Americans Gabby Thomas, McKenzie Long and Brittany Brown advanced to the women’s 200-meter final at the Paris Olympics.

Thomas, the defending bronze medalist and favorite to win gold this time, blazed through her semifinal heat to win in 21.86. She has the fastest 200 time in the world, 21.78, which she ran June 28 at the U.S. track and field trials in Eugene, Oregon. 

Thomas was behind at the curve, but easily overtook Dina Asher-Smith of Great Britain on the straightaway. Asher-Smith, who finished in 22.31, also advanced to the finals. 

Long, whose story of reaching the Olympics as she navigated the sudden death of her mother has inspired other runners, owns the second fastest 200 time in the world this year at 21.83. She finished third in her heat at 22.30, but qualified for the final on time. Julien Alfred, who won the women’s 100 Saturday and earned Saint Lucia’s first-ever medal, won Long’s heat in 21.98.

A star at Ole Miss, Long won the 100 and 200 NCAA titles in June. Paris is her first Olympics. 

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It is also the first Olympics for Brown, who won the third and final heat in 22.11.

None of the American sprinters stopped to speak with reporters after their heats.

The women’s 200 final is scheduled for Tuesday at 3:40 p.m. ET (9:40 p.m.in Paris) at Stade de France. It is the last event of the day.

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SAINT-DENIS, France — The 100 champion is off and running in the 200.

Noah Lyles coasted to an easy win in the men’s 200 on Monday. Lyles took the lead around the turn, led comfortably down the home stretch and crossed the finish line in 20.19 seconds to win the sixth and final heat of the 200.

‘That was kind of getting the legs moving and stuff like that. Me and my coach knew it was a race where we were really gonna have to play it by ear,’ Lyles explained after the first round. ‘He said (come in) top two. In my heart I said one. In my heart I said win the first 120 (meters), win the second 150 (meters) and then from there, check the surroundings and make adjustments.’

Lyles, who still had a smile on his face after his victory in the 100, told reporters he watched tape of his 100 win multiple times last night.

‘I watched it last night and I watched it this morning,’ Lyles said. ‘I watched it quite a few times throughout the day.’

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Lyles is trying to become the first American sprinter to win Olympic gold medals in both the 100 and 200 since Carl Lewis accomplished the feat at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. He came into the Olympics with the No. 1 200 time in the world this year (19.53). He’s also the American record holder in the event.

The U.S. sprinter won his first ever Olympic gold medal in the 100 on Sunday in a dramatic photo finish.

The 200 is Lyles’ signature event.

All three Americans advance in 200 men’s semis

Kenny Bednarek won the fourth heat in the 200 with a time of 19.97.

Bednarek is hoping to get on the 200 Olympic podium after he finished seventh in Sunday’s 100 final. He raced to a silver medal in the 200 at the Tokyo Olympics.

Erriyon Knighton won the fifth heat in 19.99. The 20-year-old sprinter is a candidate to be on the podium along with Bednarek. Knighton won silver at the 2023 world championships.

PARIS – FIBA introduced 3×3 as an official discipline 14 years ago, and the basketball format has now been included in two Olympics. The style is wildly popular in Eastern European countries, with teams playing professionally together year-round.

The passion is palpable, and the environment at 3×3 games here in Paris is more-or-less electric. But the product itself lacks any real flow and doesn’t resemble pick-up games played across the globe. And if the point of including 3×3 in the Olympics program is to provide fans with a more accessible, universal brand of basketball compared to traditional five-on-five, then FIBA’s Olympic format has not been a home run.

With the understanding that the world does not revolve around America, here are five changes (and a bonus sixth) we’d like FIBA to consider by the time the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles arrive.

Play to 21, no matter what

Games currently end once a team reaches 21 points. This should always be the norm. Too often at the Olympics, games lasted the full 10 minutes without the winning team reaching the 21-point threshold. Eliminate any semblance of a game clock and let the score be the lone, deciding goalpost. If one of the points of playing 3×3 is to be different than normal basketball, doing away with the clock would be an easy fix.

