Summer Olympics

Canada's Margaret MacNeil is an Olympic gold medalist.

MacNeil won the women's 100-meter butterfly on Sunday (Monday in Japan) at the Tokyo Games and was joined by China's Yufei Zhang (silver) and Australia's Emma McKeon (bronze) on the podium.

The race was tight throughout with MacNeil capturing gold with one final push that got her to the wall just .05 seconds ahead of Zhang and .13 seconds ahead of McKeon.

Perhaps nobody was more disappointed with the nailbiter result than American Torri Huske, who finished in fourth place and a stunning .01 seconds off the podium.

Anything but a thrilling race would have been a surprise given how close the field was heading into the competition. Eric Goodman of NBCOlympics.com noted the top six swimmers were all within 0.75 seconds of each other during the qualifying process.

One of those top six swimmers was Huske.

The 18-year-old had the opportunity to become the youngest gold medal winner in the 100-meter butterfly since 1980, per Jake Lourim of the Washington Post.

She turned heads while qualifying for the Olympics by breaking Dana Vollmer's nine-year-old American record in the semifinals and then beating her own mark in the finals with a time of 55.66 seconds.

That mark was also the fastest in the world in 2021 coming into the Olympics, per Christine Brennan of USA Today.

That put Huske squarely under the spotlight for Sunday's race, and she held the lead at one point during the final 50 meters.

However, she couldn't hold off MacNeil, Zhang and McKeon in one of the closest races there will be throughout the Olympics.

Recording artist Pink offered to pay the fines of Norway's women's beach handball team after the players took issue with their required uniform at a recent tournament.

The European Handball Federation said it fined the team €1,500 for wearing "shorts that are not according to the Athlete Uniform Regulations defined in the IHF Beach Handball Rules of the Game."

Pink applauded the players "FOR PROTESTING THE VERY SEXIST RULES" regarding uniforms:

The International Handball Federation requires that women's players wear bikini bottoms "with a close fit and cut on an upward angle toward the top of the leg." The side of the bottoms can be no more than 10 centimeters as well. The men, on the other hand, are expected to wear shorts.

Norway's women's team opted to don shorts in contravention of the rules while playing Spain for the bronze medal in the European championships.

"It was very spontaneous," said Norwegian handball player Katinka Haltvik to local broadcaster NRK (via Caroline Radnofsky of NBC News). "We thought, 'Let's just do it now, and then see what happens."

Norwegian Handball Federation President Kare Geir Lio told Radnofsky the players initially wanted to wear the shorts to begin the tournament but were cautioned by the EHA it could result in a fine or outright disqualification. Lio added the players had the national federation's full support for the protest during the bronze-medal games.

Writing for NBC News, Britni de la Cretaz argued this situation was part of a larger issue regarding the uniform requirements for male and female athletes.  

"Women in sports are often put in a no-win situation, at times being told that while competing they have to wear revealing uniforms that feminize and sexualize their appearance by appealing to the male gaze, while at other times being chastised for their clothing being too revealing, a policing of the morality of women," de la Cretaz wrote.

She also explained how more revealing uniforms on female athletes have been used as a means for others to demean women's sports as a whole.

Norway's Kristian Blummenfelt won the gold medal in the men's triathlon at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday, coming in with an unofficial time of 1:45:04. 

His late push in the final lap of the running portion of the event saw him pull away from Great Britain's Alex Yee (1:45:15).

New Zealand's Hayden Wilde (1:45:24) won the bronze medal by a comfortable margin over a group that included Belgium's Marten van Riel (1:45:52), Great Britain's Jonathan Brownlee (1:45:53), the United States' Kevin McDowell (1:45:54) and Hungary's Bence Bicsak (1:45:56). 

But the day belonged to Blummenfelt. He found himself with a big gap to make up after the swimming portion of the race, trailing France's Vincent Luis by 25 seconds. But he recovered nicely in the biking portion of the event, moving his way up to third place behind Switzerland's Andrea Salvisberg and Norway's Casper Stornes. 

From there, he let his legs do the work, racing past the field to claim his first ever gold medal. 

So exhausted was Blummenfelt that he vomited shortly after crossing the finish line. 

