Slow starts happen.
On Saturday, the United States failed to medal on the first full day of the Summer Olympics since 1972. There were 11 events on Saturday, including cycling, fencing, weight lifting, and archery, but the Americans failed to receive a gold, silver, or bronze medal.
Sunday — Tokyo is 13 hours ahead of the eastern time zone — was a different story.
The United States swim team bounced back in a big way, winning a medal in every swimming event on Sunday.
Chase Kalisz won gold in the men’s 400 meter individual medley race, with teammate Jay Litherland taking the silver. In the women’s 400 meter individual medley race, the U.S. also won two medals — Emma Weyant took home the silver medal and Hali Flickinger won the bronze. The women also medaled in the 4 x 100 meter relay, taking home the bronze.
In the men’s 400 meter freestyle, Kieran Smith took home the bronze for the U.S.
The Olympics are now officially in full-swing, and this week’s action will be packed. Let’s take a look at the week’s biggest events, what you should be watching and when.
Swimming and Katie Ledecky
Ledecky is competing in five separate events, going for gold in the 200, 400, 800, and 1500 freestyle events, as well as the 4×200 freestyle relay team.
Sunday night, Ledecky faced her biggest test — the 400 meter freestyle against her rival Ariarne Titmus of Australia. It was a fantastic race, tight from start to finish, but Titmus edged Ledecky to take the gold. It’s the first time Olympic individual event in which Ledecky has not taken home the gold.
Ledecky’s remaining medal races can all be seen on NBC, times are below.
-Tuesday, July 27: Women’s 200 Freestyle Finals (9:41 p.m. ET) , Women’s 1500 Freestyle Finals (10:54 P.M. et)
-Wednesday, July 28: Women’s 4×200 Freestyle Relay Finals (11:31 p.m. ET)
Friday, July 30: Women’s 800 Freestyle Finals (9:46 p.m. ET)
In the men’s 4×100 freestyle relay, Caeleb Dressel got the U.S. off to an early lead and Zach Apple anchored, leading the U.S. to a gold medal.
Gymnastics
The women’s gymnastic team may be the most popular event this Olympics. Simone Biles is must-see TV, as she goes for a record amount of gold medals for an American female Olympian. On Sunday, the women’s team got off to a surprisingly slow start, finishing second behind the Russian team in qualifying. It’s the first time the Americans have failed to finish first in team standings since the 2010 world championships.
However, they are in the finals, and this could simply be a blip on the screen.
“This was not the finals,” U.S. high-performance director Tom Forster said. “This was getting into the finals. So this might be a great awakening for us and we’ll take advantage of it.”
The Finals can all be seen on NBC, CNBC, and streaming on Peacock, times are below.
–Tuesday, July 27: Women’s Gymnastics Team Final (6-11 a.m. ET, Peacock)
-Thursday, July 29: Women’s Trampoline Final (8 p.m. – 2 a.m. ET, CNBC)
Friday, July 30: Women’s Trampoline Final (2 a.m. – 4 a.m. ET, CNBC)
For both the women’s and the men’s gymnastics teams, the event finals will be held from August 1-August 3.
Track & Field
Track and field qualifying will begin Thursday, July 29th. On Saturday, July 31, the women’s 100 meter finals and the men’s discus throw final will be held.
Team USA Basketball
The Americans are in trouble. On Sunday, the U.S. men’s basketball team lost to France 83-76, snapping a 25-game Olympic winning streak. Next up for Team USA is Iran (July 28 12:40 a.m. ET) and then the Czech Republic. They’ll more than likely have to win both games in order to advance to the medal round.
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].