Katie Ledecky tastes first gold in Tokyo

Katie Ledecky (in pic) got her first gold medal of these Olympics. Ledecky bounced back from losses in her first two events in Tokyo to win the inaugural 1,500m freestyle for women by more than 4 seconds today. The victory came about after Ledecky finished fifth in the 200m freestyle for her worst finish ever at an Olympics. Meanwhile, Britain won the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay in 6:58.58s for the first time since 1908.

China’s Shi breaks lifting world record

China’s Shi Zhiyong (in pic) broke his own world record to win the men’s 73kg weightlifting gold medal for the second Games in a row. The 27-year-old lifted a combined 364kg to better his own world record of 363kg, set at the 2019 World Championships. Venezuela’s Julio Ruben Mayora Pernia won a silver with a lift of 346kg. In a surprise turn, Indonesia’s Rahmat Erwin Abdullah won a bronze by lifting 342kg in total.

Brazil, Japan march into quarterfinals

Defending champions Brazil advanced to the quarterfinals of the men’s Olympics soccer tournament after a 3-1 victory over Saudi Arabia today helped them top Group D while Ivory Coast booked their berth by sending Germany home. Japan advanced after delivering the knockout blow to 10-man France with a 4-0 win to stay perfect in Group A. Ivory Coast went through at the expense of Germany, securing a 1-1 draw with the 2016 silver medallists at Miyagi Stadium.

Gymnast Hashimoto is all-around champ

Daiki Hashimoto kept Japan’s grip on men’s gymnastics all-around crown in breathtaking style. The 19-year-old posted a winning total of 88.465 to push China’s Xiao Ruoteng, the 2017 world all-around champion, into second place by just 0.400 of a point. — Agencies