The Summer Olympics are truly a worldwide spectacle as nations from all around the globe will send their best athletes to Paris to compete for gold.

More than 200 countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe will have delegations at the 2024 Paris Olympics, which officially get underway in an opening ceremony along the Seine River on Friday.

The number of nations participating these Summer Games does not include Russia and Belarus, which were suspended by the International Olympic Committee following the Russian invasion of Ukraine for violating the Olympic Truce. Approved athletes from those countries will compete as ‘Individual Neutral Athletes.’

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Which country has the most athletes in 2024 Paris Olympics?

The United States will have the largest national delegation at the Summer Games in Paris with 592 total athletes.

Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from

Host nation France is second with 573, followed by Australia (460), Germany (427), Japan (404), Italy (403), China (388), Spain (382), Great Britain (327) and Canada (318) rounding out the top 10.

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How many US athletes are competing at 2024 Paris Olympics?

There are 592 athletes on the 2024 U.S. Olympic team, which makes it a slightly smaller group than the team at the most recent Summer Games in Tokyo (613).

Track and field is the largest U.S. contingent with a total of 120 athletes set to take part in those events.

The 2024 Paris Olympic Games are in full swing with one of the biggest events of the games: the opening ceremonies.

This year’s opening ceremony will take place outside of a stadium. Instead, the traditional parade of athletes will be held on boats floating down the Seine river. Each boat will be equipped with cameras as the parade winds down the 3.7-mile route to the Trocadéro Palace. The rest of the opening ceremony will take place there.

There will be some Olympic action outside of the opening ceremony, specifically in shooting. Mixed, Men’s, and Women’s pre-event training is set for earlier in the day ahead of the ceremony.

Here’s a full breakdown and where to watch the Olympics action today.

Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from

Olympics schedule for July 26

All times ET.

Shooting

3 a.m.: 10m Air Rifle Mixed Team Pre-Event Training

Peacock and NBCOlympics.com.

4 a.m.: 10m Air Rifle Men’s Pre-Event Training

Peacock and NBCOlympics.com.

5:45 a.m.: 10m Air Rifle Mixed Team Pre-Event Training

Peacock and NBCOlympics.com.

Ceremonies

Noon – 1:30 p.m.: Opening Ceremony Preview Show

NBC, Peacock, and NBCOlympics.com.

1:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.: Opening Ceremony (LIVE)

NBC, Peacock, and NBCOlympics.com.

5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.: Opening Ceremony Preview Show (encore)

NBC, Peacock, and NBCOlympics.com.

7:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.: Opening Ceremony (primetime)

NBC, Peacock, and NBCOlympics.com.

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Although we have had two initial days of competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics, there will be a small break in the action Friday – and for good reason.

Athletes will enjoy the opening ceremony Friday in Paris, ‘marching’ with their fellow compatriots, with events returning in full force on Saturday. This will be the first time in the history of the Summer Games that the opening ceremony will not take place inside a stadium, but rather, on the Seine. Boats will carry each members of the respective national delegations, with the parade taking place on the river.

Still, as always, the medal count will be the ultimate measure for bragging rights among the more than 200 countries that will have athletes competing in the Summer Games.

Here’s everything you need to know about the medal count for the 2024 Paris Olympics:

Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from

What is the medal count at the 2024 Paris Olympics?

There have not been any medals awarded in the 2024 Paris Olympics yet, as competition started Wednesday. The first medals are up for grabs Saturday in several events.

What 2024 Paris Olympic events are taking place Friday?

There are no athletic competitions taking place Friday, July 26, as athletes and the city of Paris prepare for the opening ceremony, which is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. ET.

What Olympic medals are up for grabs Saturday?

The first day that medals will be awarded at the 2024 Paris Olympics will be July 27. Here are the first events to give out gold, silver and bronze (all times Eastern):

Shooting

4:30 a.m.: 10m air rifle mixed team bronze medal
5 a.m.: 10m air rifle mixed team gold medal

Diving

5 a.m.: women’s synchronized 3m springboard final

Cycling road

8:30 a.m.: women’s time trial
10:34 a.m.: men’s time trial

Skateboarding

11 a.m.: men’s street final

Judo

11:18 a.m.: women -48 kg contest for bronze medal A
11:28 a.m.: women -48 kg contest for bronze medal B
11:38 a.m.: women -48 kg final
11:49 a.m.: men -60 kg contest for bronze medal A
11:59 a.m.: men -60 kg contest for bronze medal B
12:09 p.m.: men -60 kg final

