Tag: tokyo olympics

Gators News: Tokyo Olympics continue while Gator Walk Village gets expansion

The Olympics continue with several current and former Gators competing among their international peers, with Grant Holloway leading the way.

We have reached the middle of the week and things are slowly heating up on the hot stove as the fall athletic season approaches. Meanwhile, the Tokyo Olympics continue with several current and former Gators competing among their international peers, with UF legend Grant Holloway leading the way. Back in Gainesville, Florida’s tailgating scene gets an expansion ahead of the 2021 college football season. Here is a look at the latest from around the Swamp.

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Sydney McLaughlin chased down Dalilah Muhammad to win 400m hurdles and set new world record

An incredible race between two now-Olympic champions.

The women’s 400-meter hurdles — one of the most anticipated track and field showdowns at the Tokyo Olympics — did not disappoint Wednesday morning at the Games (and Tuesday night in the U.S.).

With two Americans at the top of their sport, it was the Sydney McLaughlin and Dalilah Muhammad show with McLaughlin entering the race as the world record holder while Muhammad was the defending Olympic champion. And somehow, these two make this very challenging event look easy.

The 400-meter hurdles final came down to the two of them, as 21-year-old McLaughlin chased down 31-year-old Muhammad to break her own world record and win her first Olympic gold medal with a thrilling near-photo finish. And McLaughlin didn’t just break her world record; she shattered it with a time of 51.46, and Muhammad won silver at 51.58.

Just an incredible race between two now-Olympic champions:

The American pair now have four combined world records, with Muhammad previously breaking it twice in 2019 and McLaughlin lowering it to 51.90 at U.S. Olympic Trials in June.

In the Olympic final, Muhammad also ran under McLaughlin’s previous world record.

(ANTONIN THUILLIER/AFP via Getty Images)

The Netherlands’ Femke Bol won bronze at 52.03, and the third American in the final, Anna Cockrell, finished seventh but was disqualified because of a lane infraction.

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See Simone Biles’ dazzling balance beam performance that won her bronze at Tokyo Olympics

Simone Biles won her seventh Olympic medal in her comeback at the Tokyo Olympics.

Simone Biles added to her GOAT status Tuesday at the Tokyo Olympics when she returned to competition after dealing with the “twisties” to win the bronze medal on the balance beam.

The 24-year-old superstar gymnast is now a seven-time Olympic medalist with back-to-back bronze medals on beam, along with a silver medal from the team competition last week and four gold medals from the 2016 Rio Olympics.

But Biles had to withdraw from the team competition, the all-around competition and the other three individual finals because she was struggling with the “twisties” — a dangerous condition where gymnasts lose their sense of awareness in the air. She did what was best for her to protect her physical and mental health, but she was ultimately cleared to return for the beam final.

Biles dazzled, and here’s a look at the performance that earned her a bronze medal — what she said “means more than all the golds.”

From The New York Times:

“I wasn’t expecting to walk away with a medal,” Biles said. “I was just going out there doing this for me.”

She added, “To have one more opportunity to be at the Olympics meant the world to me.”

And her teammate, Jordan Chiles, was loving the moment too.

With her latest bronze medal, Biles is now tied with Shannon Miller for the most medals won by a U.S. gymnast. She finished behind Chinese gymnasts Guan Chenchen and Tang Xijing, respectively, and all-around champion Suni Lee finished fifth.

Whether this was Biles’ last Olympic appearance remains to be seen, as she told USA TODAY Sports that she’s “still trying to process this Olympics.”

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Caeleb Dressel is brutally honest about how taxing the Olympics can be: ‘It’s a week of hell’

Caeleb Dressel is proud of his five gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics, but he’s absolutely drained.

When the Tokyo Olympics swimming program finished last weekend, Caeleb Dressel left the pool as a seven-time Olympic medalist, and all of them have been gold.

After being part of winning relay teams at the 2016 Rio Games, the 24-year-old sprinter won five gold medals in six events in Tokyo: individually in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly and two more on the men’s 4×100-meter medley relay and 4×100-meter freestyle relay teams. He’s one of just five swimmers to accomplish such a feat at a single Games, along with Michael Phelps, Mark Spitz, Matt Biondi, and Kristin Otto.

But when it was finally over, Dressel opened up about how challenging physically and mentally the Olympics can be on athletes.

After the men’s medley relay officially ended the swimming program, he was surrounded by his teammates on the pool deck and could barely stand. Happy, of course, but absolutely drained.

“This is not easy, not an easy week at all,” he said after his last race, via USA TODAY Sports. “Some parts were extremely enjoyable. I would say the majority of them were not. You can’t sleep right, you can’t nap, shaking all the time. I probably lost 10 pounds. I’m going to weigh myself and eat some food when I get back. It’s a lot of stress we put on the body. …

“It’s not the most enjoyable process but it is worth it. Every part of it is worth it. Just cause it’s bad doesn’t mean it’s not worth it.”

