The Guardian

Paris 2024 Olympics day five: Alex Yee and women’s quad sculls lead GB medal rush with thrilling golds – live

By Barry Glendenning(now); Will Unwin and Jonathan Howcroft (earlier),

8 hours ago

https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1n6Oua_0uieUqW500 — It’s a fantastic morning for Team GB as they take gold in the men’s triathlon and quadruple sculls. Composite: Getty

1.04pm BST

Thanks Will. It’s been quite the day for Team GB so far, what with them adding more metal to their medal tally than you’d find at a Monsters of Rock festival.

Whether or not we get the same kind of drama this afternoon remains to be seen. Coming up: BMX Freestyle (women’s and men’s finals), canoe slalom, men’s gymnastics and swimming among other disciplines.

12.58pm BST

Well, that was a bit of fun, wasn’t it? For even more fun, we have Barry Glendenning to take you through the next few hours.

Updated at 12.58pm BST

12.56pm BST

Men’s volleyball: Japan are 2-0 against Argentina and the South Americans have had a coach sent off for protesting a decision. Argentina had looked set to level the scores but Japan fought back to double their lead.

12.46pm BST

Men’s tennis: Djokovic is through to the next round after beating Koepfer in straight sets (7-5, 6-3).

12.41pm BST

Women’s judo: Jemima Yeats-Brown suffered a golden score defeat in the round of 16 in the -70kg event.

Up against Tokyo silver medallist Michaela Polleres, Yeats-Brown failed to reach the quarter final stage after battling through nearly two minutes of extra time.
It was a tense encounter with both on two penalties, but Polleres ended Yeats-Brown’s Olympics debut with a Waza-ari.

She said: “That was tough. Last time I fought her she beat me pretty easily. But I thought, if I keep doing what I’m doing I’m going to beat her. I felt really good and thought I’d get the win. I was trying to go for one more attack, but she ended up catching me on the floor and I couldn’t get out. My family are all in the crowd. I wanted to put a bit of a show on for them. Hopefully I did. I love fighting in France. France is the ultimate judo show, so I knew I was going to enjoy it. I love fighting for the crowd, on a big stage.”

12.38pm BST

“As an ex-rower I am overjoyed to see that, barring the Tokyo/post-Covid glitch, British rowing continues to deliver big time,” says Jeremy Boyce . “I went to a state Grammar School in the 60s/70s which was a rugby/cricket establishment, no footie. If you were crap at either of those (I was) you had the choice of cross country or rowing. Meanwhile at posh Shrewsbury School, just next door, parents paid a fortune for their offspring to have the option of rowing, then a chance at a seat in the Cambridge boat one day. I obviously took the latter option and never ever regretted it. If you’ve ever done rowing you will understand, if not, take it from me, rowing in a good crew requires a high degree of fitness, plus impeccable synchronicity to maintain the balance in those narrow boats and get the best out of every stroke. Rowing used to (and to some extent still does) have a “toff” image (thanks, OxBridge...) but like many other sports that are equipment and location dependent (skiing, for example), if you can get access to boats and water you can share in all that. Also, back in the 60s/70s we were rubbish. Then came lottery funding, and the rest is history...

“I have tried many sports before and since but I never found any that remotely came close to delivering the same feeling. Also, like kayaking/canoeing, the thrill gets even better the bigger the crew you’re in. The only other thing I can think that vaguely parallels it could be tandem cycling.”

12.32pm BST

Men’s tennis: Over at Roland Garros, Djokovic is a set up and leading 4-1 in the second against Koepfer. I think it is fair to say, he will heading into the next round.

Updated at 12.32pm BST

12.25pm BST

Australian BMX freestyle rider Natalya Diehm took an early lead in the women’s finals at a blisteringly hot La Concorde. The 26-year-old posted an 88.80 in her first ride. BMX freestyle competitors get two runs in the final, with the best scoring counting. Australia’s defending Tokyo gold medallist, Logan Martin, will ride in the men’s finals later this afternoon.

12.23pm BST

Women’s diving: Some reaction from the earlier bronze medal in the sychronised event.

Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix : “I don’t think there is anyway to describe what we are feeling. We are so happy. We have worked so hard.

“I am sorry we gave everyone a hard time, we always know how to close a competition.”

Lois Toulson said: “There was a blip in the middle with our third dive which is usually one of our strongest. We stayed confident and calm.”

12.18pm BST

The International Olympic Committee has asked for talks between the World Anti-Doping Agency and the United States, including the country’s anti-doping agency USADA, to resolve a dispute over jurisdiction in doping matters, it said on Wednesday.

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday threatened to cut USA funding for Wada, accusing it of failing to properly investigate alleged doping by Chinese Olympic swimmers.
The USA, the largest single country funder of Wada, has accused the global anti-doping body of not disclosing that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for performance-enhancing trimetazidine (TMZ) in China months before the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

“We have asked for a dialogue between WADA and all the stakeholders,” IOC spokesperson Mark Adams told a press conference. “From our understanding the question is about respect of international agreements and those international agreements have been signed by everyone around the world, including the United States.”

The swimmers were cleared by a Chinese investigation, which said they were inadvertently exposed to the drug through contamination at a hotel but the Department of Justice has since launched an investigation. WADA said it had no evidence to challenge China’s findings.