Rugby Sevens

1 p.m.: men’s bronze match
1:45 p.m.: men’s gold medal match

Swimming

2:42 p.m.: men’s 400m free final
2:55 p.m.: women’s 400m free final (Ledecky)
3:37 p.m.: women’s 4x100m free relay final
3:50 p.m.: men’s 4x100m free relay final (Dressel/Team USA)

Fencing

2:40 p.m.: women’s épée individual bronze medal bout
3:05 p.m.: men’s sabre individual bronze medal bout
3:30 p.m.: women’s épée individual gold medal bout
3:55 p.m.: men’s sabre Individual gold medal bout

There will be hundreds of Americans competing for gold at 2024 Paris Olympics.

Thousands of athletes qualify for the Olympics every four years, but no country sends more than the United States. At the Tokyo Olympics, Team USA had 613 athletes that made up the field of around 11,000 Olympians. The International Olympic Committee expects a bit less athletes competing this year, estimating the number of participants to be around 10,500 individuals.

Here’s a breakdown of who will be representing the red, white and blue in this year’s Olympic Games:

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How many US athletes are in 2024 Olympics?

There are 592 athletes on Team USA.

Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from

Women make up the majority of the roster with 314 athletes on Team USA (53%) compared to 278 men (47%).

Which country has the most athletes at 2024 Paris Olympics?

The United States won’t have as many athletes as the last Summer Olympics, but it will still send the most Olympians of any other country this year.

How many events is Team USA competing in?

The U.S. will have at least one athlete competing in 31 of the 32 sports on the Paris program. The only event the U.S. will not be competing in is team handball.

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Full list of Team USA athletes

Here is every athlete in every event Team USA will be in:

Archery

Brady Ellison
Catalina Gnoriega
Casey Kaufhold
Jennifer Mucino-Fernandez

Artistic Swimming

Anita Alvarez
Jaime Czarkowski
Megumi Field
Keana Hunter
Audrey Kwon
Jacklyn Luu
Daniella Ramirez
Ruby Remati

Badminton

Vinson Chiu
Jennie Gai
Annie Xu
Kerry Xu
Joshua Yuan
Beiwen Zhang

Basketball (3×3)

Canyon Barry
Cierra Burdick
Jimmer Fredette
Dearica Hamby
Rhyne Howard
Reem Maddox
Dylan Travis
Hailey Van Lith

Basketball (5×5)

Bam Adebayo
Devin Booker
Napheesa Collier
Kahleah Copper
Stephen Curry
Anthony Davis
Kevin Durant
Anthony Edwards
Joel Embiid
Chelsea Gray
Brittney Griner
Tyrese Haliburton
Jrue Holiday
Sabrina Ionescu
Lebron James
Jewell Loyd
Kelsey Plum
Breanna Stewart
Jayson Tatum
Diana Taurasi
Alyssa Thomas
A’ja Wilson
Derrick White
Jackie Young

Beach Volleyball

Andrew Benesh
Chase Budinger
Kelly Cheng
Miles Evans
Sara Hughes
Taryn Kloth
Kristen Nuss
Miles Partain

BMX (Freestyle)

Perris Benegas
Marcus Christopher
Justin Dowell
Hannah Roberts

BMX (Racing)

Kamren Larsen
Felicia Stancil
Daleny Vaughn
Alise Willoughby
Cameron Wood

Boxing

Joshua Edwards
Jajaira Gonzalez
Jahmal Harvey
Roscoe Hill
Omari Jones
Jennifer Lozano
Morelle McCane
Alyssa Mendoza

Breaking

Jeffrey Louis
Logan Edra
Grace Choi
Victor Montalvo

Canoe/Kayak

Jonas Ecker
Casey Eichfeld
Nevin Harrison
Evy Leibfarth
Aaron Small

Cycling

Olivia Cummins
Chloe Dygert
Kristen Faulkner
Matteo Jorgenson
Grant Koontz
Brandon Mcnulty
Magnus Sheffield
Jennifer Valente
Lily Williams

Cycling Triathlon

Taylor Knibb

Cycling (Mountain Bike)