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Tuesday on CBS This Morning, Dressel was even more brutally honest about how painful the Olympics can be.

After that aforementioned quote was read back to Dressel, he expanded and said:

“It’s a week of hell, if I’m being quite honest. Being on the podium, of course, is enjoyable, but the majority of what — not just myself, not just swimmers, I think the majority of all athletes — it’s not necessarily fun, the core of the whole process. …

“You go your whole life for one moment that boils down to a race that lasts a couple seconds. If you’re a little bit off that day — I wasn’t I wasn’t perfect in any race. I wasn’t perfect mindset-wise going into any event. Every ready room is different, every year is completely different, and there’s parts of it that suck. But at no point in that quote did I say, none of it was worth it. It’s all a great learning experience. Every part of it, I do enjoy.”

Dressel also addressed the massive pressure he faced to live up to expectations and how that pressure can morph into extra stress. But he said he competes for himself and to push his own potential, rather than being the next Michael Phelps.

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He said anyone who wants to challenge that approach can “kick rocks.” And he extended that sentiment to include Simone Biles — who withdrew from several Olympic events to protect her mental and physical health before winning a bronze medal on the balance beam — and athletes everywhere.

Dressel continued on CBS This Morning:

“Pressure’s fine. I can’t do anything about what other people expect me to do. It’s irrelevant. I don’t I don’t really care what people expect me to do at these Games. It’s all about me. It might sound a little selfish, but it’s what I want to accomplish and reaching my potential. Everything else, everybody else’s opinion, they can kick rocks. It doesn’t, shouldn’t, pertain to me. …

“Every athlete handles it different, and for every athlete, no one else’s opinion should matter. It’s up to the individual. So Simone what she did, it was her choice, and it shouldn’t pertain to anyone but her. So I think a lot of people shouldn’t open their mouth if you’re against her. It shouldn’t affect you in any way, shape or form what this one particular athlete is doing.”

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Simone Biles says her Tokyo Olympics beam bronze medal ‘means more than all the golds’

Simone Biles opened up about what it took for her to return to competition at the Tokyo Olympics.

Simone Biles entered the Tokyo Olympics with five Olympic medals from the 2016 Rio Games: four golds and one bronze. But she feels that bronze medal, which she won on balance beam, is “so neglected.”

In her Facebook Watch docuseries, Simone vs Herself, highlighting her training leading up to Tokyo, she said people often referred to her as a four-time Olympic gold medalist and completely forget the bronze, which meant just as much to her as gold.

Biles is now a seven-time Olympic medalist, which ties her with Shannon Miller for the most medals won by a U.S. gymnast. And again she won bronze in the women’s balance beam final at the Tokyo Olympics on Tuesday.

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And while her bronze medal from Rio is special to her, she said this medal, to her, “means more than all the golds.”

From the TODAY show:

“It means more than all the golds because I’ve pushed through so much the last five years and the last week while I’ve even been here,” Biles said. “It was very emotional, and I’m just proud of myself and just all of these girls, as well.”

“I didn’t really care about the outcome,” she added. “I was just happy that I made the routine and that I got to compete one more time.”

(JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images)

She also won a silver medal in Tokyo as part of the team competition, and on beam, she finished behind Chinese gymnasts Guan Chenchen and Tang Xijing, while all-around champion Suni Lee finished fifth.

Biles’ last week included pulling out of the team competition, the all-around final and the three other individual event finals because she was battling the “twisties” — a dangerous condition where gymnasts lose their sense of awareness in the air. Too great of a risk to her physical and mental health, Biles opted not to compete before ultimately being cleared for the balance beam final.

And for her, competing again at the Tokyo Games was a victory in itself, and she detailed the challenges she faced to return to competition.

More via the TODAY show:

“The girls saw me in training, my coaches saw me in training; I physically couldn’t do it safely, and it’s because I was getting so lost in the air,” Biles said. “Before team finals, the girls were terrified for me and they’ve never really been scared.”

“At the end of the day, we’re not just athletes or entertainment,” she said. “We’re human too, and we have real emotions, and sometimes they don’t realize that we have things going on behind the scenes that affect us whenever we go out and compete.”

She also took issue with the idea that her withdrawal amounted to “quitting.”

“It wasn’t an easy decision, so it hurts that people are like, ‘Oh she quit’ … because I’ve worked five years for that,” she said. “Why would I quit? I’ve been through so much over the past couple years in the sport. I just don’t quit.”

Biles’ bronze medal on beam also gave her a total of 32 Olympic and world championship medals, tying Larisa Latynina of the Soviet Union, as The New York Times noted.

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Gators News: Latest Tokyo Olympics updates plus soccer adds a new player

As it has been for the entire summer games, there are plenty of current and former Gators still competing on the international stage, especially now that the track and field events have begun.

