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          2024 Olympics: Athletes, events to watch Friday

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          Paris Games Friday recap (1:34)

          Check out the scores and storylines of Friday's action across all sports at the Paris Games. (1:34)

          • ESPN
          Aug 9, 2024, 09:49 PM

          The final Friday of the 2024 Olympics brought key knockout rounds for some of Team USA's top squads, and Sha'Carri Richardson took the track for the last time in Paris.

          U.S. women's basketball defeated Australia in its semifinal, moving on to the gold medal match for the eighth straight time. The team has dominated at the Olympics so far, winning each game by double digits.

          On the track, the men's and women's 4x100-meter relay teams competed in the finals. The women's team raced first, winning gold in the race led by an anchor leg from Richardson. The men's team was disqualified for passing the baton outside the "takeover zone" as Canada took home the gold. Later in the day, Rai Benjamin captured his first Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter men's hurdles.

          Here's what you missed from Friday's marquee events.

          Olympics medal tracker | Schedule

          5:36 p.m. ET -- Brazil wins gold medal in women's beach volleyball

          Brazil's Ana PatrΓ­cia Ramos and Duda Lisboa defeated Canada's Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson 26-24, 21-12, 15-10 to win gold in women's beach volleyball. It's Brazil's first Olympic gold medal in the event since 1996, the first year beach volleyball was an Olympic sport, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

          Brazil now joins the U.S. (4) as the only countries with multiple gold medals in women's beach volleyball.

          5:25 p.m. ET -- France to face U.S. in women's basketball gold medal match

          France defeated Belgium 81-75 in the women's basketball semifinal, holding on in overtime after a late Belgium 3-pointer forced the extra period.

          France will play the U.S. in the gold medal match. It is just the second time France will be in the gold medal match for women's basketball, previously losing to the United States in 2012, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

          With the U.S. and France also matching up in the men's basketball gold medal match, this is the first time that the same countries have played for the gold medal in both men's and women's basketball.

          4:35 p.m. ET -- U.S. men's water polo falls to Serbia, will play for bronze

          Playing for a shot at the gold medal match, the U.S. lost to two-time defending gold medalists Serbia 10-6. With the game 8-6 heading into the fourth quarter, Serbia held the Americans scoreless to clinch the win.

          The U.S. will take on Hungary in the bronze medal match on Sunday. Team USA can win its first men's water polo bronze medal since 2008.

          4:30 p.m. ET -- Olivia Reeves wins rare Olympic weightlifting gold

          Olivia Reeves struck gold in the women's weightlifting 71-kilogram division, winning Team USA's first Olympic gold medal in weightlifting since 2000. She raised 262 kg.

          Reeves' medal follows Hampton Morris winning bronze on Wednesday in the men's 61-kilogram division, the first U.S. men's weightlifting medal in 40 years. -- READ MORE

          3:53 p.m. ET -- Japan wins first-ever women's breaking gold medal

          Making its Olympic debut, the women's breaking contest was won by Japan's B-Girl Ami Yuasa. She beat Lithuania's B-Girl Nicka Banevič 3-0.

          3:48 p.m. ET -- Rai Benjamin wins gold in 400-meter men's hurdles

          Let him cook! Rai Benjamin took gold in the men's 400m hurdles with a time of 46.46 seconds. Nobody else went under 47 seconds.

          Benjamin, whose hobby away from the track is home cooking, blazed the rest of the field to help Team USA to claim both 400m hurdles medals.

          It follows Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's world-record run on Thursday. With Benjamin winning gold in the men's 400m hurdles and McLaughlin-Levrone winning gold in the women's 400m hurdles, it's the second time the U.S. has swept both events. -- Connor O'Halloran

          3:43 p.m. ET -- Helen Maroulis makes wrestling history with bronze

          Team USA's Helen Maroulis defeated Canada's Hannah Taylor in the women's wrestling freestyle 57kg bronze medal match. Maroulis becomes the first U.S. woman to win three Olympic medals in wrestling -- she won gold in Rio (featherweight, freestyle) and bronze in Tokyo.

          3:32 p.m. ET -- Sifan Hassan keeps treble hopes alive

          Sifan Hassan is now a medal in the women's marathon away from completing an unprecedented treble of middle-and-long-distance medals.

