Showing posts with label #paris2024. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #paris2024. Show all posts
Thursday, 31 October 2024
Wednesday, 30 October 2024
Monday, 12 August 2024
Sunday, 11 August 2024
MAN CLIMBING EIFFEL TOWER 🗼 PROMPTS EVACUATION BEFORE OLYMPIC CLOSING
PARIS -- French police have evacuated the area around the Eiffel Tower after a man was seen climbing the Paris landmark hours before the Olympics closing ceremony Sunday.
The shirtless man was seen scaling the 330-meter (1,083-foot) tall tower in the afternoon. It's unclear where he began his ascent, but he was spotted just above the Olympic rings adorning the second section of the monument, just above the first viewing deck.
Police escorted visitors away from the area around 3 p.m. Some visitors who were briefly locked on the second floor were allowed to exit around 30 minutes later.
The Eiffel Tower was a centerpiece of the opening ceremony, with Celine Dion serenading the city from one of its viewing areas. The Tower is not expected to be part of the closing ceremony, which was set to begin at Stade de France in the northern suburb of Saint-Denis at 9 p.m.
The incident occurred as the Olympic competition winds down and security services in Paris and beyond are shifting their focus to the closing ceremony that will bring the curtain down on the Games.
More than 30,000 police officers have been deployed around Paris on Sunday. France's Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said about 3,000 police officers will be mobilized around the Stade de France, and 20,000 police troops and other security personnel in Paris and the Saint-Denis area will be mobilized late into Sunday night to ensure safety on the last day of the Olympics.
Saturday, 10 August 2024
Friday, 9 August 2024
Thursday, 8 August 2024
Wednesday, 7 August 2024
SIMONE BILES ON FIRST ALL-BLACK OLYMPIC GYMNASTICS PODIUM: “WE KNEW THE IMPACT IT WOULD MAKE." - EXCLUSIVE
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| Getty |
Superstar U.S. gymnast Simone Biles is used to breaking barriers.
Monday (5 August) at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, she had help from two of her friends: Brazilian Rebeca Andrade and teammate Jordan Chiles.
Andrade, Biles and Chiles captured gold, silver and bronze in the women’s floor final. It was the first Olympic gymnastics podium with three Black women.
“As soon as we were standing there, me and Jordan looked at each other,” Biles told Olympics.com in an exclusive interview. “We were kind of all cherishing that together because we knew how special it would be, and we knew the impact that it would make on all the little girls around the world that are trying to do what we’re doing, just for them to know that it’s possible.
“It’s setting those standards, paving the way,” she continued, “It’s like, we did it. We’re so excited because this doesn’t happen, so we’re so excited because this doesn’t happen.”
Former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama also saluted the three women.
"I’m still not over this beautiful moment of sisterhood and sportsmanship! You can just feel the love shining through these ladies. Congrats Rebeca, Jordan and Simone!" she said in a post on Twitter.
The podium also represented 20 Olympic medals with Biles owning 11, Andrade six and Chiles three.
Both Americans have long espoused their respect for Andrade, the 25-year-old who has overcome three ACL tears in 2015, 2017 and 2019 to become her nation’s most decorated Olympian ever.
Biles and Chiles bowed to Andrade as she stepped onto the podium, a gesture Biles says her younger self might have expected.
“She would probably laugh and be like, ‘You’re so ridiculous,’” she said. “But that is the most Simone and Jordan thing you guys could ever have done, so she would be very happy that the sportsmanship was there.”
- Scott Bregman
JOEL EMBIID LAUGHS OFF JEERS, LEADS U.S. ROUT INTO OLYMPIC SEMIS
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| Joel Embiid of Team USA at Paris Olympics on August 6, 2024. PHOTO: GREGORY SHAMUS/GETTY |
PARIS -- If there's one thing Joel Embiid has learned during the Olympics, it's that the French can boo him but no one here can stop him from doing the crotch chop.
The American center's comfort level in dealing with adversity mirrored that of the rest of his teammates Tuesday as Team USA put on a clinic in a 122-87 quarterfinal victory over Brazil.
The U.S. is now two wins from a fifth consecutive gold medal and is set up for another meeting with Serbia in the semifinals on Thursday.
Kevin Durant added 11 points for Team USA, passing legend Lisa Leslie for the most points in American Olympic history.
Not only did Embiid laugh his way through the jeers from those still annoyed that he passed on France's offer to join its national team. He was all too happy to pull out one of his favorite celebrations with the WWE-inspired chop maneuver. Embiid has been fined twice -- for $60,000 -- for the move by the NBA, but on this night, league commissioner Adam Silver was at Bercy Arena only as a fan.
"Oh no, they still might find a way [to fine me], but that felt good," Embiid said with a smile. "It's good to have fun too, because at the end of the day, you got to take something out of this experience."
The U.S. needed some production from Embiid against a Brazil team with a strong front line. He was dominant right from the start, cleaning the glass effectively and showing off his classic mix of interior and perimeter scoring.
In 12 devastating minutes of work in the first half, Embiid put in 14 points with seven rebounds. Brazil was helpless in dealing with him as he made 5 of 6 shots, including two 3-pointers. The boos from the fans ebbed, which only seemed to encourage Embiid to ask for more of them.