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‘I’m not going to lie,’ USA women’s 3×3 player Hailey van Lith said after the team’s bronze-medal victory. ‘Either extending the point total or the time, I think the fans would like to see a little bit more basketball. But at the end of the day, that makes my life harder. So I don’t know. I think it’s a tough question.’

Get rid of the 12-second shot clock

This is similar to point No. 1, but the real reason is that 12 seconds is simply too short. The offensive possessions are harried and taking good shots is far too rare. The game will still move fast enough in the half-court format.

Keeping a time limit on possessions is still a good idea, though. Maybe 18 seconds? The traditional 24? FIBA should try this out at youth tournaments in the intervening years to figure it out. But 12 seconds is chaos, and the product is hindered because of it.

Make it, take it

The cardinal rule of playground hoops should live on the Olympic stage. Teams that score the basketball should retain possession. Solid defense and rebounding would be the only way to win the ball back – and that is OK.

This would increase the number of passive-aggressive checks at the top of the key, which is something that has fortunately transcended from the blacktop to the Olympics.

Add another sub – or at least an alternate

The U.S. men’s chances of doing anything worthwhile at the Olympics ended with the injury to former college basketball legend Jimmer Fredette. He had to sit on a chair and serve as an on-court coach for the remainder of the tournament following his injury in the second game.

Team USA should have been allowed to bring in an alternate at a minimum, and Cierra Burdick said she’s heard talk of that panning out. Or, in an ideal world, increase the roster size to five. In our utopian 3×3 world, the games would last much longer anyway, so having an extra sub would serve everyone well.

‘I’m just heartbroken for them … battling with three,’ Burdick said.

Improve officiating, get rid of free throws

The inconsistency among the officials is somehow worse in 3×3 than the NBA or other leagues across the world. During the bronze-medal game between the U.S. and Canada, a ludicrous technical foul was assessed and really pushed the scales in favor of the U.S.

“I think they need to clean up the fouls,” Hamby said.

“And the referees need to take more classes,” she added. “Watch some film.”

Fouls should not result in free throws, either. There is currently a ‘double-bonus’ in 3×3 – how ridiculous. Nobody plays that way casually. Be relatable!

Bonus: Use a normal basketball!

A basketball is the opposite of a snowflake: it’s the same everywhere. For 3×3 to force the rubbery, off-colored sphere into the format is a travesty.

PARIS – They’ve been to parks, rode horses, watched some water polo.

“And doing puzzles!” chimes in Zeke, the older brother.

Five-year-old Zeke is one of U.S. men’s volleyball captain Micah Christenson’s three children, and at this moment, he’s getting a little bored with his daddy’s post-match interview. But he and his 3-year-old brother Quinn are hanging in there and hanging out, while their baby sister Finley, “can’t hang just yet with these boys,” says Christenson.

A few moments earlier, teammate Matt Anderson had walked past, holding his 4-year-old son Jamie’s hand and 2-year-old daughter Juno is his arms, headphones still on her ears. Outside in the walkway, there’s more kids and families celebrating a big win.

It’s a heart-warming picture that tells you something important about this U.S. team.

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“Yeah, we’re old,” Christenson says, with a laugh. “That’s what it says.”

This gray-bearded U.S. team – past bedtime, as it were – had just improved to 4-0 at these Paris Olympics, beating Brazil 26-24, 28-30, 25-19, 25-19 in Monday’s late-night quarterfinal. The victory moved the Americans into the semifinals, where they’ll face world No. 1 Poland for a spot in the gold medal match.

The win extended a spirited Olympics run for a U.S. team whose best quality might be its experience. Of the 12 players on Monday’s start list, nine are older than 30. Four are on the other side of 35.

Which helps explain all these kids running around the backstage of South Paris Arena.

“Shows how many life experiences we go through together in being dads and sharing that experience,” Christenson says. “It’s just wonderful. My kids call all of our teammates uncles. This is one big family.”