The incident, however, cast a shadow over the Paris Olympics and sparked a major row between the global and American anti-doping agencies, drawing in the IOC which said Wada was the only global body responsible for anti-doping.

Wada responded to USA allegations by saying it would take the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) to the Independent Compliance Review Committee, a move that could jeopardise plans for the U.S. to host the 2028 summer and 2034 winter Olympics in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City respectively.

12.16pm BST

Tom Callaghan emails: “The skill of British competitors has impressed me greatly. I’m especially impressed with the grit shown by Alex Yee, Tom Pidcock, and the women’s quadruple scullers. Truly a never-say-die spirit, don’t you think?”

It looks that way based on the past 24 hours or so.

Updated at 12.17pm BST

12.15pm BST

Alex Yee: “I don’t know what to say. I am lost for words. I am just so grateful to everyone who has supported me. I just thought I would give it one last chance and never gave up. I was just saying anything could happen. I am just a normal guy who works hard at his sport and loves what he is doing.”

The lad from Lewisham seemed somewhat shellshocked still by what he had achieved.

12.11pm BST

Women’s rowing: It should be said the Dutch team also look ecstatic when they could be forgiven by being upset by the margin by which they lost after leading for so long.

12.10pm BST

Women’s rowing: The national anthem blares out next to the water and you will not see four happier faces in Paris over the course of this Olympics.

Updated at 12.46pm BST

12.07pm BST

Nick Ames was on hand for the rowing, too. He has managed to put into words that incredible finish.

12.05pm BST

Speaking of all these medals, we should all take a quick look at the table in Paris. Team GB are up to fourth.

12.04pm BST

Sean Ingle was on hand to witness that incredible men’s triathlon finish. Here is his report.

12.04pm BST

Women’s rowing: Princess Anne is on hand to hand out the medals to the quadruple sculls’ top three teams. What a moment it will be for her to put the gold around the necks of the Brits.

12.01pm BST

This might be a good time to read up on Lola Anderson’s back story, courtesy of this interview with Nick Ames.

12.00pm BST

A very tearful Lola Anderson: “It feels like we’ve spent ages working towards this. You get to the and of the cycle and you never expect to experience this and it is quite overwhelming. I know my dad would be so so proud, I am thinking a lot about him.”

Hannah Scott : “It’s been a long time in the making and I can’t believe it. The crew today have been amazing - we kept our cool to the end. We went for it and it came off.”

11.54am BST

And we cannot forget Tom Pidcock’s comeback victory on Monday . Maybe we are a plucky nation after all.

Updated at 11.56am BST

11.52am BST

Criticising Simone Biles and the US gymnasts seems somewhat shortsighted.

It has been a fine couple of days in the pool for the Irish.

11.50am BST

I am having to write a lot of Team GB disappointment posts and then delete them thanks to the comebacks. Yee and the rowers are playing with emotions and my backspace button.

11.48am BST

Women’s rowing: There are tears in the Team GB boat. To win it in such a special manner will make it even sweeter because they had to dig deep to chase down the Dutch.

11.46am BST

Women’s rowing: It is the finest of margins but Team GB have prevented a Dutch double in the quadruple sculls. Another cracking British comeback in Paris. First Yee and now this.

11.44am BST

Team GB win women's quadruple sculls

Team GB gave it their all to chase down the Netherlands and won it on the line in a photo finish!

Updated at 12.02pm BST

11.43am BST

Women’s rowing: It is now or never with a third of a length between first and second. Team GB are giving it everything but the Dutch are edging towards gold.

11.42am BST

Women’s rowing: The gap is closing very slightly and the Dutch will be nervous going into the final 500m.

11.41am BST

Women’s rowing: Team GB are in second at the halfway make but Netherlands have a decent lead. Time to give it your all with less than 1000m to go.

11.40am BST

Women’s rowing: The Netherlands are leading in the quadruple sculls with Ukraine second and Team GB third. The Brits are starting to move through the gears.

11.39am BST

Men’s rowing: The men’s quadruple scull saw Team GB’s men finish fourth, just missing out on a medal. Netherlands were first, Italy silver and Poland third.

11.37am BST

Women’s rowing: It is the quadruple sculls final up first. Team GB are highly fancied in this race.

11.35am BST

Anyway … we better head over to the rowing. Plenty of medals on offer at the Stade Nautique.

11.33am BST

That is Team GB’s fifth gold medal in Paris and 15th overall.

11.32am BST

Men’s triathlon: The pundits and experts seem completely confused by how Yee managed to come back from the dead to win that race. Yee made up a 14-second gap in less than 2km. It really is incredible stuff. He is finally up and about, celebrating as he goes.

Updated at 11.37am BST

11.30am BST

Men’s triathlon: No one saw that coming for the majority of the final lap. Yee gave it absolutely everything and is currently just the other side of the finish line, sitting against the hoardings. Give that man a glass of water.

11.29am BST

Yee wins men’s triathlon gold for GB with late surge

Team GB’s Yee pulled off a miracle with an incredible comeback in the final few hundred metres as he reeled in Wilde.

Updated at 11.32am BST

11.28am BST

Men’s triathlon: Yee is sprinting down the home straight here and is about to win GOLD!

11.28am BST

Men’s triathlon: Yee overtakes Wilde!

11.28am BST

Men’s triathlon: Yee has closed the gap and this is going to be a great finish!