The event started off in truly bizarre fashion, as it had to be restarted after a boat carrying media equipment floated into the path of the swimmers. That forced the buzzer to be sounded for a false alarm, the first time that's happened in Olympic triathlon history. 

Many of the competitors didn't hear the buzzer, swimming nearly 200 meters before race organizers were able to stop them for the restart. 

Anastasija Zolotic became the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in taekwondo Sunday, defeating Russian Tatiana Minina 25-17 in the featherweight final.

Zolotic pulled away in the deciding third round to defeat Minina, becoming an Olympic gold medal winner at just 18. She's the second American athlete to win gold in taekwondo, joining Steven Lopez, who won gold twice.

Zolotic previously won gold medals at the Pan American Games and World Taekwondo Junior Championships. 

Great Britain's Jade Jones, winner of the last two Olympic gold medals in the weight class, was eliminated in the round of 16, helping pave the way for Zolotic's triumph.

"Hopefully [my win] will give it a better image than it has and bring it back up to where USA taekwondo deserves to be: one of the best sports that you can watch," Zolotic told reporters.

Men's basketball got underway at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo on Sunday, and the slate was highlighted by France upsetting Team USA.

The Americans trailed by six entering the fourth quarter after mustering just 11 points in the third before charging back and building a seven-point lead. Team USA struggled mightily from the field late, however, and Boston Celtics wing Evan Fournier hit a go-ahead three with 57 seconds remaining to give France a lead it never relinquished.

The Czech Republic, Italy and Australia also got off to winning starts Sunday as they attempt to end the United States' run of three consecutive Olympic gold medals.

Men's Olympic Basketball Sunday Results

France 83, USA 76

Czech Republic 84, Iran 78

Italy 92, Germany 82

Australia 84, Nigeria 67

France 83, USA 76

Facing perhaps its biggest competition for gold at the 2021 Summer Olympics, Team USA faded late in an 83-76 loss to France on Sunday.

The Americans led by eight at halftime, but France turned the tables with a 25-11 advantage in the third quarter to carry a six-point lead into the fourth.

It looked as though the Americans had solved their shooting woes and were on their way to a come-from-behind win as they built up a seven-point lead in the fourth, but they went cold over the final three minutes, 41 seconds.

Thanks to a 14-0 run, France charged ahead and established an insurmountable lead in the upset win.

As Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium noted, the loss was Team USA's first at the Olympics in 17 years:

As evidenced by the following tweet from CBS Sports HQ, Team USA has not been its usually dominant self since Gregg Popovich replaced Mike Krzyzewski as head coach:

Team USA shot just 36 percent from the field in the game, including 31 percent from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, France connected on 47 percent of its attempts from the floor.

Led by Utah Jazz center and reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, France out-rebounded Team USA 42-36 as well.

The true standout for France was Fournier, who led all players with 28 points on 11-of-22 shooting in the game.

Team USA was led by Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday, who paced the team with 18 points fresh off winning an NBA championship:

Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant found himself in foul trouble and played much of the second half with four fouls. As a result, Durant finished with just 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting.

Team USA will look to get back on track Tuesday when it faces Nigeria, while France will look to build on Sunday's win against host Japan on Tuesday.

Czech Republic 84, Iran 78

Making its first Olympic appearance in men's basketball since Czechoslovakia split up into two nations, the Czech Republic got off to a winning start Sunday.

The Czechs overwhelmed Iran over the first three quarters, leading by 16 at halftime and by 21 entering the fourth.

Iran finally showed signs of life by outscoring the Czechs 32-17 in the final quarter, but the deficit was too much to overcome.

The Czech Republic benefited from balanced scoring, as Patrik Auda, Blake Schlib and Jan Vesely all scored in double figures.

Chicago Bulls guard Tomas Satoransky led the team with 34 minutes played, but he finished with just six points on 2-of-14 shooting. He did contribute in other ways, though, adding eight assists and eight rebounds.

Iran got a game-high 23 points from Behnam Yakhchalidehkordi, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Czech Republic's team effort.

While Iran shot better than the Czech Republic from the field, making 50 percent of its shots compared to the Czechs' 45 percent, the Czechs emerged victorious on the strength of forcing 21 turnovers and winning the rebounding battle 43-33.

