m. NBC is airing from 1-3:50 p.m.

• Men’s soccer enters the quarterfinals today with four matches: 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The U.S. plays Morocco at 9 a.m. ET. This is the first time since 2000 and second since pool play was introduced at the 1960 Rome Olympics that the U.S. men's team has advanced beyond the group stage. The U.S. has never medaled in men's soccer.

• Men’s golf continues play with Round 2 starting at 3 a.m.

• The 3x3 basketball slate has 16 games starting at 3 a.m. and running through 4:35 p.m.

• Other sports in action: Archery, badminton, beach volleyball, BMX racing, boxing, canoe slalom, diving, equestrian, fencing, field hockey, handball, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, table tennis, tennis, track & field, trampoline, volleyball and water polo.

How to watch Olympics today

NBC is airing and streaming the Paris Olympics from all angles: Peacock is streaming every sport and event live as it unfolds; NBC, USA Network, CNBC and E! are carrying various live events and replays throughout the day. Here are 6 tips and tricks for getting the most out of Peacock during the Olympics.

Medal count today

Our 2024 Paris Olympics medal count tracker updates after every single medal event.

Which U.S. teams are playing at the Olympics today?

(All times Eastern)

• The U.S. men's soccer team plays in a quarterfinal match against Morocco at Parc des Princes in Paris at 9 a.m. USA Network, Telemundo and Peacock are airing.

• The U.S. men’s golf team continues play with Round 2, which starts at 3 a.m. Friday's tee times for American golfers: Xander Schauffele at 3:55 a.m., Collin Morikawa at 4:11 a.m., Wyndham Clark at 5:44 a.m., Scottie Scheffler at 6:06 a.m. Golf Channel is airing.

• The U.S. men’s volleyball team faces Japan in pool play at 3 p.m. USA Network is airing.

• The U.S. women’s water polo team faces France in group play at 12:30 p.m. USA Network is airing.

• The U.S. women’s 3x3 basketball team plays two games: The first is against France at 7 a.m. (USA Network), the second against Canada at noon (NBC).

• The U.S. men’s 3x3 basketball team plays two games: The first against France at 12:35 p.m. (NBC), the second against China at 4:35 p.m.

• The U.S. is competing in men’s beach volleyball against Spain at 9 a.m. NBC is airing.

• The U.S. is competing in women’s beach volleyball against Germany at 4 p.m. NBC is airing.

What Olympic medals can be won today?

(All times Eastern)

• Swimming: men’s 50m free (2:30 p.m.), women’s 200m backstroke (2:39 p.m.), men’s 200m IM (2:49 p.m., NBC)

• Tennis: women’s singles bronze (6 a.m.), men’s doubles bronze (6 a.m.), mixed doubles bronze (6 a.m.), mixed doubles gold (1 p.m.)

• BMX racing: men’s final (3:35 p.m.), women’s final (3:50 p.m.)

• Shooting: 50m rifle 3 positions women's final (3:30 a.m., NBC)

• Rowing: men’s pair final A (5:30 a.m.), women’s pair final A (5:42 a.m.), LWT men’s doubles sculls final A (6:02 a.m.), LWT women’s double sculls final A (6:22 a.m.)

• Trampoline: women’s final (7:50 a.m.), men’s final (1:45 p.m.)

• Equestrian: Jumping team final (8 a.m., E!)

• Diving: men’s synchronized 3m springboard final (8 a.m.)

• Badminton: mixed doubles bronze (9 a.m.), mixed doubles gold (10:10 a.m., USA Network)

• Archery: mixed team bronze (10:24 a.m., USA Network), mixed team gold (10:43 a.m., NBC)

• Judo: Six medal matches (11:18 a.m. start)

• Track & field: men’s 10,000m final (3:20 p.m., NBC)

• Fencing: men’s epee team bronze (1:30 p.m.), men’s epee team gold (2:30 p.m.)

• Sailing: windsurfing finals (times TBD)

Olympic swimming schedule today

(All times Eastern)

• Heats for the following events start at 5 a.m.: men’s 100m fly, women’s 200m IM, women’s 800m free, mixed 4x100 medley relay.

• Semifinals for the following events start in the afternoon: men’s 100m fly (5:09 p.m.), women’s 200m IM (3:34 p.m.)

• Today’s finals: men’s 50m free (2:30 p.m.), women’s 200m backstroke (2:39 p.m.), men’s 200m IM (2:49 p.m.)