11.26am BST

Men’s triathlon: Bergere is five seconds behind Yee and the crowd is giving him every bit of encouragement they can to get him to chase down the Brit.

11.26am BST

Men’s triathlon: The home director seems desperate to focus on the battle for third. We do cut back to Wilde who is well clear of Yee.

11.23am BST

Men’s triathlon: Behind Yee is Le Corre and Bergere who are in a battle for third. It is an all-French fight for bronze and the home crowd are loving it.

11.21am BST

Men’s triathlon: Wilde takes the bell with a big lead. We have 2.5km to go and Yee needs to produce something that would redefine special as he is 14 seconds behind.

11.20am BST

Men’s triathlon: Yee has cut Wilde’s lead down to 12 seconds from 15. The Brit needs to step up his speed even more if he is to have any hope of gold.

Updated at 11.20am BST

11.19am BST

Men’s triathlon: Wilde is giving off the impression of being unflustered at the front and might even have more to give if he really wants to break Yee soon. The Brit just about has the Kiwi in his sights but it is a long way back.

11.15am BST

Men’s triathlon: Wilde is up to a 15-second lead over Yee as they begin the third lap of four. Yee will be hoping the leader has gone off too soon and can reel him in. In worse news for Yee, he is being chased down by two Frenchmen and a Canadian, who are around eight seconds behind.

Updated at 11.21am BST

11.12am BST

Women’s hockey: Great Britain have secured a vital first win in the pool stage, defeating South Africa 2-1. They are up to fourth in the table and face another big match against USA tomorrow.

11.10am BST

Men’s triathlon: Wilde has opened up a good nine-second lead over Yee on the second lap and is looking comfortable. How can the Brit get back at him? The great crowds on the Parisian streets are getting behind the athletes to make a cracking atmosphere.

11.08am BST

Women’s diving: Team GB have won a bronze in the pool. Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix and Lois Toulson’s podium position was in doubt after a poor third round effort but they came up with the goods when it truly mattered.

11.05am BST

Men’s triathlon: There was a great moment when the athletes transitioned from bikes to running shoes, as Team GB’s Sam Dickinson started to get the crowd going by bigging up Yee.

New Zealand’s Wilde has chased down Yee and it looks like it could be an exciting battle for the gold. Yee is happy to sit in second as they complete the first lap.

11.03am BST

Men’s triathlon: Yee is out at the front and is opening up a decent gap already. He is incredibly strong in this element and does a faster 5km than Mo Farah.

11.01am BST

Men’s triathlon: As the race leaders dismount their bicycles and prepare to embark on what should be an exciting 10km race on foot, Will Unwin is here to steal my thunder and call them home after I did all the hard work …

10.58am BST

Men’s triathlon: The crowds are 10-deep on the Champs Elysees as the competitors pedal their way around the final lap of the 40km bike-ride. Great Britain’s Alex Yee, the fastest man in the field over 10 kilometres on foot, is exactly where he needs to be in the lead group of about 35 riders.

10.54am BST

China gold, GB bronze in women's 10m synchro diving

Women’s diving: The Chinese have won, because of course they have as they are incredible at this discipline. However, there is delight for Team GB’s Andrea Spendolini-Sireix and Lois Toulson, who hug each other with delight when an insufficiently decent last effort from the Americans means they are guaranteed the bronze medal. North Korea take the silver.

Updated at 10.57am BST

10.51am BST

Men’s triathlon: The lead group in the bike stage of the contest has mushroomed in size and looks about 35 riders strong with just over one lap of the cycle to go.

10.48am BST

Women’s diving: With one round of dives left in the wopmen’s 10m synchro, Great Britain’s women have it all to do if they are to win a medal. They’ve slid down the placings to fourth and need to pull something extremely special out of the bag if they are to make the podium.

But what’s this? They do exactly that, with Lois Toulson and Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix scoring 77.76 to put themselves back into medal contention in second place. China are runaway leaders and have secured gold with 351.90 points. It looks like silver and bronze will be contested by Team GB, North Korea and Canada.

Updated at 10.48am BST

10.43am BST

Women’s hockey: Great Britain are 2-1 up against South Africa courtesy of a tidy strike Hannah French in the third quarter.

Updated at 10.50am BST

10.31am BST

Men’s triathlon: Our lead group of 19 are working reasonably well together at the front of the race, maintaining a 22-second gap between themselves and the chasers (which contains the reigning Olympic champion Kristian Blummenfelt) as they complete their third lap of seven on the bikes.

10.27am BST

Women’s diving: Two rounds into the 10m synchro, it will come as no surprise to anyone to learn that the Chinese duo already look home and hosed with 111 points. Andrea Spendolini-Sireix and Lois Toulsen are currently in second place with 97.20, with their Ukraine counterparts in third on 96 points.

10.24am BST

Men’s triathlon: The lead group is 19 riders strong and they have a gap of 24 seconds over the chasing pack on lap two of the bike race. A silver medallist at Tokyo, Team GB’s Alex Yee is in the lead group and will be happy with his performance so far.

10.21am BST

Table tennis: Great Britain’s Liam Pitchford has been beaten in the men’s singles, going out to Slovenian 13th seed, Darko Jorgic, who advances to the last 16 on the back of a 4-2 win.

Updated at 11.22am BST

10.19am BST

Men’s triathlon: We’re 33 minutes into the race and our front group is about 16 riders strong and they have a lead of about 20 seconds over the chasing pack.