Embiid did have a minor ankle turn, and he sat the second half as a precaution.
The antics were part of the low-stress evening Team USA was hoping for, especially after seeing underdogs apply all sorts of pressure during the day, including France upsetting Canada just as the Americans were arriving at the arena.
With Tuesday's 35-point victory, Team USA has won each of its first four games here by at least 15 points, marking the first time a U.S. men's team has done so since the 2008 Redeem Team, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
Durant, who entered the game five points behind Leslie as the U.S. Olympic scoring leader, finished the day with 494 points for his career.
"Records are meant to be broken, so somebody will come along and do the same to me," Durant said. "My focus is on trying to win this gold."
All in all, it was a brilliant display of precision basketball led by LeBron James, who is steadily assembling a case for Olympic MVP. James was the catalyst for an impressive display of selfless offense, throwing an array of jaw-dropping passes that led to easy baskets for his teammates.
The most memorable happened just before the end of the first half on an inbounds pass. From half court, James threw a no-look frozen rope that threaded a tight window between Brazilian defenders and ended up perfectly in the hands of Jayson Tatum for an alley-oop.
"We had a play, but he just looked at me, so I knew he was doing the backdoor," Tatum said. "That was a hell of a pass. He put it right on the money, so he made it easy for me."
James has thrown some passes for the scrapbook already during the Paris Games, and all he did Tuesday was pile up nine assists in just 12 minutes to go with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting. The only thing keeping it from being a perfect night was an elbow.
Brazil's Georginho De Paula caught James above the left eye going for a rebound midway through the third quarter, opening up a cut. James exited to the locker room, where he got four stitches, and did not return to the game. It is not expected to cost him any more time.
James' lead was infectious as Team USA displayed perhaps its best ball movement of the summer. The Americans had 18 assists on their first 19 baskets.
"For a guy who truly is a point forward at heart, for him to be the leading scorer in NBA history when that's kind of the secondary thing that he does, he's crazy," Team USA coach Steve Kerr said. "But that's LeBron."
Devin Booker, who has been one of the Americans' steadiest players, ended up leading the team in scoring with 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting.
Brazil was fueled by former NBA player Bruno Caboclo, who had 24 points.
- Brian Windhorst, ESPN Senior Writer
WHY DO OLYMPIC ATHLETES RING A BELL AT STADE DE FRANCE?
Track and field events and rugby matches have brought exciting performances to the Stade de France during the 2024 Summer Games. Apart from the Olympic prowess, another element has been on display during the festivities: a large bell.
What significance does the bell hold? Here are key facts on its significance to Paris:
Why is the bell included in the Olympics?
The bell is a special element in the restoration of the famous Notre Dame Cathedral. The bell was made in Normandy, at the Fonderie Cornille Havard in Villedieu-les-Poeles-Rouffigny. It is engraved with the Paris 2024 logo and will be on display in one of the cathedral's bell towers after the Olympics.
What happened to the Notre Dame Cathedral?
On April 15, 2019, the Notre Dame Cathedral was hit by a severe fire, which caused its spire and part of its roof to collapse (among other damage). Since the fire, the cathedral has undergone extensive repairs.
How does the bell factor into rugby and track & field events?
The French men's rugby team rang the bell after they won the tournament. The U.S. women's rugby team rang the bell and posed for a photo after they took home the bronze medal.
Track and field winners who take home gold medals also receive an opportunity to ring the bell.
When can fans visit the bell at the Notre Dame Cathedral?
The Notre Dame Cathedral is currently slated for an official reopening on December 8, 2024.
For more Olympics coverage, check out the ESPN hub page for breaking news, athlete profiles, previews, and more.
- ESPN
Tuesday, 6 August 2024
Monday, 5 August 2024
NOAH LYLES TAKES MEN'S 100M GOLD BY NARROWEST MARGIN IN DRAMATIC OLYMPIC OLYMPIC FINAL
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| Noah Lyles won the 100 meters in a photo finish. AGUSTIN MARCARIAN/REUTERS |
This was an Olympic 100m final that felt like a brawl: messy, exhilarating, extraordinary, raw. As the world’s eight best male sprinters crossed the finish line in an almighty heap, their form disintegrating as their desperation grew, the giant stadium screens gave no indication of the result. Only the word “photo-finish” was by everyone’s name.
In the desperate seconds that followed, Noah Lyles, the American who is track and field’s greatest showman, went over to the young Jamaican star, Kishane Thompson. “I think you’ve got the Olympics, big dog.” For once, though, Lyles was wrong. But only just.
It came down to just five thousandths of a second: the width of a torso, a blink of an eye. That was the margin between gold and silver, and gap between Lyles and Thompson, after their heads bobbed over the line in 9.79sec.
When he saw that victory was his, Lyles began sprinting again around the track, stars and stripes in hand, embracing the delirium. “He was in lane 4, I was in lane 7, so I couldn’t really see what was happening,” he said afterwards. “I continued to run like I would win it. Something told me: ‘I need to lean.’ It is that type of race. It was crazy.”
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