Olympic track and field schedule today

(All times Eastern)

• Men’s decathlon events: 100m (4:05 a.m.), long jump (4:55 a.m.), shot put (6:15 a.m.),  high jump (noon), 400m (2:50 p.m.)

• Qualifications: men’s hammer throw (4:10 a.m., 5:35 a.m.), women’s high jump (4:15 a.m.), women’s triple jump (12:15 p.m.), women’s discus throw (12:55 p.m, 2:20 p.m..), men’s shot put (2:10 p.m.)

• Preliminary rounds: women’s 100m (4:35 a.m.)

• Round 1s: men’s 1,500m (5:05 a.m.), women’s 100m (5:50 a.m.), women’s 5,000m (12:10 p.m.), 4x400m mixed relay (1:10 p.m.), women’s 800m (1:45 p.m.)

• Final: men’s 10,000m (3:20 p.m.)

Defending Olympic surfing champion Carissa Moore out; Caroline Marks moves on

The Carissa Moore retirement party will not include another Olympic gold medal.

Moore, the defending Olympic champion surfer who planned to step away from the sport after the Paris Games, failed to make it out of the women’s quarterfinals.

She lost a head-to-head heat with France’s Johanne Defray, who earlier in the competition needed four stitches after suffering a head wound after crashing into the coral reef in Teahupo’o, Tahiti.

The United States still has a chance to medal in surfing, with Caroline Marks reaching the semifinals after winning her quarterfinal heat against Australia’s Tyler Wright.

Marks is scheduled to face Defray in the semifinals. In the other semifinal match, Brazil’s Tatiana Weston-Webb will face Costa Rica’s Brisa Hennessy.

The two American men surfers, John John Florence and Griffin Colapinto, failed to make it out of the round of 16.  Caitlin Simmers, the final member of the team, lost in the women’s round of 16. — Josh Peter

Olympic swimming today: What to watch

The finals of the men’s 50 freestyle will be held on Aug. 2 and American Caeleb Dressel is the event's defending Olympic champion. After taking nearly nine months off last year, Dressel is back to training and dropping time in his events. The men’s 100 butterfly semifinals are also Friday night, an event Dressel won in Tokyo.

Olympic track and field today: What to watch

On the track, the women’s 100-meter heats get under way in the morning. U.S. star sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson is seeking her first Olympic medal. It’s also the day for heats in the 4x400 mixed relay event. In Tokyo, the USA relay (Kendall Ellis, Vernon Norwood, Trevor Stewart and Kaylin Whitney) won bronze behind Poland and the Dominican Republic.

Olympic medal predictions for track and field

Track and field, a signature Olympic sport, will take center stage during the final week of the Olympics. It’s fitting that Stade de France will host track and field for the 2024 Paris Olympics. It’s the country’s largest stadium.

The United States typically performs well at the Olympics in the sport. According to Olympedia, the United States has won the most Olympic medals in track and field history with 828, and the most gold medals in track and field history with 344.

Who will be the big winners on the track and field at the Paris Olympics? — Tyler Dragon

Olympic rowing today: What to watch

It’s the medal final for women’s lightweight double sculls. American Michelle Sechser has won three medals at world championships in the classification.

Olympic basketball today: What to watch

In men’s hoops, France and Germany face off. Germany is a team with momentum on the world stage after winning the 2023 FIBA World Cup, stunning the U.S. team in the semifinals. Dennis Schröder was named MVP (averaging 19.1 points) and will likely return for Paris along with Franz and Moritz Wagner of the Orlando Magic. Victor Wembanyama is the superstar France is counting on.

Flavor Flav, Alexis Ohanian step up to pay rent for US Olympian Veronica Fraley

When you're an Olympian getting ready to compete in your first Olympic Games, the last thing you want to worry about is rent.

Luckily for U.S. track and field athlete Veronica Fraley, she won't have to, thanks to some high-profile fans: Flavor Flav and Alexis Ohanian.

Fraley said on social media on Thursday that even though she is set to make her Olympic debut on Friday in the women's discus, she can't pay rent since her school, Vanderbilt, only sent 75% of her rent.

The post quickly gained attention on social media, and it wasn't long until the Public Enemy co-founder stepped up to the plate. — Jordan Mendoza

Paris Olympics continue opulent and zany theme

After the grand − and not uncontroversial, or necessarily easy, for a foreigner, to decode − extravaganza of the Olympics' Seine-set opening ceremony, the Paris Games have continued with, and even expanded on, the zany opulence theme. — Kim Hjelmgaard

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Olympics results: Highlights from Team USA in Paris on Friday