          Hassan won medals in the 1,500m, 5,000m and 10,000m in Tokyo. But she is aiming to take that up a notch here in Paris by swapping the shortest of those races for the marathon.

          Her aim is to medal in each, and after the first two events it is so far so good.

          The Dutch athlete won bronze in the women's 5,000m on Friday, adding to the bronze she won in the 10,000m earlier this week. She has already run a remarkable 50 laps of the Stade de France track this week. Kenya's Beatrice Chebet took home gold, while Italy's Nadia Battocletti won silver.

          Hassan will compete in the marathon on Sunday and is among the favorites.

          "I always think, 'Why the hell do I do this to myself?'" she said after competing in the 5,000m. "But I'm excited, it's a big challenge. When I'm at the start line, I always ask myself, 'Why? Why? What is wrong with you?'" -- Connor O'Halloran

          3:20 p.m. ET -- Spain hold on to win gold medal in men's soccer

          A thriller at Parc des Princes ended in a 5-3 victory for Spain, who clinched their first gold medal in Olympic men's soccer since the 1992 Games in Barcelona. Spain also won the European Championship earlier in the summer, becoming the second men's team to win the Olympic gold and Euros in the same year -- France did so in 1984.

          The momentum seemed to shift to France after they came back from a 3-1 deficit to force extra time. However, a Sergio Camello goal in the 100th minute snatched it back as Spain held on for the win. -- READ MORE

          2:53 p.m. ET -- Olympic history in the women's 400m

          Marileidy Paulino became the first woman from the Dominican Republic to win an Olympic gold medal. She did it in stunning style, too, breaking the Olympic record in the women's 400m with a time of 48.17 seconds.

          The previous Olympic record was set at the 1996 Games in Atlanta by France's Marie-Jose Perec. -- Connor O'Halloran

          2:05 p.m. ET -- France-Spain heads to extra time after two-goal comeback

          Down 3-1 in the men's soccer gold medal match, France orchestrated a clutch comeback against Spain to send that match into extra time.

          Maghnes Akliouche scored in the 78th minute to make it a one-score game, then France was awarded a penalty late into additional time. Jean-Philippe Mateta scored the penalty, sending the Parc des Princes crowd into a frenzy. Mateta's strike was the latest regulation penalty kick goal in the past three Olympic Games, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

          1:52 p.m. ET -- U.S. men's 4x100-meter relay disqualified, Canada wins gold

          In a contrast to the women's race, Team USA's men's 4x100m relay team failed to medal, due in part to a nightmare first handoff between Christian Coleman and Kenneth Bednarek.

          Coleman was making great time but couldn't find a smooth transition with Bednarek, actually running into the back of his teammate before finally passing the baton.

          It meant they were later disqualified for passing the baton outside the "takeover zone." -- Connor O'Halloran

          1:35 p.m. ET -- U.S. women's 4x100-meter relay grabs gold

          Take a bow, Sha'Carri Richardson.

          The United States has won a number of sprinting medals on the track this week, and it just added another gold in the women's 4x100 relay.

          The U.S. has been rapid all week, and the quartet of Richardson, Gabby Thomas, Melissa Jefferson and Twanisha Terry arrived as favorites for the women's relay. Three of them have already picked up medals this week, including Thomas' 200m gold, Richardson's 100m silver and Jefferson's 100m bronze.

          The Americans were in third place when Richardson was handed the baton entering the home straight, but they took gold by the time she reached the finish.

          Richardson showed again here that she is the fastest woman in the world when she's at full speed.

          There was even enough time for Richardson to take a long look to her right as Britain's Daryll Neita tried desperately to catch up. -- Connor O'Halloran

          1:29 p.m. ET -- U.S. women's basketball moves on to gold medal match

          Team USA cruised to its 60th straight win, defeating Australia 85-64 to clinch a spot in the gold medal match. The U.S. had four players in double-digit points, led by Breanna Stewart's 16.

          It will face either France or Belgium on Sunday for a shot at its eighth straight Olympic gold medal. -- READ MORE

          12:56 p.m. ET -- U.S. women's basketball brings star-studded sidelines

          When the U.S. women's basketball team plays, it's there to put on a show -- especially in the games that matter the most. With a stacked roster consisting of stars such as A'ja Wilson and Diana Taurasi, it's only right the stars came out to witness greatness. During Team USA's semifinal game against Australia, the U.S. men's basketball team, Carmelo Anthony and the Bryant family were among those in attendance.