Riley Amos
Haley Batten
Christopher Blevins
Savilia Blunk

Diving

Sarah Bacon
Andrew Capobianco
Kassidy Cook
Tyler Downs
Greg Duncan
Alison Gibson
Jessica Parratto
Delaney Schnell
Carson Tyler
Daryn Wright

Equestrian

William Coleman
Kent Farrington
Laura Kraut
Adrienne Lyle
Boyd Martin
Marcus Orlob
Caroline Pamukcu
Steffen Peters
McLain Ward

Fencing

Anne Cebula
Eli Dershwitz
Jacqueline Dubrovich
Margherita Guzzi Vincenti
Colin Heathcock
Hadley Husisian
Nick Itkin
Lee Kiefer
Alexander Massialas
Gerek Meinhardt
Tatiana Nazlymov
Mitchell Saron
Lauren Scruggs
Magda Skarbonkiewicz
Elizabeth Tartakovsky

Field Hockey

Kelsey Bing
Leah Crouse
Brooke Deberdine
Emma Deberdine
Sophia Gladieux
Amanda Golini
Alexandra Hammel
Ashley Hoffman
Karlie Kisha
Kelee Lepage
Megan Rogers
Ashley Sessa
Meredith Sholder
Abigail Tamer
Elizabeth Yeager
Madeleine Zimmer

Golf

Wyndham Clark
Nelly Korda
Collin Morikawa
Xander Schauffele
Scottie Scheffler
Lilia Vu
Rose Zhang

Gymnastics

Simone Biles
Jade Carey
Jordan Chiles
Evita Griskenas
Asher Hong
Paul Juda
Sunisa Lee
Brody Malone
Stephen Nedoroscik
Frederick Richard
Hezly Rivera
Aliaksei Shostak
Jessica Stevens

Judo

Angelica Delgado
John Jayne
Maria Celia Laborde
Jack Yonezuka

Modern Pentathlon

Jessica Davis

Rowing

William Bender
Justin Best
Molly Bruggeman
Oliver Bub
Charlotte Buck
Chris Carlson
Nina Castagna
Peter Chatain
Olivia Coffey
Teal Cohen
Claire Collins
Liam Corrigan
Azja Czajkowski
Ben Davison
Clark Dean
Emily Delleman
Michael Grady
Margaret Hedeman
Henry Hollingsworth
Grace Joyce
Emily Kallfelz
Kate Knifton
Kara Kohler
Sorin Koszyk
Daisy Mazzio-manson
Nick Mead
Rielly Milne
Meghan Musnicki
Lauren O’connor
Evan Olson
Jacob Plihal
Pieter Quinton
Molly Reckford
Kelsey Reelick
Nick Rusher
Regina Salmons
Michelle Sechser
Christian Tabash
Jess Thoennes
Sophia Vitas
Kristi Wagner
Maddie Wanamaker

Rugby

Perry Baker
Orrin Bizer
Kayla Canett
Aaron Cummings
Lauren Doyle
Malacchi Esdale
Naima Fuala’au
Madison Hughes
Alev Kelter
Kristi Kirshe
Lucas Lacamp
Matai Leuta
Sarah Levy
Ilona Maher
Alena Olsen
Ariana Ramsey
Steph Rovetti
Alex Sedrick
Sammy Sullivan
Naya Tapper
Steve Tomasin
Marcus Tupuola
Maka Unufe
Kevon Williams

Sailing

Ian Barrows
Lara Dallman-Weiss
Markus Edegran
Hans Henken
David Liebenberg
Noah Lyons
Stuart Mcnay
Daniela Moroz
Sarah Newberry Moore
Erika Reineke
Stephanie Roble
Maggie Shea
Dominique Stater

Shooting

Katelyn Abeln
Vincent Hancock
William Hinton
Rylan Kissell
Ada Claudia Korkhin
Alexis Lagan
Henry Turner Leverett
Sagen Maddalena
Derrick Scott Mein
Ryann Phillips
Conner Lynn Prince
Ivan Roe
Keith Sanderson
Austen Smith
Rachel Tozier
Mary Tucker
Dania Vizzi

Skateboarding

Gavin Bottger
Tate Carew
Mariah Duran
Jagger Eaton
Paige Heyn
Nyjah Huston
Chris Joslin
Ruby Lilley
Poe Pinson
Tom Schaar
Minna Stess
Bryce Wettstein

