Are you not entertained? The Tokyo Olympics roll on Tuesday night with opportunities for redemption and, of course, more gold medals. After a jam-packed morning that saw a Simone Biles-less Team USA earn a hard-fought second-place finish behind the Russian Olympic Committee in the women’s gymnastics team final and USA softball claim silver after a loss to Japan in the championship game, it’s time to turn our attention to the evening slate.
Luckily for us, that includes swimmer Katie Ledecky winning her first gold of the Games and a chance for U.S. men’s basketball to bounce back after its loss to France.
If you don’t mind staying up late, you’ll be able to witness Kevin Durant — who enters tonight’s game 15 points shy of tying Carmelo Anthony‘s record for points scored in Team USA Olympic history — & Co. as they take on Iran (12:40 a.m. ET, Wednesday). The stakes are high, as the Americans could need wins against Iran and the Czech Republic if they hope to make it to the quarterfinals and keep their dreams of a fourth consecutive gold alive.
From Ledecky achieving her sixth career gold (GOAT things) to KD’s run at the record books, we got you covered with updates from all of tonight’s action:
Olympics medal tracker | Schedule
Ledecky gets sixth career gold; Sullivan takes silver
American Katie Ledecky won the first gold medal of her 2020 Olympic campaign on Wednesday in the debut of the women’s 1,500-meter freestyle.
Approximately 70 minutes after competing in the women’s 200-meter freestyle race, in which she finished in fifth place, Ledecky showed no signs of fatigue and took control of the 1,500-meter race from the start. She cruised to victory with a time of 15:37.34, more than four seconds ahead of silver medalist Erica Sullivan, also of the United States.
OLYMPIC HISTORY IS MADE‼️@katieledecky wins the first-EVER Olympic gold medal in the women’s 1500m free and teammate Erica Sullivan wins the silver.@TeamUSA x #TokyoOlympics #OlympicHERstory pic.twitter.com/fTLlcWFgEg
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
Germany’s Sarah Kohler took home the bronze.
Ledecky’s American teammates chanted, “U-S-A, U-S-A,” from the stands at the Tokyo Aquatic Center as she approached the wall to clinch the victory.
Ledecky had been touted as one of the faces of the 2020 Olympic Games, and expectations were high for the 24-year-old to add to her previous collection of five gold medals. She won the silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle earlier in the week. — D’Arcy Maine
Virginia duo medals in 200 IM
Having one Olympian is a big deal for a university. Two is even bigger. Two in the same event, both who ended up on the same medal podium? Welcome to the University of Virginia’s world.
Cavaliers swimmers Alex Walsh and Kate Douglass earned silver and bronze in the 200 IM on Tuesday, finishing just behind Japan’s Yui Ohashi.
2⃣medals, 1⃣ race!
Alex Walsh🥈 and Kate Douglass🥉 take home silver AND bronze for @TeamUSA in the women’s 200m IM! #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/YoL4nQmeJM
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
UVa was understandably pumped.
Two more Americans & Hoos on the podium!! @UVASwimDive stars Alex Walsh and Kate Douglass won silver and bronze, respectively, in the 200 IM!!#GoHoos | #Tokyo2020 | #TeamUSA
📸 @GettySport pic.twitter.com/tMJHkarBcp— Virginia Cavaliers (@VirginiaSports) July 28, 2021
This race caps a big year for Walsh and Douglass, who helped lead Virginia to the NCAA championship earlier this year.
Australia’s Titmus sets Olympic record
In the first of her two swimming events on Wednesday at the Tokyo Aquatics Center, Katie Ledecky finished in fifth place during the women’s 200 meter freestyle. She was the reigning Olympic champion in the event.
Ariarne Titmus of Australia won the gold medal with a time of 1:53.50, a new Olympic record. Siobhan Bernadette Haughey of Hong Kong and Penny Oleksiak of Canada took home the silver and bronze, respectively. Ledecky’s time of 1:55.21 was more than a second-and-a-half behind the winning mark.
OLYMPIC RECORD.
Australia’s Ariarne Titmus sets an Olympic record to win gold in the women’s 200m free. #TokyoOlympics
📺 NBC
💻 https://t.co/M0BT3R7UOp
📱 NBC Sports App pic.twitter.com/IVHIavtdlP— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
Ledecky got her sixth career gold in the inaugural Olympic running of the women’s 1500 meter freestyle later on Wednesday. She won the silver medal in the 400 meter freestyle earlier in the week — also losing to Titmus. — D’Arcy Maine
Titmus’ coach, Dean Boxall, was slightly excited for his swimmer.
Australia’s Ariarne Titmus’ coach is back to bring the hype and her family is virtually joining in on the celebration. #TokyoOlympics
📺 NBC
💻 https://t.co/M0BT3R7UOp
📱 NBC Sports App pic.twitter.com/XSsrKkOmbv— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
Options aplenty for USA men’s basketball despite opening loss
Team USA is 0-1 in pool play at the Olympics after losing to France on Sunday. The format from previous games has changed, so the pathway to the advancing to the medal round is different, something the Americans now have to play closer attention to.
Unlike in the past, three are three groups of four teams and not two groups of six, creating some nuance to how teams can advance.
The top two teams in each group will advance to the quarterfinals. That means despite the defeat, the Americans still control their destiny. If they beat Iran on Wednesday and then the Czech Republic on Saturday, they will clinch no worse than a second-place finish in their group and will advance.
However, there is a scenario in which the U.S. could lose another game and still advance. Two third-place teams from group play will get through based on their point differential. This means the final score is relevant and running up the score if there is a blowout-win opportunity could end up being valuable.
For the eight teams that advance to the quarterfinals, there is a redraw to set the bracket for the medal round. By placing second or third in a pool, which is a scenario Team USA is facing, they will likely face a harder road to the gold medal. — Brian Windhorst
Dues paid. Inside 🇺🇸 #USABMNT practice ahead of Wednesday’s #Tokyo2020 matchup with 🇮🇷 Iran (12:40 AM ET, Peacock)! pic.twitter.com/MVkssq0yTK
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 27, 2021
Chiles getting after it
Jordan Chiles was put on the spot on Tuesday when Simone Biles withdrew from the women’s team all-around gymnastics competition. While the Americans weren’t able to catch the Russian Olympic Committee for the gold, Chiles performed well and showed some killer dance moves, to boot.
What song is @ChilesJordan singing to??@TeamUSA x #TokyoOlympics
📺 NBC
💻 https://t.co/M0BT3R7UOp
📱 NBC Sports App pic.twitter.com/ao7vITJCYZ— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
The dancing continued on the podium.
#BilesNChiles ❤️@TeamUSA x #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/5l9YdO4QeY
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
Learning about Lydia
Lydia Jacoby’s gold medal in the 100-meter breaststroke was a surprise, so it’s time to get to know the young Alaskan gold medalist. She provides some cliff notes below.
Did you know 17-Year-Old Lydia Jacoby plays the standup bass? And she was born on Leap Day?
Learn more about Lydia in this episode of ‘Fast Facts’. #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/hLyx3u6E0b
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2021