          12:09 p.m. ET -- U.S. men's volleyball takes bronze

          The Americans have displayed strategy, power and explosiveness during their Olympic quest. It all paid off with a bronze medal -- their sixth medal -- after the U.S. swept Italy 3-0 (25-23, 30-28, 26-24). The medal ties Team USA with Brazil and the Soviet Union for the most men's volleyball hardware of any country, according to ESPN Stats & Information. It marks the second time the U.S. has won a medal match in straight sets at the Olympics. The other time was in 1984, when the Americans defeated Brazil in the gold medal match.

          11:23 a.m. ET -- Zhang sets up an eagle to finish strong

          Rose Zhang is done for the day at 7 under, and it was shots like this that helped her secure that mark. Nelly Korda finished at 4 under, with Lilia Vu trailing at 3 over. Lydia Ko is currently in the lead at 9 under with holes left to play.

          10:59 a.m. ET -- Progressive overload, right?

          If you think you're strong, wait until you see this guy. Rizki Juniansyah of Indonesia just lifted close to three times his body weight over his head.

          10:08 a.m. ET -- Sha'Carri Richardson's sprint starts with her press-on nails

          American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson is an Olympic silver medalist in the 100-meter dash. Her look on the track also stands out. Richardson's hair, jewelry and tattoos display her creativity and transfer over to the track. A big part of Richardson's appearance is her press-on nails. Meet the nail tech behind the sprinter's nail art. -- READ MORE

          9:28 a.m. ET -- Was using the Seine at the Olympics worth it?

          Paris spent $1.4 billion to clean the River Seine through four events that included the triathlon and marathon swim. However, any type of rainfall could result in higher levels of E. coli and bacteria in the river. During the opening ceremony, over a month's worth of rain fell into the river within 36 hours.

          A test run that would've let Olympians familiarize themselves with the course was canceled due to the high concern over the quality of the water, and multiple athletes became sick. Was it ever a great idea to have the athletes swim in the Seine? -- READ MORE

          8:47 a.m. ET -- Letsile Tebogo makes comments about Noah Lyles after 200m final

          After winning the men's 100-meter dash in a photo finish, Noah Lyles was expected to win a second gold in the 200-meter dash. However, Lyles earned a bronze medal in the 200 with a time of 19.70 seconds. Letsile Tebogo won gold, clocking 19.46. In the postrace news conference, Tebogo was asked about becoming the new face of track and field -- and he had some criticism for Lyles.

          7:13 a.m. ET -- Team USA women's 100-meter hurdlers 3-for-3 into finals

          The Americans have always been dominant when it comes to the 100-meter hurdles. Grace Stark set the standard for the U.S. women with a perfect three-step technique to finish first in her heat with a time of 12.39 seconds.

          Alaysha Johnson, from Spring, Texas, made things look easy with a 12.34 to automatically qualify for the finals.

          U.S. Olympic Trials champion Masai Russell had a bit of work to do, however. After coming off the 10th and final hurdle, Russell was in position to finish third in her heat. Russell leaned her torso across the line to stretch over Jamaica's Ackera Nugent, finishing second with a time of 12.42 seconds to move on to the final.

          6:44 a.m. ET -- Bryce Hoppel powers his way into 800m final

          American Bryce Hoppel's strategy to make his way to the final of the men's 800 meters was spot on. Staying with the pack was the name of the game for Hoppel, as he kicked just enough in the final stretch to finish in second place in his heat and to be an automatic qualifier with a time of 1:43.41.

          6:40 a.m. ET -- Team USA men's 4x400 gets the stick onto the finals

          Quincy Wilson, 16, wouldn't just make history as the youngest American male to compete in the Olympics, he had the honor come out of the blocks as the first leg.

          Wilson ran a 47.27-second split, handing off the baton seventh to Vernon Norwood. His 43.54 caught Team USA up with the pack. Bryce Deadmon ran 44.20 seconds to pass off the baton to Chris Bailey, who was in the men's 400m final, to pull through for the U.S. The top three move onto finals, and Bailey's 44.14 anchor leg split moved Team USA into qualifying position to finish third with a 2:59.15 to advance to the finals.