Soccer

Paxten Aaronson
Korbin Albert
Taylor Booth
Gianluca Busio
Samantha Coffey
Benjamin Cremaschi
Tierna Davidson
Maximilian Dietz
Crystal Dunn
Emily Fox
Naomi Girma
Nathan Harriel
Lindsey Horan
Casey Krueger
Rose Lavelle
Catarina Macario
Jack Mcglynn
Duncan Mcguire
Djordje Mihailovic
Casey Murphy
Alyssa Naeher
Jenna Nighswonger
Kevin Paredes
Miles Robinson
Trinity Rodman
Patrick Schulte
Jaedyn Shaw
Gabriel Slonina
Sophia Smith
Emily Sonnett
Mallory Swanson
Tanner Tessmann
John Tolkin
Caleb Wiley
Griffin Yow
Walker Zimmerman

Sports Climbing

Colin Duffy
Natalia Grossman
Jesse Grupper
Zach Hammer
Emma Hunt
Piper Kelly
Brooke Raboutou
Sam Watson

Surfing

Griffin Colapinto
John John Florence
Caroline Marks
Carissa Moore
Caitlin Simmers

Swimming

Jack Alexy
Hunter Armstrong
Phoebe Bacon
Katharine Berkoff
Shaine Casas
Erika Connolly
Brooks Curry
Kate Douglass
Caeleb Dressel
Matt Fallon
Nic Fink
Bobby Finke
Carson Foster
Erin Gemmell
Katie Grimes
Chris Guiliano
Thomas Heilman
Ryan Held
Luke Hobson
Torri Huske
David Johnston
Keaton Jones
Chase Kalisz
Drew Kibler
Matt King
Lilly King
Katie Ledecky
Paige Madden
Simone Manuel
Josh Matheny
Ryan Murphy
Anna Peplowski
Blake Pieroni
Ivan Puskovitch
Alex Shackell
Aaron Shackell
Regan Smith
Kieran Smith
Charlie Swanson
Luca Urlando
Gretchen Walsh
Alex Walsh
Emma Weber
Claire Weinstein
Abbey Weitzeil
Emma Weyant
Luke Whitlock
Mariah Denigan

Table Tennis

Kanak Jha
Rachel Sung
Amy Wang
Lily Zhang

Taekwondo

Faith Dillon
Jonathan Healy
CJ Nickolas
Kristina Teachout

Tennis

Danielle Collins
Christopher Eubanks
Taylor Fritz
Coco Gauff
Marcos Giron
Austin Krajicek
Desirae Krawczyk
Emma Navarro
Tommy Paul
Jessica Pegula
Rajeev Ram

Track and Field

Nia Akins
Cj Allen
Valarie Allman
Christopher Bailey
Heath Baldwin
Trevor Bassitt
Kenneth Bednarek
Rai Benjamin
Graham Blanks
Taliyah Brooks
Joseph Brown
Brittany Brown
Kaylyn Brown
Aaliyah Nickole Butler
Malcolm Clemons
Anna Cockrell
Christian Coleman
Valerie Constien
James Andres Corrigan
Elise Cranny
Freddie Crittenden
Ryan Crouser
Vashti Cunningham
Tamari Davis
Jeremiah Jashon Davis
Tara Davis-woodhall
Bryce Deadmon
Annette Nneka Echikunwoke
Kendall Ellis
Andrew Evans
Grant Fisher
Veronica Fraley
Tori Franklin
Rachel Glenn
Anna Hall
Quincy Hall
Juvaughn Harrison
Daniel Haugh
Chari Hawkins
Quanera Hayes
Nikki Hiltz
Aleia Hobbs
Cole Hocker
Grant Holloway
Alexis Holmes
Bryce Hoppel
Marisa Howard
Chase Jackson
Melissa Jefferson
Alaysha Johnson
Jasmine Mari Jones
Weini Kelati-frezghi
Sam Kendricks
Fred Kerley
Hobbs Kessler
William Kincaid
Kyree King
Brynn Taylor King
Erriyon Knighton
Leonard Korir
Joe Kovacs
Jarrion Lawson
Courtney Lindsey
Dakotah Lindwurm
Shamier Little
Mckenzie Long
Noah Lyles
Emily Mackay
Maggie Malone-hardin
Salif Mane
Conner Mantz
Sam Mattis
Shelby Mcewen
Sydney Mclaughlin-levrone
Brandon Miller
Katie Moon
Jasmine Moore
Whittni Morgan
Monae’ Nichols
Christopher Nilsen
Michael Norman
Vernon Norwood
Yared Nuguse
Abdihamid Nur
Fiona O’keeffe
Keturah Orji
Payton Otterdahl
Deanna Price
Erin Reese
Sha’carri Richardson
Daniel Roberts
Russell Robinson
Kenneth Rooks
Jaida Ross
Masai Russell
Raven Saunders
Karissa Schweizer
Donald Scott
Emily Sisson
Elle St. Pierre
Grace Elizabeth Stark
Twanisha Terry
Gabby Thomas
Curtis Thompson
Vernon Turner
Jayden Ulrich
Parker Alys Valby
Courtney Wayment
Juliette Whittaker
Isabella Marie Whittaker
Matthew Wilkinson
Harrison Williams
Bridget Williams
Allie Wilson
Quincy Alexander Wilson
Rudy Winkler
Jacob Wooten
Clayton Young
Nicolas Macpherson Young
Zachery Ziemek

