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Olympics 2020: Team GB's Bethany Shriever wins historic BMX gold, Kye Whyte claims silver

BMX riders Bethany Shriever won gold while Kye Whyte claimed the silver medal for Team GB at the Tokyo Olympics. Photo by Danny Lawson/PA Images via Getty Images

Bethany Shriever made history and won Team GB's first ever BMX gold medal at the Olympic Games on Day 7 in Tokyo.

The 22-year-old became the Olympic champion after winning the women's race ahead of two-time champion Mariana Pajon from Colombia and Netherlands' Merel Smulders at the Ariake Urban Sports Park.

"Honestly, I'm in shock. To even be here is an achievement in itself," Shriever told the BBC. "To make a final is another achievement in itself. To win a medal, let alone a gold medal, I'm over the moon.

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"Winning a medal wasn't my goal -- results are out of our control. To keep to my routine and keep cool around the track, I managed to hold and earn the win. It is crazy."

Fellow BMX rider Kye Whyte claimed Team GB's first medal of the day and won silver in the men's event earlier on.

Whyte brought home GB's first ever BMX medal and was just 0.114 seconds behind the overall winner Niek Kimmann, while American favourite Connor Fields was stretchered off after a brutal crash in the final heat of the semifinals.

After Shriever won the gold medal, Whyte lifted her into the air at the finishing line as they celebrated a stunning double.

"The medal means everything to me," Whyte told BBC. "It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It is hard to get to the Olympics in the first place.

"To do well and get a medal, it is special. My dad definitely did cry and my mum cried too. When I get back it will be crazy."

Elsewhere, Duncan Scott won silver in the 200m individual medley to make it three medals for him at these Games, following his gold in the 4x200m freestyle and silver in the 200m freestyle. He came second behind China's Shun Wang, who finished just 0.28 seconds ahead of Scott.

"I definitely have to be proud," Scott said. "The winner did a big PB as well, I think it's a lot quicker people anticipated the final to be so credit to everyone in the race.

"It was always going to be tight, it was always going to be exciting. I had to try and commit to more 150m because I know I'm going to come back strong in the last 50m. I've done that, I'm really happy with the swim, it just wasn't quite there.

"I was happy with that, that's the first international medal I've won in that event so I'm really happy with that. I've taken over a second and a half off the time this year. I've got to hold my head up high with that."

Scott goes again in Sunday's 4x100m medley and has the chance to win a fourth medal, which could see him become the first Britain athlete to win a remarkable quartet of medals in one Olympics.

And in a successful day in the pool, Britain's Luke Greenbank, 23, took bronze in the 200m backstroke, with ROC's Evgeny Rylov winning gold.

"It's amazing, a dream come true. I'm so happy, over the moon and I'm lost for words" Greenbank said. "My first memory of swimming was watching the Beijing 2008 Olympics and it's always been a long ambition of mine. To come away with an individual medal, it's absolutely amazing."

There was more success at the Ariake Gymnastic Centre as Team GB's Bryony Page claimed bronze in the women's trampolining final, the second Olympic medal of her career.

The 2016 Rio silver medallist briefly led the final with a score of 55.735, but Chinese Zhu Xueying and Liu Lingling went clear of Page to win gold and silver, respectively.

"At the start of the cycle I choose to have surgery on my ankle to fix an issue I'd been struggling with for a few years," Page said.

"The first surgery didn't solve the injury so I had to go in again and I was out for two years. My second surgery caused of bit of nerve damage and that put some doubt in my mind about whether I could get back on the trampoline.

"I was so grateful to be back doing what I loved and try to get back to the standard I was in Rio and then pushing on. I might not have shown my very best today but it was the best I could have done."

Page's GB teammate Laura Gallagher did not reach the final after she did not complete her second routine in qualifying.

And elsewhere, Great Britain took bronze in the men's eight in rowing. In what has been a disappointing campaign on the water compared to previous Olympics, Team GB finished with just two medals overall (Team GB won five at Rio, including three golds, and nine in 2012, of which four were gold).

Team GB's women's football team were agonisingly knocked out at the quarterfinal stage in extra-time against Australia, losing 4-3 thanks to a Sam Kerr header.

Head coach Hege Riise's side went a goal down early in the first half, but a quickfire double from Ellen White looked to send GB through. However, Sam Kerr struck on 88 minutes to send the game to extra-time.

Caroline Weir missed a penalty in the early stages of extra-time, with 18-year-old substitute Mary Fowler scoring thanks to a large deflection and Kerr netting her second to sink British hopes.

White completed her hat trick on 115 minutes and the side continued to push hard for an equaliser, but it never came.

Action on the track got under way on Friday, and Dina Asher-Smith, Asha Philip and Daryll Neita all progressed safely through to the women's 100m semifinal.

Asher-Smith, a gold medal hope for Britain, ran an 11.07 seconds time and was pleased to get her Games off and running.

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"It felt good, it felt good to be out here and to finally get going, and it's just great to finally get my Olympics under way," she said.

"Today was just about making it through to the next round safely at the same time as knowing I've got another level to give tomorrow, so I am really happy. And I do have another level - of course I do, it's an Olympics."

Later in the afternoon, Team GB's quartet of Cameron Chalmers, Zoey Clark, Emily Diamond and Lee Thompson also progressed into the 4x400m final.

It was also a good day for Team GB's boxers with both Ben Whittaker and Pat McCormack guaranteed a medal after winning their respective quarterfinal bouts.

Light heavyweight Whittaker edged Brazil's Keno Machado via 3-2 split decision to reach the final four, while McCormack defeated Uzbekistan's Bobo Baturov.

"It was difficult, you never want to look too far ahead but I can't help myself," Whittaker told BBC Sport.

"The people on my side of the draw are big swingers -- I'm a confident, arrogant lad but I won't lie -- when I came out my belly was doing flips, my legs were gone, but as soon as the bell went it went away.

"I want to come back with the gold medal and become the mayor of Wolverhampton and call all the shots."

Caroline Dubois also advanced through to the quarterfinals, now just one win away from guaranteeing an Olympic medal of her own.

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The 20-year-old beat America's Rashida Ellis 3-0 via split decision. She next faces Thailand's Sudaporn Seesondee on Tuesday.

The GB women's rugby sevens team also impressed after storming into the Olympic semifinals on Friday with two excellent performances.

They started off the day with an emphatic 31-0 victory over Kenya to secure a place in the last eight.

This was then followed up with a stunning 21-12 win over the U.S. as a Jasmine Joyce double and an Abbie Brown try helped them progress into the semis.

GB will face France in the last four after they overcame China 24-10 in the last quarterfinal.

The GB men's hockey team secured a 2-2 draw with Belgium in their final group stage match and will meet India in the quarterfinals.

Information from ESPN's Tom Hamilton was included in this report.