ESPN
Aug 2, 2024, 08:41 AM ET
The first week of the 2024 Paris Games closes out with Sha'Carri Richardson on the track and two of Team USA's top swimmers returning to the pool.
Richardson's long-awaited Olympic debut will come during the women's 100m preliminary round. Richardson won the event at the 2023 world championships.
After becoming the most decorated woman in U.S. Olympic history on Thursday, Katie Ledecky is back in the pool on Friday for the women's 800m freestyle heat. It's the final event for Ledecky in Paris and last chance to earn her ninth Olympic gold medal, which would tie her with Larisa Latynina, a gymnast from the Soviet Union, for the most golds ever by a female Olympian.
Caeleb Dressel has already won a gold medal as part of the men's 4x100m freestyle relay. He can add another on Friday as he races in the 50m freestyle final, which he won in Tokyo. Dressel will also compete in the men's 100m butterfly heat.
The U.S. Olympic men's soccer team faces Morocco in its first quarterfinal matchup since the 2000 Sydney Games. Team USA finished in fourth place that year, their best-ever result in the Olympics.
There are key matchups in tennis too. Novak Djokovic's quest for his first gold medal continues with a men's singles semifinal meeting against Lorenzo Musetti, while Carlos Alcaraz faces Felix Auger-Aliassime on the other side. The women's bronze medal match will also take place, alongside the bronze and gold medal matches for mixed doubles.
Here is Friday's schedule.
Olympics medal tracker | Schedule
8:41 a.m. ET -- American sprinters Jefferson, Terry 'locked in'
SAINT-DENIS, France -- It was easily the biggest stage American sprinters Melissa Jefferson and Twanisha Terry had ever competed on.
That's why their acclaimed track and field coach, Dennis Mitchell, offered one key piece of advice before the 100-meter runners walked onto the track at the Stade de France: "stay locked in."
With nearly 80,000 raucously-cheering fans, the Friday morning scene was unlike anything the two Olympic rookies had ever witnessed.
"Our coach told us, 'When you go out down there, just look down the track and stay focused. Don't look up and try to find people and this and that,'" Terry said. "So we can zone in and lock in."
Jefferson said it was a little surprising to feel the crowd's sustained passionate energy because of how early the heats were beginning (10 a.m. local time). She said her surprise also stemmed from not being used to competing in similarly large venues back home.
"Even though in the States it's kind of hard as far as getting the support and getting the people to come out," Jefferson said. "Track and field is one sport where you can count on everyone coming together to root for everyone, no matter in what circ*mstances that may be."
Both sprinters followed their coach's advice and maintained their focus through two strong showings in the first round. They advanced to Saturday's semifinals, along with fellow American and training teammate, Sha'Carri Richardson. Terry ran 11.15 seconds, while Jefferson posted a 10.96-second time that was just behind Richardson's 10.94.
"It's a great feeling to have moral support, other than our coaches and our families," Terry said. "Having other teammates here to be able to train with you, to have that extra support, to push each other through these, because when one of us is down, the other two may be up."
Although she was able to maintain focus during the race, Terry did enjoy the stadium experience after she was done.
"I definitely did take a moment to soak in and skim around the stadium," Terry said. "I was luckily able to find my dad. I heard his voice calling to me, and I heard one of my other people's on the other side, just at the start. Just the distinction of her voice; that was amazing." -- Coley Harvey
8:29 a.m. ET -- Final pool play game for U.S. men's beach volleyball
Chase Budinger and Miles Evans will compete in their final pool play match against Spain on Friday. Budinger, who spent seven seasons in the NBA, made a huge transition to compete on the biggest stage of beach volleyball. -- READ MORE
Final pool play match on tap for Chase Budinger/Miles Evans today. They play Herrera/Gavira 🇪🇸, with the winner finishing second in the pool for a guaranteed spot in the Round of 16. Watch on Peaco*ck or https://t.co/7yyiEKlCYd at 6 a.m. PT/9 a.m. ET. pic.twitter.com/JnvDpohQLU
— USA Volleyball (@usavolleyball) August 2, 2024See AlsoNASCAR 2023 schedules set
8:12 a.m. ET -- Richardson 'eager' to compete on Olympic stage
SAINT-DENIS, France -- With an energetic smile and a bounce to her step, Sha'Carri Richardson walked through the media mixed zone at Stade de France and politely offered two words to waiting reporters.
"Hi. Hello," she said.
That was the extent of her comments to non-NBC reporters. It's likely all she'll say to them until late Saturday night, following the women's 100-meter finals. It's an event she's almost certain to be in after a strong showing in her first-round heat Friday morning.
At 10.94 seconds, she cruised to an easy win in the opening heat of the 100, beating second-place finisher Patrizia van Der Weken of Luxembourg by two-tenths of a second.
When all eight heats were complete, Richardson held the third-fastest time of the day. The Ivory Coast's Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith had the best time with a 10.87-second finish to win her heat. Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Daryll Nieta of Great Britain ran 10.92 seconds.
Richardson's solid showing came as she made her Olympics debut in front of a completely full stadium. As ovations go, her introduction brought some of the loudest applause from those who packed the 77,000-seat venue, as they eagerly awaited her long-anticipated Summer Games debut.
While she didn't address media in the mixed zone, Richardson did conduct an on-track interview with an NBC Olympics broadcaster.
"To be at the Olympics is a phenomenal feeling, to be an athlete here, competing with the energy, with a great appreciation for track and field ... I'm super excited and eager to compete on the Olympic stage," she said -- Coley Harvey
7:26 a.m. ET -- Rory McIlory is spot on
Accuracy is a virtue for world No. 3 ranked Rory McIlory of Northern Ireland. From 260 yards out, McIlory managed to hit the flagstick, leaving a short eagle putt.
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) August 2, 2024Rory McIlroy hits the flagstick from 260 out to set up eagle. 🤯🇮🇪
📺 Golf Channel and Peaco*ck | #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/ngB7JIrzlZ
7:03 a.m. ET -- Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce cruises onto the next round
Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is not taking her fifth and final Olympic Games for granted. Fraser-Pryce had one of the fastest and strongest start in the 100-meters, advancing to the semifinals with a second-place time of 10.92 seconds. Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith won the heat with a season's-best of 10.87 seconds.
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 2, 2024What a way to close the women's 100m heats! 🍿
Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce put on a show. #ParisOlympics
📺 E! and Peaco*ck pic.twitter.com/ZYTyICPpSh
6:48 a.m. ET -- Just a breeze for TeeTee Terry
Also making her Olympic debut, Twanisha Terry breezed her way to the semifinals with a win in her women's 100-meter dash heat. Terry had an explosive start out of the blocks which allowed her to ease up toward the end of the heat, clocking 11.15 seconds.
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 2, 2024✅Survive and advance.
Job done for TeeTee Terry. #ParisOlympics
📺 E! and Peaco*ck pic.twitter.com/FvW23XPX2L
6:23 a.m. ET -- Ladies and gentlemen, Sha'Carri Richardson
The Fastest Woman in America made her debut as an Olympian after missing the 2020 Tokyo Games and is showing that she deserves to be in Paris. In the first round of the women's 100-meter dash, Richardson cruised her way to the semifinals after winning her heat with a time of 10.94 seconds.
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 2, 2024Welcome to the Olympic Games, Sha'Carri Richardson! #ParisOlympics
📺 E! and Peaco*ck pic.twitter.com/qxtT9xLALw
