My Favorite Moments and Drama of the Fourth Day of the Olympic Games in Paris
Day four of the Paris Olympics included a bronze medal for the U.S. women’s rugby sevens team, a silver medal for the internet’s new darling, sharpshooter Kim Ye-ji, more bad news about Sena and a ton of cheating. Allegedly.
Spy drones, dishonest officials and bad calls: Paris Olympics scam
Cheating is an Olympic tradition that dates back to at least the 67 AD Olympics. BC, when Emperor Nero rode a chariot drawn by 10 horses in a four-horse race, fell during the race and was still declared the winner. Following the example of the ancient games, here are some of the scandals and cheating allegations at the Paris 2024 games.
The Canadian soccer team allegedly used spy drones . Canada’s women’s national soccer team is performing better than expected this year, but the team’s accomplishments are overshadowed by the behind-the-scenes help they may have provided . On July 22, the New Zealand football team called police after a suspicious drone hovered over their training field. French authorities traced the drone to Joseph Lombardi, an employee of Canada Soccer. Canada admitted they were spies. Lombardi and his assistant coach were sent back to Canada and FIFA is investigating. It is unknown how Olympic authorities will react if Canada wins a medal, but it is not uncommon for medals to be taken back long after they are awarded.
Allegedly Crooked USA Fencing Officials . I find that the rules of fencing are obscure, making it even harder to understand how one can cheat them, but here’s the gist: Many judges at the US Olympic qualifying events have been accused of fixing scores for specific fencers on the Olympic team. Two judges at an Olympic qualifying tournament have been suspended for allegedly working together to fix matches to get fencer Tatyana Nazlymova onto the U.S. Olympic team. Two other judges were accused of making decisions in favor of fencer Mitchell Saron. Disgruntled fencing fans argue that in fencing, a sport that does not appear to have a particularly powerful oversight body, results-fixing in favor of specific athletes is widespread. The only saving grace of this scandal is that “helping” unqualified people start a fencing team is not a scam that hurts our competitors. It only harms us! USA!
Basketball referees supposedly hate the Lakers . The star of the Japanese Olympic basketball team is Los Angeles Lakers player Rui Hachimura. In today’s game against France, Hachimura was ejected from the game after a second unsportsmanlike conduct violation, which many basketball fans are calling serious. Basketball Twitter is linking the firing to the referees hating the Lakers, which seems far-fetched. But it was still a very weak foul . Was it just bad refereeing? Is there a cultural difference in how fouls are called in international competition and in the NBA? Unconscious bias on the part of judges? There may be a little of each of the above or none of the above.
US women’s rugby team wins bronze
Yesterday I told you that now is a good time to get involved in women’s rugby, and I hope you heard me because today in the women’s sevens bronze medal match, the underdog USA pulled off a last-second victory over Australia’s top rugby player to win Highlights Olympic Games throughout history. With the score 12-7, just eight seconds left and back towards the opposition line, USA’s Alex “Spiff” Cedric caught a pass, found a hole in Australia’s defense and raced all over the field. With no time left on the clock, Spiff crossed the finish line to claim a historic victory for the USA, the first medal the USA had ever won in any Olympic rugby competition.
Oh, and New Zealand won gold, beating second-place Canada.
The hay is still unsuitable for swimming
As predicted, Olympic officials pulled the plug on the swimming portion of the triathlon today, postponing it until Wednesday, depending on whether E. coli levels are low enough for the water to be safe. However, a race on Wednesday also seems unlikely. Rain is expected from Tuesday evening into Thursday, which will likely release even more E. coli into the Seine. If the swim doesn’t take place on Wednesday, officials say it will take place on Friday; After all, the river won’t be polluted on Friday, right?
Triathlete Seth Ryder has come up with his own (dirty) bacteria-fighting strategy. He told the New York Times : “I’m just trying to raise my threshold for E. coli by exposing myself to a little bit of E. coli in my daily life,” Ryder said. “And this is actually backed by science. Proven. Just little things throughout the day, like not washing your hands after going to the toilet.” Note: Do not shake Seth Ryder’s hand.
The Parisian sniper captured the heart of the Internet
I love the cool personalities that surface during the Olympics. South Korean sniper Kim Ye-ji has captured the world’s imagination this year. She won a silver medal in the 10m today, but she won several gold medals looking like a total badass. Watch the video of Kim setting a world record a few months ago . Pure ice water flows in her veins. Her black suit, tactical glasses and that pose with one hand casually tucked into her pocket? Come on .