Updated at 10.26am BST

10.18am BST

Men’s triathlon: Your six leaders: Alessio Crociani (Ita), Matthew Hauser (Aus), Henri Schoeman (RSA), Pierre Le Corre (Fra), Dorian Coninx (Fra), Alberto Gonzalez Garcia (Esp). And in the time it took me to research all that they’ve been joined by several more, including Alex Yee on his arresting pink bicycle.

10.13am BST

Men’s triathlon: A lead group of six riders have opened a gap on the chasers but Alessio Crociani (Ita) is visibly frustrated at being forced to do all the work with five others aren’t prepared to share the load at the front and do their turn.

10.10am BST

Men’s triathlon: The race leaders have just finished their 1,500m swim in the Seine and Crociani (Ita), Schoeman (RSA), Hauser (Aus) and Coninx are the first four out of the water.

Alex Yee is back in 18th, 27 seconds behind as the competitors head to mount their bikes. With the sun out and the road dry, the conditions for the men’s cycle are a lot more forgiving than those the women had to endure earlier this morning. The time on the clock is 24min 02sec.

Updated at 10.10am BST

10.06am BST

Women’s diving: The 10m synchro diving has just started, with British duo Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix and Lois Toulsen going first for Team GB. We are obliged, by law, to mention that Andrea is the daughter of Fred Sirieix, who I’m told is a celebrity maitre d’ on some TV dating show I’ve never seen. As a proud Frenchman, Fred is also working for the BBC at these Olympics and is poolside to watch his daughter in action today. He must be bursting with pride …

Updated at 10.14am BST

10.02am BST

Women’s hockey: It’s the end of the first quarter in the pool game between Great Britain and South Africa and it’s the latter who lead by the only goal of the game so far, which was scored by Kayla De Waal.

9.59am BST

Women’s triathlon report: Early risers were treated to an epic women’s triathlon – and an epic result for France and Paris as Cassandre Beaugrand secured victory. Not far behind was Britain’s Beth Potter, who took a gritty bronze medal in conditions that were brutal even by the standards of this tough sport. Sean Ingle reports from the banks of the Seine …

9.47am BST

Men’s triathlon: After Cassandre Beaugard’s incredibly popular home win in the women’s event earlier this morning, the men’s begins in considerably warmer conditions.

There are 55 competitors, with Britons Alex Yee and Sam Dickson among them. Because of the Seine’s currents, the women’s swim was brutal, while the cycling coughed up plenty of casualties too. Let’s see how their male counterparts fare as they dive off the pontoon and into the dirty drink …

9.37am BST

Women’s hockey: Team GB have just started their latest pool match against South Africa at Yves-du-Manoir and while the contest is not necessarily must-win for the British women, it is certainly could-do-with-one.

They have lost their first two games of these Olympics and are currently bottom of the six-team pool on goal difference. Only the top four advance but Team GB have two matches remaining after this one. It’s scoreless between the sides in the early stages.

9.22am BST

Tennis: Andy Murray and his doubles partner Dan Evans looked to be on the way out of Paris 2024 but yet again the commendably stubborn duo found a way to win. Jonathan Liew reports from Roland Garros …

9.15am BST

Swimming: Duncan Scott won the seventh Olympic medal of his career as Team GB successfully defended their 4x200m relay title, while Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen was victorious in the 800m freestyle. Andy Bull reports from the París La Défense Arena …

9.11am BST

Women’s gymnastics: The American dream played out in a piece of irresistible theatre to bury the memories of the Damned Games of Tokyo, writes Barney Ronay.

9.07am BST

Catch-up: With some time to kill before the men’s triathlon begins at 9.45am (BST) and the women’s 10m synchronised diving starts at 10am (BST), now seems as good a time as any to flag up some of our writers’ musings on events from last night. Stay tuned …

9.04am BST

9.01am BST

Women’s triathlon: Great Britain’s Georgia Taylor-Brown finishes sixth, shaking hands with assorted members of the crowd on her way up the home straight. She seems happy enough with her performance but it’s her Scottish teammate Beth Potter who takes the bronze medal.

“I was going for the gold but Cassandre and Julie were just too good for me today,” she tells the BBC. “I’m so happy to be here with the bronze medal. I did it for me but I also did it for everyone who has helped me in the past eight years.”

8.56am BST

Beaugrand wins women's triathlon, Potter bronze for GB

To rapturous applause from the home crowd, the 27-year-old from Paris becomes the first ever French triathlete to win Olympic gold in a time of 1hr 54min 55sec. She’s followed home by Switzerland’s Julie Derron, with Team GB’s Beth Potter taking the bronze medal.

Updated at 11.25am BST

8.53am BST

Women’s triathlon: France’s Cassandre Beaugrand ups the pace and puts significant daylight between herself and Sweitzerland;’s Julie Derron. Beth Potter is in the bronze medal position for Britain and looking over her shoulder to see how far behind her Emma Lombardi is. About ten metres, Beth.

8.48am BST

Women’s triathlon: Our four leaders take the bell and have 2.5km of this triathlon left to complete. That’s about eight minutes of racing in old money.