Triathlon

Kirsten Kasper
Morgan Pearson
Seth Rider
Taylor Spivey

Volleyball

Matthew Anderson
Taylor Averill
Lauren Carlini
Micah Christenson
Torey Defalco
Andrea Drews
Maxwell Holt
Thomas Jaeschke
Jeffrey Jendryk Ii
Jordan Larson
Micah Ma’a
Garrett Muagututia
Chiaka Ogbogu
Kathryn Plummer
Jordyn Poulter
Dana Rettke
Kelsey Robinson
Aaron Russell
Erik Shoji
Avery Skinner
David Smith
Jordan Thompson
Haleigh Washington
Justine Wong-Orantes

Water Polo

Emily Mary Ausmus
Alex Bowen
Luca Cupido
Hannes Daube
Chase William Dodd
Ryder Dodd
Rachel Fattal
Jenna Michelle Flynn
Kaleigh Gilchrist
Ben Hallock
Drew Holland
Johnny Hooper
Max Irving
Ashleigh Johnson
Amanda Longan
Madeline Musselman
Ryann Neushul
Alex Obert
Tara Prentice
Jordan Raney
Jewel Roemer
Jovana Sekulic
Maggie Steffens
Marko Vavic
Adrian Weinberg
Dylan Woodhead

Weightlifting

Jourdan Delacruz
Wes Kitts
Hampton Morris
Olivia Reeves
Mary Theisen Lappen

Wrestling

Kamal Bey
Kennedy Blades
Aaron Brooks
Adam Coon
Kyle Dake
Amit Elor
Sarah Hildebrandt
Payton Jacobson
Spencer Lee
Helen Maroulis
Kayla Miracle
Mason Parris
Dominique Parrish
Josef Rau
Zain Retherford
Kyle Snyder

Nearly 200 countries will represented at the 2024 Paris Olympics, but Russia will not be one of them.

Russian athletes will not be allowed to compete under their country’s flag or anthem this summer following the country’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, marking the fourth consecutive Olympics that Russia will compete under another delegation at the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.

Instead, eligible Russian competitors will participate as Individual Neutral Athlete, or AINs for short.

‘The Olympic Movement is united in its sense of fairness not to punish athletes for the decisions of their government if they are not actively participating in them,’ the International Olympic Committee said in February 2022. ‘We are committed to fair competitions for everybody without any discrimination.’

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AINs won’t be allowed to take part in the parade of nations at the opening ceremony along the Seine River ‘since they are individual athletes,’ the IOC announced in March, and any medals won by AINs won’t be included in the official medal count of nations.

Why is Russia banned from Olympics? What are AINs? Here’s what we know:

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Why is Russia banned from Olympics?

The IOC banned Russia from competition for invading Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, a ‘blatant violation’ of the Olympic Truce, which begins seven days before the start of the Olympics and ends seven days after the conclusion of the Paralympics to ensure safe passage for all athletes. (The 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing started Feb. 4 and the Paralympics ran through March 13.) Belarus faced the same penalty for its support of Russia.

The sanctions, which were placed against Russia and Belarus in February 2022, were confirmed by the Olympic Summit in December 2022 and remain in place today.