Five U.S. players – Christenson, Anderson, David Smith, Aaron Russell and Garrett Muagututia – have either had kids attend these Games or they are planning to be here at some point, according to the team.

That number doesn’t include coach John Speraw, whose daughters Brooklyn and Hailey – ages 8 and 7 – are rushing to greet him. He picks up both in his arms, being told by someone that next Olympics, he won’t be able to do that with them anymore.

“I got a little later start than some of my players,” said the 52-year-old Speraw, “so (the kids) are all around the same age. The dads are busy doing work, and they’re having a great time. I mean, Paris has been fantastic for an Olympic Games.”

Speraw’s players have been pretty fantastic, too. Against Brazil, as in previous matches in this Olympics, the team’s maturity showed in how they responded when circumstances got dicey.

After squeaking out the first set, the U.S. team blew a six-point lead to cough up the second despite leading it 21-16 and having two set points. Brazil was suddenly rolling with a noisy crowd in its corner. Didn’t matter. The U.S. jumped ahead early in the third set (and made that lead hold up) before gradually pulling away in the fourth.

The next one against Poland will be tougher, the Americans realize. But there’s time to worry about that later.

In the meantime, it’s hugs and photos and memories.

And maybe, if there’s time, a few puzzles.

“I’m happy for all the families that support our guys,” Speraw says. “This is not an easy profession. Our guys are gone a lot or families are gone a lot.

“For them to be here to share this moment, I think it’s really special.”

Reach Gentry Estes at gestes@gannett.com and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @Gentry_Estes.

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Barring a sudden change in weather after the competition was already delayed, surfing medalists will be crowned Monday at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The action — which is taking place on the French Polynesian island of Tahiti in the Pacific Ocean — will open Monday with the semifinals. The winners and losers of those matches will determine who will compete in the gold-and bronze-medal events later in the day.

The semifinals and finals were originally set for late last week, but were postponed due to a lack of wave conditions.

American Caroline Marks will face Johanne Defay of France in the first women’s semifinal followed by Tatiana Weston-Webb of Brazil taking on Brisa Hennessy of Costa Rica. On the men’s side, Peru’s Alonso Correa will compete against France’s Kauli Vaast and Brazil’s Gabriel Medina — the subject of perhaps the most viral photo of the 2024 Games — will square off against Australia’s Jack Robinson.

2024 Olympic medals: Who is leading the medal count? Follow along as we track the medals for every sport.

After debuting at the Tokyo Games, surfing has been a source of persistent curiosity from fans around the globe during the 2024 Paris Olympics, due at least in some part to its exotic location thousands of miles away from the French capital.

Olympics surfing winners today

With gold, silver and bronze medals on the line Monday, here’s a look at the results of the men’s and women’s semifinals, gold- and bronze-medal surfing matchups for the 2024 Paris Olympics in Tahiti:

All times Eastern and subject to change

Men’s semifinals

Kauli Vaast (France) 10.96 def. Alonso Correa (Peru) 9.60
Jack Robinson (Australia) 12.33 def. Gabriel Medina (Brazil) 6.33

Women’s semifinals

Caroline Marks (USA) 12.17 def. Johanne Defay (France) 12.17 (tiebreaker)
Tatiana Weston-Webb (Brazil) 13.66 def. Brisa Hennessy (Costa Rica) 6.17

Men’s bronze-medal match

Gabriel Medina (Brazil) 15.54 def. Alonso Correa (Peru) 12.43

Women’s bronze-medal match

Johanne Defay (France) 12.66 def. Brisa Hennessy (Costa Rica) 4.93

Men’s gold-medal match

Kauli Vaast (France) vs. Jack Robinson (Australia), 8:16 p.m.

Women’s gold-medal match

Caroline Marks (USA) vs. Tatiana Weston-Webb (Brazil), 8:57 p.m.

What channel is surfing on at 2024 Paris Olympics?