Up next for the Czech Republic is France on Wednesday, while Iran will take on Team USA on Wednesday.

Italy 92, Germany 82

Despite trailing for most of the first three quarters against Germany on Sunday, Italy came from behind to win 92-82.

The Italians fell behind by 10 after one quarter and trailed by four entering the fourth, but they outscored the Germans 24-10 in the final quarter to secure the win.

Three players scored at least 18 points for Italy, and five scored in double figures. Simone Fontecchio led the way with 20, while Atlanta Hawks forward Danilo Gallinari added 18 points.

Maodo Lo was the star for Germany, scoring a game-high 24 points. Germany also received major contributions from a pair of NBA players in Washington Wizards guard Isaac Bonga and Orlando Magic big man Moritz Wagner as they scored 13 and 12 points, respectively.

Both teams shot the ball well Sunday in what was an offensive track meet. Italy shot 50 percent from the field and 48 percent from deep, while Germany shot 47 percent from the floor and 47 percent from long range.

Germany turned the ball over 14 times to Italy's nine, and the Italians held the advantage in points in the paint (30-22), points off turnovers (16-2) and fast-break scoring (13-8).

Italy will look to continue rolling Wednesday against Australia, and Germany will attempt to bounce back Wednesday against Nigeria.

Australia 84, Nigeria 67

In a battle between two teams that beat the United States in exhibition games leading up to the Olympics, Australia comfortably defeated Nigeria 84-67 on Sunday.

The game was tightly contested for a while, as it was tied after one and Australia led by three at halftime, but the Aussies pulled away late.

Carrying a six-point lead into the fourth, Australia outscored Nigeria 26-15 to put the game away.

San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills was the standout with a game-high 25 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including 5-of-8 from three-point range. Mills also chipped in six assists, four rebounds and four steals.

Australia also got 11 points out of Utah Jazz guard Joe Ingles and 11 points from former Jazz guard Dante Exum.

No one scored more than 12 points for Nigeria, although it did get double-figure scoring from four players.

Among them were Minnesota Timberwolves guard Josh Okogie (11 points), Miami Heat forward Precious Achiuwa (10 points) and Bucks guard Jordan Nwora (10 points).

Both teams shot the ball poorly at just 39 percent, but Australia made 46 percent of its threes and 89 percent of its free throws compared to 29 percent and 50 percent, respectively, for Nigeria.

They also struggled with ball-handling, as Nigeria turned it over 24 times to Australia's 21.

On Tuesday, Australia will face Belgium, and Nigeria will take on the United States.

Japan is the only team in the Olympic Games men's soccer tournament with six points through two matches.

The host nation moved to the top of Group A with a 2-1 win over Mexico, putting itself in solid position to move on to the final eight of the competition. Japan still has work to do against France on Matchday 3, but it sits in the most ideal position of any side in the 16-team event.

Germany closed out Sunday's eight-game slate with a much-needed victory over Saudi Arabia. Germany navigated through a red card to defender Amos Pieper to move into third place in Group D.

Fifteen of the 16 participants could still qualify for the knockout round. Saudi Arabia was eliminated from medal contention with its loss to Germany.

Sunday Olympic Soccer Results

Group A

France 4, South Africa 3

Japan 2, Mexico 1

Group B

Honduras 3, New Zealand 2

South Korea 4, Romania 0

Group C

Argentina 1, Egypt 0

Spain 1, Australia 0

Group D

Brazil 0, Ivory Coast 0

Germany 3, Saudi Arabia 2

Japan 2, Mexico 1

Japan struck two early goals against Mexico to gain its advantage on top of Group A.

Takefusa Kubo netted his second goal of the tournament in the sixth minute to open the scoring. Kubo used a cutting run through the middle of the penalty area to create space between two Mexico defenders.

Five minutes later, Ritsu Doan converted from the penalty spot to give the host nation a two-goal cushion.

Japan's defense held firm for most of the contest, as Mexico tried to get back into the game with a good amount of offensive pressure. El Tri put six of their eight shots on target, but they did not find the back of the net until Roberto Alvarado's goal in the 85th minute.

Japan only put three of its seven attempts on target, and it lost out 60-40 on the possession battle.