Welcome to a Tuesday edition of Gators News as the Tokyo Olympics continues on the other side of the world. As it has been for the entire summer games, there are plenty of current and former Gators still competing on the international stage, especially now that the track and field events have begun. Plus, one women’s golfer is set to make history as the first female to represent Puerto Rico in her sport. Additionally, the soccer team added a player through the transfer portal ahead of their upcoming season and the women’s golf team has two of its own in amateur action.

Here is a look at the latest news from the Gator Nation.

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WATCH: Raevyn Rogers mounts insane comeback to win first Olympic medal in 800m final

Raevyn Rogers looked to be down and out, but a massive kick down the backstretch shot her past 4 women and put her in third, winning bronze in the 800m final.

Now that’s how you finish a race like there’s no tomorrow.

For about 90 percent of the race, Oregon Ducks legend Raevyn Rogers was near the back of the pack, seemingly letting her chance at a first Olympic medal in the 800m final get away from her. Up ahead, United States sensation, Athing Mu, was dominating and pulling away down the backstretch.

While the world was focused on the 19-year-old who was about to cruise to her first of hopefully many medals, Rogers was mounting a charge.

Down the final straightaway, Raevyn flew up the leaderboard, making her way past four other women to just barely edge out a third-place finish as she crossed the stripe. Mu won the gold, and Great Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson — another 19-year-old — won the silver.

It was stressful until the very end, and at many points, didn’t look like it was going to happen, but Rogers found a way to get the job done and land on the podium in her first Summer Olympics.

The legend lives on for one of Oregon’s all-time favorites.

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Jade Carey threw down a stunning floor exercise routine to win her first Olympic gold medal

Talk about some redemption for Jade Carey!

USA’s women’s gymnastics team will all be going home with at least one medal from these Tokyo Olympics thanks to Jade Carey’s superb gold-medal winning floor exercise.

On Monday, Carey won her first-ever Olympic gold medal after posting a floor exercise score of 14.366, besting Italian Vanessa Ferrari by 0.166 points. With the win, Carey has become the sixth and final US woman gymnast at these Olympics to win a medal, joining teammates Simone Biles, Sunisa Lee, Grace McCallum, Jordan Chiles, and MyKayla Skinner.

The win marks an incredible turnaround from Carey, who just 24 hours prior took a scary tumble during the vault final on Sunday, finishing well off the medal podium in the process. Carey’s stunning victory no doubt was a moment of redemption and vindication for the 21-year-old.

It doesn’t get any better than that!

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Tokyo Olympics: What is sport climbing? Explaining the newest sport

If you’re looking for something different in the upcoming schedule at the Olympics, one event that may catch your eye is sport climbing.

If you’re looking for something different in the upcoming schedule at the Olympics, one event that may catch your eye is sport climbing.

This is the first year that sport climbing will compete in the Olympics and if you have no idea what to expect once everything unfolds, we’re here to offer some helpful context.

Right off the bat, let’s start with the basics. Sport climbing is, at its essence, competitive rock climbing. The athletes are using just their hands and feet to ascend up a vertical wall. No equipment is permitted beyond safety ropes and climbing shoes.

The sport is broken up into three unique subsections. They are as follows:

Bouldering – Complete as many routes (also called “problems”) possible in a given time

Lead – Climb as high as possible on a 15-meter wall in a 6-minute window

Speed – Climb as fast as possible on a 15-meter wall, typically finishing in quicker than ten seconds

The athletes compete in each of these events and medals are awarded based on overall placement in the aggregate. Winners must show a wide range of skills in order to take home their medals.

However, because each discipline is given equal weight, accomplished climbers who do not typically focus on speed are put at a disadvantage. Shauna Coxsey, who will compete for Great Britain, offered this explanation (via Olympics.com):

“It’s a bit like asking Usain Bolt to run a marathon and then do the hurdles. No one has really transitioned before. No boulderer has transitioned to speed and lead, and no speed climber has done it to bouldering and lead.”

Another unique element about sport climbing in the Tokyo Olympics is that athletes will not actually get to see the walls for the bouldering discipline or the lead discipline until right before they begin the competition. The walls will literally be held under wraps until right before climbing.

The United States is sending four athletes (two men, two women) to compete at sport climbing in the Tokyo Olympics. Qualifying events begin Aug. 3 and the finals are on Aug. 5 and Aug. 6.

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Olympic Update: Jenna Prandini finishes 13th in 200m; Raevyn Rogers to run in 800m final

There are a number of former Ducks competing at a high level in the Tokyo Games, with Raevyn Rogers advancing to the 800 final, and Jenna Prandini finishing 13th in the 200m.

The Oregon Ducks have been well-represented at the Tokyo Olympics this past week, with well over a dozen athletes running in the ‘Athletics’ section of the games.

Competition on the track is well underway, and for fans of the Ducks, it has been highlighted by Oregon legend Raevyn Rogers, who advanced to the 800m final which will be run on Tuesday morning at 5:25 a.m. PT.

We will continue to update this list as the Olympic games go on, with some big stars continuing to take the track, including Devon Allen, Marcus Chambers, and English Gardner. Stay tuned as the Tokyo Games continue to roll on.