Streaming: NBC Olympics app | NBC app | NBCOlympics.com | Peacock

The men’s and women’s surfing semifinals and finals will not air on linear television. Instead, viewers can stream the events on the NBC Olympics app, NBCOlympics.com or Peacock.

Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics with Peacock

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U.S. sprinter Noah Lyles rang it after winning a gold medal in the men’s 100-meter final. So did the United States women’s rugby sevens team after winning an unprecedented bronze medal.

The large bell stationed at Stade de France, which hosts track and field events and rugby sevens, has become an instant hit at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with athletes hoping to have their chance to ring in the new Paris tradition after earning a gold medal.

The bell is engraved with ‘2024 Paris,’ and will continue to be a part of the city’s history in the time following the 2024 Games.

Fans have wondered what the bell’s importance is, and why so many Olympic athletes have gravitated toward it after finishing their respective events. The bell has plenty of history, especially going forward.

2024 Olympic medals: Who is leading the medal count? Follow along as we track the medals for every sport.

Here’s everything to know about the track and field bell at the 2024 Paris Olympics:

Why do athletes ring a bell at 2024 Paris Olympics?

The bell was created ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, and serves a unique purpose moving forward in Paris’ history.

The bell, which was cast in the same forge as the new Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral bells, will be hung up at the renovated Cathedral following the monument’s renovations. The cathedral is set to open in December for the first time in over five years after a fire struck one of the world’s most well-known monuments.

One of the bells, which is being stationed at the Olympics, is meant to serve as a time capsule for the world’s largest sporting event, according to NBC.

‘In a way, Paris 2024 is helping to rebuild Notre-Dame,’ saidPierre-Andre Lacout, a manager at Stade de France. ‘A part of the Games and the Olympic spirit will remain in Notre-Dame for life.’

The tradition started at the beginning of the Games, with winners of each rugby sevens match getting a chance to ring the bell. However, only gold medalists can ring the bell after track and field competitions.

The bell was created at the Fonderie Cornille Havard in Villedieu-les-Poeles-Rouffigny in Normandy, France. The Notre-Dame Cathedral had several bells destroyed in the fire. The Olympic bell will replace one of the two smaller bells used at the cathedral once it reopens.

Leslie Dufaux, the 2024 Paris Games’ head of sports presentation, told The Washington Post the idea came from the Games needing something unique to Paris for some of the venues, and with Paris’ prominent church scene, a bell seemed like a great idea.

She then reached out to the foundry in Normandy, which she realized was making the bells for the renovated Notre-Dame.

“Then I thought: ‘Oh my goodness, they are doing the bells on Notre-Dame, and what are we going to do with this bell after the Olympics and Paralympics? Dufaux said. ‘Because we are thinking about the second life of each item we are producing for the Games.’

PARIS – The United States men’s volleyball team has yet to lose in the Paris Olympics, and the reward is a date with the No. 1-ranked team in the world.

Monday night’s 26-24, 28-30, 25-19, 25-19 quarterfinal victory over Brazil moved the U.S. – now 4-0 in these Games – into a Wednesday semifinal against Poland, which is atop the sport’s current rankings. Italy (No. 2) and France (No. 5) meet in Wednesday’s other semifinal after each getting five-set wins Monday.

The U.S. was No. 4 before Monday’s match and Brazil was No. 7, though there wasn’t much difference between the two – at least for a while.

The match took more than two hours. The Brazilians blew a five-point lead to lose the first set. Then the U.S. team blew a six-point lead to cough up the second after leading it 21-16 and having two set points.

As has been the case throughout this Olympics, though, the experienced U.S. team was able to settle down and stabilize when it mattered most, jumping ahead in the third set (and making that lead hold up) before gradually pulling away in the latter stages of the fourth to quiet a noisy crowd that was largely in Brazil’s corner.

2024 Olympic medals: Who is leading the medal count? Follow along as we track the medals for every sport.

The result continued what has been a nice rebound Games for a U.S. team that bowed out in the preliminary round in Tokyo. This time, the Americans would have to lose their next two matches to miss out on a medal.

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