Russians competed under the name of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics while serving a two-year suspension for a state-sponsored doping program. But the ROC was suspended in October for breaching the Olympic Charter by violating ‘the territorial integrity of the (National Olympic Committee) of Ukraine.’

Can Russians compete at the 2024 Olympics?

Yes and no. Although teams of athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport are not allowed to compete, Russian and Belarusian competitors can participate in individual sports as neutral athletes if they meet ‘strict eligibility conditions,’ the IOC announced in December.

In order to be cleared to compete as an Individual Neutral Athlete, competitors cannot support the war or have been contracted to the Russian or Belarusian military, in addition to meeting all anti-doping requirements. The Individual Neutral Athlete Eligibility Review Panel, which was formed by the IOC in March, determined each athlete’s eligibility.

What will Russians be called at the 2024 Olympics?

Individually cleared athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport will compete as Individual Neutral Athletes, or AINs, an acronym for the French translation, Athlètes Individuels Neutres.

You will not see Russia’s flag or hear the country’s national anthem during the Olympics. ‘No flag, anthem, colours or any other identifications whatsoever of Russia or Belarus will be displayed at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 in any official venue or any official function,’ according to the IOC. Instead, AINs will compete under a teal flag inscribed with its acronym and an anthem with no lyrics will be used at medal ceremonies.

How many Individual Neutral Athletes will compete at the 2024 Olympics?

As of July 9, 36 individual Russian athletes have been invited to participate at the 2024 Olympics in Paris across seven sports, including cycling, gymnastics, wrestling, tennis, canoe, judo and swimming. Only 16 of those Russian athletes have accepted the invitation to compete as an AINs. In comparison, the Russian delegation sent 335 athletes to Tokyo in 2021, while Belarus sent 104.

NICE, France — Professor Hayes – that would be United States women’s national soccer team coach Emma Hayes – does not grade on a curve, even in her first official match leading the team.

She would probably give her squad an “A” for the first 25 minutes of the USA’s 3-0 win Thursday over Zambia to start Group B play at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

“The first part of the first half was exceptional,” Hayes said after the match. “To come out the way we did – the intention, the intensity, the decision-making, the execution, should have been at least five (goals) at halftime.” 

Two goal-line clearances, including one on a volley from captain Lindsey Horan, helped Zambia keep the U.S. at bay.  

But as for the rest of the match, well, the Americans wouldn’t make the honor roll in Hayes’ class. 

Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from

Creating the chances hasn’t been the issue, nor was that the case against Zambia. Hayes has been adamant that the goals would come. 

“If you asked me before the game if we’d be happy with a three-nil winner, I would have probably said no,” she said. “However, for the performance and the chances created, finding the back of the net, I don’t want to be too hard on the players.” 

The U.S. has a much tougher test in three days’ time against Germany. Improvement will be  necessary. 

“That’s a given,” Hayes said. 

The U.S. didn’t connect on its first nine shots of the match despite putting significant pressure on Zambia. Finally, Trinity Rodman found the back of the net. The 22-year-old said she entered her Olympic debut with nerves, but she didn’t show it when she deployed the “Trip Spin,” which is what she called the move that allowed her to slip her defender in the box and beat Zambia keeper Ngambo Musole. 

“Going off this game, I think there’s still a lot of areas we need to improve, more finishes that should go in the back of the net still, even being up 3-0,” Rodman said. “So happy about the performance, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement.” 

Overall, the U.S. outshot Zambia 27-7. The Americans managed to put only eight of those on net, however, and had a fair share of missed opportunities .They looked a bit like the squad that managed one goal over two games during pre-Olympic tune-ups against Mexico and Costa Rica – granted those matches were friendlies ahead of a major international competition with little intensity. 

A first-half red card given to Zambia made finding seams all the more easier for the Americans to attack. But the U.S. did not score despite the advantage, although they had the game in hand by the 25th minute. 

That was in large part thanks to 70 seconds of brilliance from Mallory Swanson. The U.S. forward scored the Americans’ second goal following a feed into the box from Lindsey Horan; Swanson hesitated, created an advantageous angle by drawing Musole off her line and converted. 

A little more than a minute later, she was celebrating again. Swanson streaked up the middle again and this time took a pass from Sophia Smith – who left in the first half with an injury – and hammered it home. 

