PARIS
Teddy Riner became the first judoka to win four Olympic gold medals on an action-packed day in Paris on Friday as flamboyant American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson cruised through her 100m heat and Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the men’s tennis final.
Riner sent a partisan crowd at the Champs de Mars Arena into near madness when he left it late to beat world number one Kim Minjong of South Korea and claim the title in the +100kg category.
The 35-year-old, judo’s most decorated athlete at the Olympics with six medals, now holds the French Summer Olympics record of four titles after claiming individual golds at the London and Rio Games and a team title in Tokyo.
Riner, a record 11-time world champion, lit the Olympic cauldron alongside Marie-Jose Perec in Paris and was a flag-bearer for his country at the 2016 Rio Games.
And the hometown icon, widely considered the greatest judoka of all time, did not disappoint, finishing off his opponent with an ippon to secure the gold and spark frenzied celebrations.
“It is crazy, I am so happy. It shows that work pays off. I often said it but now it is just pure happiness, pure happiness,” Riner, who hails from the overseas department of Guadeloupe, said. “When it’s written, it’s written, that’s all I have to say. It is crazy.”
Earlier Brazilian Beatriz Souza won the gold medal in the women’s over 78kg category, beating Raz Hershko of Israel who took silver.
At the Stade de France, the 24-year-old Richardson launched her campaign to become the first American woman since Gail Devers in 1996 to win Olympic 100m gold.
She burst out of the blocks smoothly and was quickly into her stride before pulling away early on, easing down to cross the line in 10.94sec.
Long-awaited triumph
At the Bercy Arena, Britain’s Bryony Page claimed gold in the women’s trampoline after a nerve-wracking final on her third Olympic medal-winning appearance.
The 33-year-old Page, who was fifth in qualifying, had long been on a quest for gold, having won the silver at the 2016 Rio Games and bronze at the Tokyo Olympics.
Viyaleta Bardzilouskaya from Belarus won silver, the first medal gained by an athlete from Russia or Belarus, who are competing as neutrals, with Canada’s Sophiane Methot grabbing bronze.
Shooter Chiara Leone ensured gold in the women’s 50-metre rifle three positions remained in Switzerland’s possession after triumphing with an Olympic record tally of 464.4 while South Korea’s mixed archery pair of Lim Si-hyeon and Kim Woo-jin swept the floor 6-0 with their German opponents to take the gold medal and retain their title.
At the Palace of Versailles, British showjumpers Ben Maher, Harry Charles, and Scott Brash won the team gold, making stellar rides with almost no errors on a challenging track. The victory added to Britain’s team eventing gold earlier in the week.
In sailing, Spain’s Diego Botin and Florian Trettel stormed to men’s skiff gold after the Netherlands duo of Odile van Aanholt and Annette Duetz had clinched overall victory in the women’s skiff.