Mexico's goal could end up being important for knockout-stage qualification. Mexico has a plus-two goal differential, which is the same as Japan's record. France sits in third place in Group A with three points and a minus-two goal differential.

El Tri have the easiest game in Matchday 3 against South Africa, and they could still top the group if they outscore Japan or France.

Japan has less work to do than France to move on to the final eight. The host nation just needs a draw to advance. It could even lose by one goal and be safe because of the goal differential tiebreaker.

Germany 3, Saudi Arabia 2

Germany avoided a second consecutive disappointment by scoring down a man in the 75th minute against Saudi Arabia.

Felix Uduokhai headed home to put Germany in front just a few minutes after Pieper was given his marching orders.

Germany had a few chances to finish off the game after Uduokhai's goal, but the attempts from Ragnar Ache did not fall.

Ache and Nadiem Amiri provided the first two goals for Germany. Both tallies were answered by strikes from Sami Al-Najei.

Al-Najei equalized in the 30th and 50th minutes to keep alive Saudi Arabia's hopes of progression before Uduokhai dashed them.

Germany needs to do more work on Matchday 3 to get out of the group stage. It needs to beat Ivory Coast, which held Brazil to a scoreless draw, to move into the top two in Group D.

Brazil and Ivory Coast are tied for first place with four points. Brazil holds a slight advantage in goal differential.

Since Germany is one point back of Ivory Coast, it needs to defeat the African nation to book one of the eight quarterfinal positions.

After withdrawing from the French Open and sitting out Wimbledon to focus on her mental health, Naomi Osaka says she's in a better place.

"More than anything else, I'm just focused on playing tennis," Osaka told reporters. "The Olympics has been a dream of mine since I was a kid, so I feel like the break that I took was very needed. I feel definitely a little bit refreshed, and I'm happy again."

Osaka easily moved to the second round with a 6-1, 6-4 win over China's Zheng Saisai in her first match since withdrawing at Roland Garros over the tournament's media policy. Osaka said she wished to avoid speaking to reporters at the event because of mental health concerns and was fined by Roland Garros after skipping out of her media responsibilities.

When the French Open threatened her with potential disqualification from the event, Osaka withdrew rather than continuing the controversy. She later withdrew from Wimbledon as well.

"There's nothing wrong with my body; I just felt really nervous," Osaka said. "I haven't played since France, so there were definitely some things that I did a bit wrong, but I think I can improve in the matches that I continue playing."

Osaka may now be considered the favorite for her first gold medal after No. 1 seed Ash Barty was upset in Round 1. Osaka faces Switzerland's Viktorija Golubic in Round 2 on Sunday at 10 p.m. ET.

Lee Kiefer made history at the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo on Sunday, becoming the first American fencer to ever win Olympic gold in individual foil.

Team USA tweeted the news following Kiefer's landmark victory:

Kiefer won a tightly contested battle to take gold, outlasting Inna Deriglazova of the Russian Olympic Committee 15-13 in the gold-medal match.

The 27-year-old Kiefer is a Cleveland native who is competing in her third Olympic Games. She failed to medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London (placed fifth) and the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro (10th).

Kiefer entered the 2021 Olympics as a strong candidate to medal, however, after finishing second in women's individual foil at the FIE Grand Prix in Turin, Italy, in 2020 and finishing third in the event at the Fencing World Cup in Katowice, Poland, last year.

A four-time NCAA champion at Notre Dame, Kiefer finally broke through for Team USA after many close calls for the Americans over the years.

American men have won Olympic silver in the individual foil three times, with the most recent instance happening at the 2016 Summer Olympics when Alexander Massialas fell to Italy's Daniele Garozzo in the gold-medal match.

As for the American women, Kiefer is the first to win an Olympic medal of any kind in the individual foil event.

To take gold, Kiefer had to defeat one of the most prolific fencers in the world in Deriglazova.

Deriglazova is now a three-time Olympic medalist, taking silver in the team foil in 2012, gold in individual foil in 2016 and silver in individual foil this year.

She is also a three-time gold medalist in individual foil at the Fencing World Championships, and she won gold last year at the World Cup and this year at the Grand Prix in Doha, Qatar.