Swanson said the beginning of the match “felt electric.” 

“But there’s little things within that game, within the play, that we just need to fine-tune,” she said. 

The squad is starting to come around to Hayes’ preferred style and principles, Swanson said. That’s been enjoyable, learning different things and applying them on the field.

“Emma keeps saying ‘It’ll come, it’ll come, it’ll come,’ so having her belief behind us, that means a lot,” Swanson said. 

Hayes was brought in to raise the standards for the national team as it enters a new era without players such as stalwart Alex Morgan, one of the best goal scorers in USWNT history. 

“I was really happy it wasn’t one of those days that the ball doesn’t go in the back of the net,” Horan said.

Performances like that plagued the Americans at last year’s World Cup (four goals total in four matches) and during the Tokyo Olympics (fourth-place finish, scoreless in three of six matches) – and is a major reason why Vlatko Andonovski is out and Hayes is at the helm.  

The disappointments of the past two international tournaments don’t necessarily fuel the team, Rodman said. It’s a desire to show they are more than an athletic team with fast forwards. 

“We’re so much more than that,” Rodman said. And I think we need to believe that, deep down, that we can break down teams, whether that’s passing it up and laying it off, moving off each other, there’s so much more depth that we can bring. 

“I think living that and breathing that on the field is going to help us.” 

Striving for a better grade from Professor Hayes might be one more motivating factor.  

All-Star closer Mason Miller, possibly one of the most coveted targets at Major League Baseball’s trade deadline, won’t be pitching for anybody in the immediate future after breaking a finger in an act of frustration.

Miller, the Oakland Athletics’ dominant reliever, was placed on the injured list Thursday with a fractured left pinkie finger. The A’s web site reported that Miller suffered the fracture Monday after slamming his hand on a padded training table, then later attributed it to putting his hand down ‘awkwardly’ as he prepared to do an exercise after pitching a clean ninth inning in a 4-0 win over the Houston Astros.

Later Thursday, A’s manager Mark Kotsay told reporters in Anaheim that Miller’s injury in fact occurred in a brief spate of frustration and ‘kind of pounded his fist down on a padded table out of emotion.’

The 25-year-old has been electric this season, striking out 70 batters in 40 2/3 innings. He broke an All-Star Game record for velocity by throwing a pitch 103.6 mph in the game.

With the A’s long out of contention and not expected to challenge for a playoff berth for several seasons, reliever-hungry postseason hopefuls have inquired about Miller, who after this season will still have five years before free agency. The trade deadline is July 30.

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‘At the end of the day I don’t have a say in it all,’ Miller told USA TODAY Sports last week. ‘That portion of it’s easy for me to dissociate with and say, I don’t have a dog in that fight and whatever will be, will be.

‘I’m happy being with the guys I’m with and honored to be here representing them and excited to work with them in the second half.’

Now, he may not be going anywhere. Kotsay says Miller will be evaluated in a few weeks, but can throw in the meantime.

Canelo Alvarez is a titan of boxing. With a career 61-2-2 record, accompanied by 39 KOs, Alvarez has won titles in four different divisions – super middleweight, junior middleweight, middleweight, light heavyweight – and has won four straight fights and 12 of his last 13. He is the super middleweight undisputed champion of the world.

Or at least he was.

As of Thursday, the International Boxing Federation (IBF) declared it will be stripping Alvarez of his 168-pound title in order to create an overdue title bout for No. 1 contender William Scull against No. 2 contender Vladimir Shiskin, according to reports. The match is expected to take place in Germany this September.

Canelo Alvarez IBF title timeline

Alvarez had held the IBF super middleweight title since November 2021 when he defeated Caleb Plant with an 11th-round TKO. Alvarez made four defenses of his belt during his nearly three-year reign. The IBF has made a similar decision before.

In May, Oleksandr Usyk was stripped of his IBF heavyweight title after defeating Tyson Fury.

What other titles does Alvarez hold?

Alvarez was previously the undisputed super middleweight champion, meaning he held the super middleweight titles for the IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO. Alvarez still holds all three other titles and will be putting all three on the line when he faces Edgar Berlanga on September 14 in Las Vegas.

How to watch Alvarez vs. Berlanga:

Date: September 14, 2024

Where: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV

Stream: Amazon Prime Video (pay-per-view), DAZN (pay-per-view)

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