Paris Summer Olympics 2024

Thought this was pretty good on the race though slightly overdone.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/aug/06/hocker-has-last-laugh-after-kerr-and-ingebrigtsens-tiresome-war-of-words

i saw Kerr's hype video and he seemed a bit of a nob so this result was v funny to me

At least Lyles backed up his antics

xp

When the commentator said early on that Hocker could take this due to his finishing kick, I thought it was homerism.

yeah, me too. i was super impressed by the finish dynamics, with hocker backing off and looking to reposition, and then so clearly going again on the inside.

it was dramatic and tactical in a way that was closer to how cycling sprints work than i’m used to seeing in running.

France Get Handball QF is tight. ET

That was incredible. France lost through a Gerrard like back pass that led to Ger equalizing with 5 seconds left. Then they won at ET

Water polo and Serbia Greece finish was incredible. Greece scored with 10 20 seca to go and Serbia smashed one in with two secs left to win it!

10-20 secs to go...so much desperation in water polo as it gets tight its great

USA - Poland at the men's volleyball SF. We are going to a final set. Poland were drifting for ages.

This is the guy that came up with the goods when Poland needed it the most.

He's Cuban

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilfredo_León

Great finish Pol!

Across the team sports its been v close from all I've seen. No different as we get to the last few mins of Denmark Sweden Handball

A single point again.

Just easing into the day's track and field here. (I can't remember why exactly but I've followed NZ pole vaulter Eliza McCartney on FB for a while -- I think it was the 2021 performance -- and it's fun to see her at it!)

US beat the Aussies at the water polo on pens after having a man sent off for a punch in normal time (they had a man less for nearly a quarter of the match)

China conceded a goal at the women's hockey SF with a couple of mins left to send us to a shootout. As the final whistle went the Chinese hit the ball at the Belgian lol. So much violence!

We were near a brawl, great stuff

Lol the Belgian lobbed the Chinese goalie!

And that was as good as it got for them. The Chinese are in the final!

Italy getting annihilated at the other volleyball SF. France are defending Olympic Champions. Italy are current World Champions but its a cauldron. That's what home advantage gives.

Maybe a stupid question but for the pole vault, can the poles get longer? Or will the record breaking eventually top out with how far you can go on the size of the pole?

The poles are always the poles; the height bar is what is adjusted. If you succeed you keep going; if you're the last one left you go as far as you want to until you fail at your chances or just decide you're done. Once Duplantis had locked up the gold he could have done anything; he called for a height to break the world record because he could (he could have gone lower, or higher, or just stopped). His obvious plan was to break the record -- his own -- and did.

(It does make the pole vault an interesting open-ended event in that way -- unless I'm completely wrong, it's the only field event where it's not a question of best-of-however-many-rounds, but literally ends only whenever it does.)

Okay, men's 400, here we go...

Damn, Hall with the late charge!

What a 400m!!

Amazing, that top three seemed set and then holy shit. Between that and Hocker, object lessons from the US men in 'the race isn't over until it is.'

He just powered through there

Jamaica with the men's discus, between that and the men's shotputter it's kinda nice to see that crew place more in the field half of track and field lately, though maybe I've missed some earlier folks.

Nina Kennedy's reaction to winning the women's pole vault just now was a delight!

man that 400 was sick

even aside from getting gold in the 100m again this has to be the best olympics for usa sprinting in decades

Does feel like a new wave for sure.

An American trying to win the steeplechase, now I've seen everything.

Silver, nine seconds faster than he'd ever run before!

Damn! A last lap fall, El Bakkali locks up the gold, and Rooks with the silver? Quite a men's 3K steeplechase there!

Awesome finish. Bakkali wasn't having it

Italy - Hungary at water polo is good. 9-9 with a min left

Love water polo. The Hungarian had a one on one with the keeper. He saves it and then dunks the Hungarian under water lol

rooks was 150/1 to win btw

Slovenia through to their first ever SF in Olympic Handball. They destroyed Norway

If you can stomach the boxing, the men's lightweight final was fantastic.

i was watching taekwondo. pretty cool.

The climbing competition is legit o_O. Make some time for it if you can (go Erin McNeice!)

I keep missing the climbing, will need to catch up

glad they've split speed climbing from the other disciplines, makes for a much more varied group of competitors

It's funny, as a climber who regularly watches climbing comps, the first hour of the men's boulder semifinals were deeply boring because there were no tops— it was only when the more top-seeded climbers came out that things started getting interesting. Sorato Anraku is fucking awesome, and it was also cool to see Toby Roberts do well. One of the kids from the gyms where I work came in 17th (Jesse Grupper).

Agreed with Roz about the speed climbing, but mostly because speed climbing is (imho rightfully) ghettoized within the climbing world as "not legit." Tons of great speed climbers have never touched a rock out of doors— it is, in many ways, the newest and most impure form of the sport. Training on plastic, wood, and concrete materials indoors has allowed athletes to become better climbers out-of-doors, of course, but none of the people who hold speed records on outdoor routes "practice" speed-climbing qua sport. Just my two cents.

Can't say much about anything else because I only really have time and attention for climbing and some gymnastics events.

Excited to watch Janja slaughter everyone tomorrow in the womens semis. I can only watch so much tv in one day, tomorrow I have to finish an assignment for my summer class and will watch the women's semifinals as a treat.

some of these table tennis serves are like sleight of hand

falling dismally behind in my watching but i super-enjoyed the surfing finals a couple of days ago
Kauli Vaast in the men’s killed it, and I was glad Medina caught bronze.
The women’s comp was great too, Caroline Marks winning gold in a nailbiter

Totally agreed re the surfing, especially the women's. Razor thin! Wouldn't blame Weston-Webb for being a little grumpy there.

Hadn't realized we've got a climbing coterie here -- haven't watched anything yet myself but I may poke in on some replays later.