8.47am BST

Women’s triathlon: Our four leaders pass the water station again and drench themselves with cold water as they continue to pass a steady stream of tail-enders. Switzerland’s Julie Derron tries to put some distance between herself and the other three leaders but they’re not having it and immediately up the pace. The race for all three medals is wide open and one of this quartet is going to miss out and suffer heartbreak. A reminder – they are: Julie Derron (Sui), Emma Lombardi (Fra), Cassandre Beaugrand (Fra) and Beth Potter (GB).

8.40am BST

Women’s triathlon: A total of 1hr 35min after diving into the Seine, our four leaders pass a water station and you could throw a blanket over them. Switzerland’s Julie Derron is making the pace. Interestingly, there appeared to be a mass false start, when well over half the field appeared to jump the gun while diving into the Seine. I have no idea if any of our four leaders benefitted from that.

It could be significant as the swim looked horrendous, what with the strong currents in the famous river, and a lot of competitors’ chances of winning a medal ended before they had even getting on their bikes.

8.33am BST

Women’s triathlon: Julie Derron (Sui), Emma Lombardi (Fra), Cassandre Beaugrand (Fra) and Beth Potter (GB) have opened a significant gap on the rest of the field with 7.5km of the run to go. It looks like our three medallists will come from this quartet. Georgia Taylor-Brown has dropped off the pace and will not be making the podium this year.

Updated at 8.46am BST

8.27am BST

Women’s triathlon: Our nine leaders have finished the cycle and are in the early stages of the 10km run that will decide our winner. They’re well over a minute clear of the best of the rest.

8.23am BST

Women’s triathlon: Taylor Knibb (USA) is leading the chase group. Some readers may remember her as the women who crashed no fewer than four times during the women’s Individual Time Trial. Her inability to stay upright didn’t seem to phase her and after the Race of Truth she jokingly described herself as “probably the worst bike handler out there”.

8.18am BST

8.16am BST

Women’s triathlon: Our nine leaders take the bell to signal one more five-kilometre lap of the cycle remaining ahead of the run. The Paris 2024 organisers are not being particularly efficient when it comes to telling how far behind the chasers are but it seems inconceivable that the winner will not come from this front group of nine who have just swung a right off the Champs-Elysees. The gap seems to be at about 1min 18sec.

8.11am BST

Women’s triathlon: The road surface is extremely greasy and various riders are dropping like flies. In the lead group, German athlete Laura Lindemann is the latest to go down, skidding on some cobbles and cracking her right knee on the cobbles. She gets back on the bike and pedals away but is no longer in the lead group, which is now down to nine riders.

8.08am BST

Good morning from London. And happy whatever-time-of-the-day it-is wherever you are. It’s Barry Glendenning here, picking up the cudgels from Jonathan, as our lead group of 10 in the women’s triathlon are about to start lap six of seven in the cycling.

Our leaders: Derron (SUI), Lombardi (FRA), Kingma (NED), Lindemann (GER), Beaugrand (FRA), Duffy (BER), Taylor-Brown (GBR), Potter (BR), Spivey (USA), and Kuttor-Bragmayer (HUN). Back in the field, Team USA’s kirsten Kasper has just hit the deck, landing heavily on her backside.

Although it looked like the jig was up for her, she remounted and set off again, only to come a cropper for a second time as she looked over her shoulder upon hearing a race motorbike coming upsides her.

8.01am BST

While the triathletes sweat Seine sludge around the streets of Paris, I’m going to put my feet up and make a cup of tea. It’s over to Barry Glendenning for the conclusion of the race.

7.58am BST

Now two-thirds of the way into this cycling leg the leading ten remain over one minute clear of the chasing pack. Time-trial specialist Taylor Knibb (USA) is leading the chasing group and her expertise is helping chip away at the deficit, but it’s a Sisyphean task.

7.54am BST

The course is lined with supporters four or five deep, urging on these triathletes. They are especially enthused with the presence of two French athletes in the leading pack: Emma Lombardi and Cassandre Beaugrand the number one and number three ranked triathletes in the world.

7.50am BST

The top ten have settled into a rhythm, about half the way through this cycling portion of the triathlon. Those athletes are: Derron (SUI), Lombardi (FRA), Kingma (NED), Lindemann (GER), Beaugrand (FRA), Duffy (BER), Taylor-Brown (GBR), Potter (BR), Spivey (USA), and Kuttor-Bragmayer (HUN).

They have established a 68 second gap to the chasing pack.

It looks like we’re down to a race within a race for those leading ten with responsibility for leading the peloton switching periodically as everyone settles in ahead of the final running leg.

Updated at 8.05am BST

7.40am BST

It’s Wacky Races out on the slippery cobblestones with bikes sliding along the Parisian streets sending triathletes crashing to the ground. The chasing peloton is now nine-strong with Seregni (ITA), Tertsh (GER), and Lopes (BRA) all losing ground after falls.

But that chasing group has done its job, with Flora Duffy (BER) on the cusp of being reeled in.

7.31am BST

That chasing pack is now 11-strong with Beaugrand (FRA), Lombardi (FRA), Tertsh (GER), and Taylor-Brown (GBR) among the peloton. However, they are failing to make any inroads on Flora Duffy with the Bermudian extending her lead, one that she established early on the swimming leg.

Further back we’ve already seen at least three cyclists stack hard on the slippery cobblestones.

Updated at 8.00am BST

7.27am BST

Duffy (BER) has a 17 second lead early in the cycling portion of the race. Behind her looms a chasing pack of four: Seregni (ITA), Lopes (BRA), Kingma (NED) and Potter (GBR).

