Biles leads U.S. to women’s team gold in gymnastics

PARIS (AP) — “The Redemption Tour” ended in a familiar spot for Simone Biles: atop the Olympic podium. The American gymnastics star and her singular brilliance powered a dominant U.S. women’s team in the finals inside a raucous Bercy Arena. With Biles at her show-stopping best, the Americans’ total of 171.296 was well clear of Italy and Brazil and the exclamation point of a yearlong run in which Biles has cemented her legacy as the greatest ever in her sport and among the best in the history of the Olympics.

Kaylee McKeown still rules the Olympic backstroke, beating Regan Smith in women’s 100 meters

NANTERRE, France (AP) — Kaylee McKeown still rules the women’s Olympic backstroke. The Australian knocked off world-record holder Regan Smith of the United States in the 100 back, defending the title she won at the Tokyo Games. Last month at the U.S. trials, Smith broke McKeown’s world mark with a time of 57.13 seconds. She led at the turn in the Olympic final but couldn’t hold off the hard-charging Aussie. McKeown surged to the front about halfway through the return lap and reached for the wall in 57.33, winning by a relatively comfortable margin over Smith’s finish of 57.66. The U.S. also grabbed the bronze as Katharine Berkoff touched third.

US women win a first Olympic medal in rugby sevens with comeback victory over Australia

SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Alex Sedrick ran most of the length of the field to give the U.S. women a first Olympic rugby sevens medal with a stunning stoppage-time comeback win over Australia in the bronze-medal match. The 2016 champion Australians were leading 12-7 with seconds remaining and deep in U.S. territory. The ball went to Sedrick and she bumped off two tacklers before racing all the way to the other end to spark jubilation for the Americans. The Americans rushed onto the field to celebrate the 14-12 victory. The U.S. women reached the Olympic semifinals for the first time and lost to defending champion New Zealand.

Sophia Smith contributes to reborn US attack at the Olympics

Sophia Smith, along with Mallory Swanson and Trinity Rodman, are helping the United States reclaim its status as a team to be feared at the Olympics in France. Smith scored both of her goals in the team’s 4-1 victory on Sunday over Germany that clinched the Americans a spot in the quarterfinals at their first major tournament under coach Emma Hayes. The United States’ reputation has slipped a bit in recent years following the team’s bronze medal in Tokyo and disappointment at the World Cup.

Coco Gauff loses an argument with the chair umpire and a match to Donna Vekic at the Paris Olympics

PARIS (AP) — Coco Gauff got into an extended argument with the chair umpire over a ruling during the reigning U.S. Open champion’s 7-6 (7), 6-2 loss to Donna Vekic of Croatia in a Paris Olympics third-round singles match. Gauff already was trailing by a lot when the episode happened two games from the end of the match. Gauff hit a serve and Vekic’s return landed near the baseline. A line judge initially called Vekic’s shot out; Gauff did not keep the ball in play. Chair umpire Jaume Campistol thought Vekic’s shot landed in and awarded her the point, giving her a service break and a 4-2 lead. Gauff walked over to talk to the official and play was delayed for several minutes.

Another Chinese doping controversy pops up during Olympic swimming competition

NANTERRE, France (AP) — Another Chinese doping allegation has flared up at the Paris Games, angering some swimmers who say officials need to enforce drug-testing rules consistently. The New York Times reported Tuesday that two top Chinese swimmers — one on the Olympic team — tested positive for a banned drug in 2022 but were eventually cleared by Chinese officials. Anti-doping officials say the athletes were cleared because a Chinese investigation determined that they accidentally ate tainted beef.

Men’s Olympic triathlon postponed in Paris over Seine water quality concerns

PARIS (AP) — Concerns about water quality in the Seine River led Paris Olympics organizers to postpone the men’s triathlon. Officials on Tuesday say they hope the swimming portion of the race will be able to go forward in the long-polluted waterway Wednesday or in the coming days following an expensive cleanup effort. The women’s competition also is scheduled for Wednesday, but both will only go forward if water tests show safe levels of E. coli and other bacteria in the river. However, storms or rain are forecast Tuesday night through Thursday, which could complicate efforts to reschedule the events. Rain generally causes bacteria levels in the Seine to rise.

Rory McIlroy hoping Olympic gold can help fill a void of 10 years without silver major trophies

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France (AP) — Rory McIlroy was the center of attention as he began preparations for the Olympics. Only he wasn’t at Le Golf National. He was spotted playing the Old Course at St. Andrews on Monday with a thousand or so spectators gathered around the 18th hole. McIlroy sees the Olympics as a chance to redeem himself from his last performance. That was a missed cut at the British Open, ending another year without a major. Can a gold fill the void of 10 years without a major? For now, he says it would be his biggest feat in 10 years.