Rio Olympics Recap Day 3: Lilly King Wins Gold Over Yulia Efimova
U.S. swimmer Lilly King beat Russian rival Yulia Efimova and won gold in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero, Brazil on Monday. King's win helped the U.S. extend its lead in the overall medal count. Here’s a recap of the day’s action:
King of the Pool
American swimmer Lilly King stared down Russian rival Yulia Efimova prior to the 100-meter breaststroke final, then beat her with an Olympic-record time of 1 minute, 4.93 seconds. King’s teammate Katie Meili took bronze.
King’s victory came after the U.S. swimmer called out Efimova’s history of doping in a TV interview on Sunday. The Russian swimmer already served a 16-month suspension before testing positive for meldonium before the Rio Games. An appeal of that suspension allowed Efimova to compete, but she was no match for King on Monday.
American Ryan Murphy nearly set a world record as he won gold in the 100-meter backstroke on Monday, edging out China’s Xu Jiayu. David Plummer of the U.S. earned the bronze medal.
Hungary’s Katinka Hosszú won her second gold of the Games, beating Kathleen Baker of the U.S. in the women's 100-meter backstroke final. Canadian Kylie Masse and China’s Fu Yuanhui tied for the bronze medal.
Sun Yang of China won the gold medal in the 200-meter freestyle, with Chad le Clos of South Africa in second and American Conor Dwyer taking the bronze medal.
Elsewhere in the pools, China’s Chen Aisen and Lin Yue won the men's 10-meter synchronized diving event by 39.87 points over Americans David Boudia and Steele Johnson. Tom Daley and Daniel Goodfellow of Britain took the bronze.
Japan Wins Gymnastic Gold, as U.S. Falls
Japan rallied to win the team gold medal in men’s gymnastics, besting Russia and China. For the second consecutive Olympic games, the U.S. men's team finished out of medal contention after being in the top three after the qualifying round.
American Juggernauts Roll
The United States women's field hockey team captured its second straight win against a world power on Monday, beating No. 3 Australia, 2-1. Michelle Vittese and Caitlin van Sickle had the goals for the Americans. U.S. goalie Jackie Briggs was near-perfect again.
Elsewhere, Paul George scored 20 points, and the U.S. men's basketball team beat Venezuela, 113-69, on Monday. The teams were tied at 18 at the end of the first quarter, before the Americans pulled away for good. The U.S. women’s basketball team crushed Spain, 103-63. Five Americans scored in double-figures, led by Diana Taurasi’s 13 points.
U.S. women’s tennis player Serena Williams advanced to the third round by defeating Alize Cornet of France, 7-6 (5), 6-2. Cornet has three career wins over Williams, including an upset at Wimbledon in 2014. Meanwhile, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark’s lost to Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, 6-2, 6-4.
Notable Firsts on Monday
U.S. fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad became the first American athlete to compete in the Olympics while wearing a hijab on Monday. The Muslim fencer from New Jersey won her first match before falling later in the round of 16.
Rafaela Silva won Brazil's first gold medal of the Rio Games, defeating Sumiya Dorjsuren of Mongolia in the 57kg women's judo finals. Portugal’s Telma Monteiro took the bronze medal.
Australia's women beat New Zealand, 24-17, to win the first-ever Olympic rugby sevens gold medal. Canada earned the bronze with a win over Great Britain.
Medal Count
The U.S. extended its lead in the overall medal count, taking home seven total medals on Monday.
United States: 19 | 5 gold; 7 silver; 7 bronze
China: 13 | 5 gold; 3 silver; 5 bronze
Japan: 10 | 3 gold; 0 silver; 7 bronze
Russia: 10 | 2 gold; 5 silver; 3 bronze
Italy: 9 | 3 gold; 4 silver; 2 bronze