7.24am BST

Flora Duffy (BER) is first out of the water into her transition. It is a transition that includes a climb of 35 steep steps from the river up to the bridge where the bikes are waiting.

Updated at 7.58am BST

7.18am BST

As well as the four triathletes mentioned, French contenders Beaugrand and Lombardi are in the top ten, with Taylor-Brown (GBR) and Tertsch (GER) still in the mix.

Of the pre-race favourites, Kate Waugh (GBR) is way back in 43rd, 90 seconds off the pace.

7.16am BST

Those four triathletes drag their sodden bodies out of the Seine, jog along the starting pontoon and dive back into the water for a much shorter lap two. The field is strung out to extraordinary proportions with a massive 50 seconds separating first and 15th and an unbelievable one minute 58 covering first to last.

Updated at 7.19am BST

7.13am BST

Duffy (BER) continues to lead the swimming leg, putting clean(ish) water between her and the chasing pack. It looks like one heck of a slog though during this upstream portion of the race. Bianca Seregni (ITA) is in second place with Vittoria Lopes (BRA) in third and Beth Potter (GBR) fourth.

7.07am BST

The triathletes have reached the first turn at 910 of the 1500m course. Some of the back markers are almost swimming on the spot to fight the extraordinarily strong current.

Defending champion Flora Duffy (BER) has moved her way to the tip of the arrowhead of swimmers, hugging the riverbank to minimise the impact of the current.

7.04am BST

The current in the Seine is reportedly one metre per second, which means swimming upstream is going to be exhausting. Some beautiful *triathlon cliches* on the world feed commentary with the truism that you can’t win the triathlon during the swimming leg, but you can lose it .

Replays of the start suggest it wasn’t a clean breakaway and their may be some false start penalties.

Updated at 7.07am BST

7.00am BST

55 intrepid women triathletes have splashed their way into the soupy Seine for one of the most anticipated events of the Paris Games.

It has been raining all morning but there are thousands of fans camped on the bridges and riverbanks of the French capital to cheer on the competitors. Allez!

6.51am BST

The women’s triathlon features an opening swimming leg of 1500m (two laps of a 750m course in the Seine), then a 40km bike ride (seven 5.7km loops through Paris), finishing with a 10km run (four 2km laps).

6.48am BST

French supporters will be lining the triathlon route cheering on home stars Emma Lombardi and Cassandre Beaugrand the number one and number three ranked triathletes in the world.

Sandwiched between the two Frenchwomen is German Lisa Tertsch, while rankings four and five are occupied by a pair of British athletes, Beth Potter and Kate Waugh.

The defending champion is Flora Duffy, who became Bermuda’s first Olympic gold medallist when she finished ahead of Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR) and Katie Zaferes (USA). Taylor-Brown lines up again today.

6.39am BST

Here’s the triathlon course that will show off the incredible sights of Paris city centre.

6.32am BST

We’re just about half-an-hour away from the start of the women’s triathlon. It’s an event that has featured heavily in the build-up to the games with the swimming portion of the race taking place in the river Seine.

Among the starters is American dual-sport phenomenon Taylor Knibb. The 26-year-old is a longer distance Ironman 70.3 specialist, who also qualified for Team USA in the road cycling time trial earlier this Olympics, finishing 19th.

In modern times, competing in two sports in the same summer is considerably less common. A Guardian analysis of data from the Olympic-stats site Olympedia turned up no athlete pulling double duty at the same Summer Olympics since 1992 (athletes such as cyclist-rower Rebecca Romero and baseball player-speed skater Eddy Alvarez have won medals in two sports at separate Olympics).
That drought will end on Wednesday, pollution permitting , when triathlete/cyclist Taylor Knibb competes in the women’s triathlon in Paris, four days after finishing 19th in the road cycling time trial , in which she crashed several times on a slippery day in Paris.

6.20am BST

Staying with football, it’s a huge day for the women’s competition with the eight quarter-finalists to be decided after the final round of games. With 12 teams starting the tournament only four sides will miss out, with the winless trio of New Zealand, Nigeria and Zambia unlikely to proceed. The final spot is very much up for grabs on and off the pitch.

Defending gold medallists Canada head into the final round of matches on zero points despite winning both their matches. That is because they were deducted six points for spying on a training session of group rivals New Zealand. However, Canada have appealed that penalty with the court of arbitration for sport and a decision is expected to be handed down around 12:00 local time.

Should that penalty be reduced or erased, the qualification race becomes significantly tougher for the likes of Australia, Brazil and Colombia. Australia’s Matildas, heavily fancied coming into the tournament, were thumped 3-0 by Germany then escaped with a 6-5 victory over Zambia. They face Emma Hayes’ resurgent USWNT in Marseille desperate for a result that keeps them in the mix.

6.06am BST

Speaking of things hotting up, Paris was sweltering yesterday with temperatures in the mid-30s. The athletes’ village is not fitted with air-conditioning.

The issue of air conditioning had been a hot one before the Games. As part of Paris’s commitment to a greener Olympics, it was decided that air conditioning would not be installed with officials instead promising that the athletes rooms would be kept cool through a geothermal water system pumping cold water underneath the buildings.

6.03am BST

The men’s football tournament is hotting up with hosts France through to a blockbuster quarter-final match-up against bitter rivals Argentina.