With Kiefer's triumph, Team USA has now won four gold medals at the 2021 Summer Olympics thus far.

The United States Olympic softball team stayed undefeated in the Tokyo Games with a 2-1 win over Australia in eight innings. With the victory, Team USA moved to 4-0 in the five-game round-robin slate.

The Day 4 softball schedule also included defending gold medalist and tournament hosts Japan facing Canada and Italy taking on Mexico.

Here's a look at how the day's action went down in Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium.

Olympic Softball Day 4 Scores

United States def. Australia, 2-1 (8 innings)

Japan def. Canada, 1-0

Italy vs. Mexico: 7 a.m.

Standings

1. Japan (4-0, +14 run differential)

2. United States (4-0, +6 run differential)

3. Canada (2-2, +8 run differential)

4. Australia (1-3, -13 run differential)

5. Mexico (0-3, -7 run differential)

6. Italy (0-3, -8 run differential)

Day 4 Highlights

Amanda Chidester's game-ending two-run single propelled the United States to a 2-1 comeback win over Australia.

Chidester's hit scored Ally Carda and Haylie McCleney, who reached base after all four of her plate appearances (two walks, single, triple).

On the mound, Team USA starting pitcher Monica Abbott struck out 13 batters over eight innings. Her and Cat Osterman have combined to allow just one run through four Olympic matchups.

Australia scored that lone run in the eighth inning off a bases-loaded walk. Abbott worked her way out of the jam, though, leading to Team USA's two-run frame.

Australia pitcher Tarni Stepto largely quieted the Team USA attack, shutting the Americans down through seven innings prior to extras. She struck out three and allowed five walks and five hits through 7.1 innings in defeat.

Team USA will face Japan to close round-robin play.

The matchup will determine the winner of the round-robin group, with Japan remaining undefeated with a 1-0 win over Canada. Both countries are undefeated, but Japan currently leads the standings because of a stronger run differential. 

This article will be updated to provide more information on this story as it becomes available.

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Yui Ohashi won Japan's second Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo Games after she took first in the women's 400-meter individual medley in the Tokyo Aquatics Centre.

Ohashi's finished with a time of 4:32.08 as she held off a late charge from the United States' Emma Weyant, who earned the silver medal. Hali Flickinger of Team USA finished with the bronze.

Katinka Hosszu of Hungary, who is the Olympic and world record holder in the 400-meter individual medley, ended in fifth place.

Here's a look at the race results, highlights and race notes.

Results

1. Yui Ohashi (Japan): 4:32.08

2. Emma Weyant (United States): 4:32.76

3. Hali Flickinger (United States): 4:34.90

4. Mireia Belmonte (Spain): 4:35.13

5. Katinka Hosszu (Hungary): 4:35.98

6. Viktoria Mihalyvari-Farkas (Hungary): 4:37.75

7. Aimee Willmott (Great Britain): 4:38.30

8. Ilaria Cusinato (Italy): 4:40.65

Highlights

Race Notes

Ohashi had never won gold on the world stage, but she's certainly had her fair share of success.

The 25-year-old took silver in the 200-meter individual medley at the 2017 World Championships and bronze at the 400-meter individual medley at the 2019 World Championships.

Ohashi had never competed on the Olympic stage before, but she made the most of her debut with a fantastic performance, particularly on the breaststroke and backstroke legs.

Ohashi won Japan's second gold medal of the Games. The first one was courtesy of Naohisa Takato after his win in the 132-pound judo final.

Emma Weyant will be a name to watch in the present and future, as the 19-year-old turned heads with her performance on the international stage. Her performance in the freestyle portion landed her in second.

But the future Virginia Cavalier also notably dominated during her heat, as Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated wrote:

That marked her first-ever performance in an international meet.

Likewise, a strong showing in the freestyle leg propelled Flickinger onto the podium.

Flickinger had many fans in her corner:

She barely held off Mireia Belmonte, who won Olympic gold in the 200-meter butterfly in 2016.

Hosszu, who rightfully earned her "Iron Lady" moniker, looked as if she would be in position for a medal but faded a bit down the stretch. Her phenomenal resume includes 26 World Championship gold medals and three golds on the Olympic stage.