Tensions have been heightened between the two football nations since the 2022 World Cup final, when Argentina fans chanted about French players with African heritage. After the albiceleste won the Copa América final in July, a video showed Argentina players singing similar chants .
That led the French football federation to file a complaint with Fifa over “racist and discriminatory remarks”. While that investigation is still ongoing, a full-scale diplomatic incident erupted between the countries before the Argentina president Javier Milei met with France’s leader, Emmanuel Macron, to smooth things over.

Friday’s quarter-final line-up is as follows:

France v Argentina
Egypt v Paraguay
Morocco v USA
Spain v Japan

5.57am BST

The bespectacled Irishman Daniel Wiffen was a novelty when he swam to an 800m-1500m freestyle double at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships, but he is now a bona fide star of his sport and a national hero after battling to 800m freestyle gold last night.

Wiffen is the first Irishman to ever win an Olympic gold medal in the pool, and only the second Irish athlete ever to do it after, ahem, Michelle Smith de Bruin, who won three of them back at Atlanta in ‘96 and was banned for four years soon after when she was caught tampering with her urine samples. Wiffen wasn’t even born when all that happened, and while it won’t much worry him either way, some of the older people around Irish swimming will feel awfully glad they finally have another Olympic champion to celebrate after all these years.

5.51am BST

Clarisse Agbegnenou was one of just four individual gold medal-winners for France in Tokyo, making her one of the faces of the Games in the build-up to Paris. But the judoka had to settle for bronze in the 63kg category.

It was still a moment to cherish though with Agbegnenou making her daughter part of her celebrations, following her close involvement throughout her preparation for the competition. Angelique Chrisafis has more.

Agbégnénou’s popularity in France rests on her extraordinary personal story. She was born premature in the Brittany city of Rennes, where she had major kidney surgery as a tiny baby, and was in a coma. She is now a patron of premature baby charities. Talent-spotted as a teenager, she received elite training and quickly rose up the ranks to become one of France’s biggest judo stars, in both individual and team competitions.
She said in the run-up to the Paris Olympics that her trailblazing for elite women athletes who had children was one of her biggest achievements – she took her baby to training in order to feed her. “I want women athletes who follow me to feel free and legitimate, to break codes to change mentalities and change the rules. We can have a life as a woman and mother as well as champion at the same time,” she told Le Parisien before competing in Paris.

5.41am BST

We’re roughly halfway through the swimming carnival, but there is concern for the final few days with Covid rearing its ugly head. Great Britain’s Adam Peaty and Australia’s Lani Pallister are among the confirmed cases, with the USA and Romania also believed to have recorded positive tests.

As we know all too well from the rolling lockdowns of 2020-2021, this is likely to be the tip of the iceberg.

There is no mandatory requirement to withdraw from the Games in cases of Covid, leaving nations to implement their own policies with athletes and staff.

5.39am BST

Australia’s swim team, especially its female contingent, are dominating in the pool. That includes Kaylee McKeown, who defended her 100m backstroke title, and looks destined for more glory before the end of the meet.

The Queenslander very much swims her own race, in and out of the pool. While many athletes offer up platitudes to that effect, there is a sense with McKeown that her offbeat approach is very much the real thing.

5.31am BST

Speaking of Andy Murray, the great Scot prolonged his valedictory tournament with another gritty victory alongside doubles partner Dan Evans. Jonathan Liew had the pleasure of reporting on another trademark Murray performance.

There is pain in his joints and a heaviness in his step, and yet as Andy Murray reels away in victory as the clock strikes 10.30pm local time, he looks like a child again: the child who first swung a racket in anger, the child who first discovered the pure joy of victory.
Into the good night they went, Murray and Dan Evans, and not gently either but with force and purpose and every intention of returning to fight another day. In a way this has been the motif of Murray’s elongated final curtain call, perhaps even his career: a refusal to vacate the stage before he is ready, a desire to eke out every ounce of talent in his body.
Perhaps, as he and Evans came back from two match points down in a deciding tie-break, there was even a kind of revulsion to them, a determination that no, it would not end here, at a quarter-full Court Suzanne-Lenglen against the world No 35s from Belgium. The mind is still willing, the body is still just about there for him, and the neck is just two more wins from a fourth Olympic medal.

5.25am BST

Unsurprisingly, Biles features in another magnificent gallery of images from yesterday’s action. But for my money the shot of the day is the one capturing Andy Murray and Dan Evans in synchronised delight following their second nail-biting victory of the men’s doubles tennis competition.

5.21am BST

There’s only one place to begin our look back at day four and that’s the Bercy Arena, where Simone Biles exorcised the demons of Tokyo and ensured she would leave Paris as one of the shining lights of the Games. Barney Ronay got to enjoy the spectacle firsthand.

Paris was getting the Biles-industrial complex, the Biles narrative arc, which reached its full extension on a wonderful night of flex and twang and defiance of the elements; one that ended, naturally, with gold for the US women.
That final Biles routine was visceral and at times hair-raising. She played the hits. She did Biles 1, Biles 2. She produced an extraordinary release of energy, that explosive athletic grace that looks at times almost like an optical illusion.
What is gymnastics exactly? Performance art? Hard-edge competitive sport? At one point in her balance beam routine Biles did an insane triple backflip (repeat: on a thin, square bar) like a wheel rolling down an incline, one of those moments where she seems to turn the entire event into something else, movements that are strange, liquid, and basically unlike any other human on the planet.

5.15am BST

The business end of the medal table remains a free for all with Japan still leading the way with seven gold medals. The unfamiliar look is largely a consequence of the USA experiencing a poorer than expected start to the Games, especially in the pool. US athletes have won 26 medals overall (twice as many as Japan) but only four of them have been gold. In the pool, US swimmers have won 15 medals, but only two gold.

The number of NOCs on the medal table is now up to 43 with the likes of Tajikistan and Guatemala joining the party.

5.11am BST

5.04am BST

Triathlon is on!

After the disappointment of yesterday’s postponement of the men’s race, and longstanding concerns over the water quality in the Seine, it will come as a huge relief to event organisers that the triathlon has been confirmed on today’s schedule. The women’s race is up first at 08:00 followed by the men at 10:45.

5.00am BST

Preamble - Day Five Schedule

Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of the fifth official day of competition of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.

Day four was dominated by another show stopping performance from Simone Biles who helped the USA to team gold in the women’s gymnastics. There was also a landmark gold in the pool with Daniel Wiffen powering to 800m freestyle glory and becoming the first Irishman to swim his way to an Olympic medal. Elsewhere in the swimming competition Great Britain (men’s 4 x 200m freestyle relay) and Australia ( women’s 100m backstroke ) continued their impressive meets.

But Tuesday was also one of disappointment. The postponement of the men’s triathlon due to the water quality of the Seine raised the possibility of the three-discipline event being reduced to just running and cycling, while 12 time zones away in Tahiti the surfing competition succumbed to mother nature on a day scheduled for medal events. And there was also the first major let down for the hosts with one of the faces of the games, Clarisse Agbegnenou, failing to defend her 63kg judo crown , although she did claim bronze.

So what can we look forward to today?

Medal Events
🥇 Triathlon – women’s & men’s individual (from 8:00)
🥇 Diving – women’s 10m platform synchro (from 11:00)
🥇 Rowing – men’s & women’s quad sculls (from 12:00)
🥇 BMX Freestyle – women’s & men’s park (from 13:00)
🥇 Shooting – women’s trap (from 15:30)
🥇 Judo – men’s 90kg / women’s 70kg (from 16:00)
🥇 Canoe Slalom - women’s C-1 (17:25)
🥇 Gymnastics - men’s all-around (17:30)
🥇 Fencing - men’s sabre team (19:30)
🥇 Swimming - women’s 100m & 1500m freestyle / men’s 200m butterfly, 200m breaststroke, 100m freestyle (20:30)
*(All times listed are Paris local)

Simon Burnton’s day-by-day guide:
BMX freestyle
In Tokyo Britain’s Charlotte Worthington and Declan Brooks went into their finals seeded fourth and seventh respectively and came out with a gold and a bronze, illustrating the event’s unpredictability. Both are back again but Britain’s best medal chance looks to be 23-year-old Kieran Reilly, the reigning world champion who made his name by becoming the first person to land a triple kick flair in 2022.

Gymnastics: men’s all-around final
Daiki Hashimoto won gold in Tokyo three years ago, has won two world championships since and goes into today’s all-around final as favourite. “I will remain steadfast in surpassing my previous accomplishments. My commitment is unwavering, fuelled by a resolute determination,” he said this year. Meanwhile the US are hoping for what would be just their second title, and first since 2004. “We’re going to be very deadly. This is going to be a fun Olympics. We are fully loaded,” said Fred Richard, who won world championship bronze last year.

Swimming
France’s Léon Marchand is the son of Xavier Marchand and Céline Bonnet, both former Olympic swimmers, is coached at Arizona State by Michael Phelps’s former mentor Bob Bowman, is probably the greatest swimmer in the world, and is about to have the biggest night of his life. The 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke finals were originally due to run consecutively, but after intensive lobbying the schedule was changed to separate the events by an hour and a half and give Marchand a greater chance of success. Now he has to perform.

Other unmissable moments will include the women’s and (rescheduled) men’s triathlon races in the Seine and through the heart of Paris; Australian flag bearer Jess Fox looking for her second gold of the Games in the C-1 canoe slalom; Katie Ledecky cruising to an eighth career gold in the 1500m freestyle and the fastest sharks in the pool flexing their muscles in the men’s & women’s 100m freestyle; Viktor Axelsen beginning the defence of his men’s singles badminton title; Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz taking the court in the men’s singles tennis; and crunch time in the women’s football with the final round of group matches including the Matildas v USWNT .

I’m sure I’ve failed to include something notable to you in this short rundown, so feel free to let me know what’s on your agenda by emailing: jonathan.howcroft.casual@theguardian.com or, if you’re still rummaging around in the post-Twitter dumpster fire, find me on X @jphowcroft .

I’ll be around for the first few hours of the blog here in Australia, after which I’m handing over to Barry Glendenning in the UK.

Paris 2024 Olympics day five: Alex Yee and women’s quad sculls lead GB medal rush with thrilling golds – live

Team GB win women's quadruple sculls

Yee wins men’s triathlon gold for GB with late surge

China gold, GB bronze in women's 10m synchro diving

Beaugrand wins women's triathlon, Potter bronze for GB

Triathlon is on!

Preamble - Day Five Schedule

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