Olympics - The African Mirror

Aug

2021

Olympics-Another record on track, Belarus sprinter heads for Poland

AMY TENNERY and GABRIELLE TÉTRAULT-FARBER Another athletics world record was obliterated at the Olympics on Wednesday, as athletes coped with the heat of political and diplomatic controversy as well as Tokyo's broiling summer weather. American Sydney McLaughlin shattered her own record in the 400 metres hurdles while a Belarusian athlete left for Poland three days after refusing an order to come home against her wishes and seeking diplomatic protection. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was investigating the case of sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya while querying China over athletes who wore Mao Zedong badges on the medals podium but suspending a probe…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Olympics: Doping raises its head as BMX marred by crashes

SPORT

AMERICAN swimmer Ryan Murphy has stoked controversy at the Tokyo Games when he raised the spectre of doping after losing his second Olympic title to Russian rival Evgeny Rylov. Murphy, who won three gold medals at the 2016 Rio Games, said his 200 metre backstroke final was "probably not clean" after he lost to Rylov, competing as part of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC). The comments threw an unwelcome spotlight on doping for Tokyo 2020 organisers as the blue riband athletics competition got under way, on a day further marred by accidents on the BMX track, including a horrendous spill…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Olympics: China pulls ahead on gold medals as American Kendricks out for COVID-19

SPORT

SIMON EVANS and MITCH PHILLIPS THE rivalry of economic powerhouses China, Japan and the United States played out in an Olympic swimming pool on Thursday, where a world record in the women's freestyle relay put the Chinese ahead by one gold medal at the Tokyo Games. American joy at their own double gold in the pool was tempered as pole vaulter Sam Kendricks was ruled out of the Games due to a positive COVID-19 test, prompting members of the Australian athletics team to briefly isolate in their rooms and highlighting the ever-present risk of infection at the Games. China gained…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Olympic host Tokyo hits record 2,848 COVID-19 cases, seeks more hospital beds

WORLD

ANTONI SLODKOWSKI and SAM NUSSEY TOKYO’S 2,848 COVID-19 infections on Tuesday were the Olympic host city's highest since the pandemic began, officials said, as media reported that authorities had asked hospitals to prepare more beds for patients as the Delta variant drives the surge. The rise in cases threatens to further erode support for Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, whose ratings have slid to their lowest level since he took office last September, in large part because of his haphazard handling of the pandemic. It also spells trouble for the Olympics, as many Japanese fear the influx of athletes and officials…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Biles out of team event in Tokyo as Osaka exits Games

SPORT

STEVE KEATING and ROZANNA LATIF U.S. gymnast Simone Biles dropped out of the women's team event after a single vault at the Tokyo Games on Tuesday while tennis superstar Naomi Osaka exited only days after lighting the Olympic flame. The International Gymnastics Federation said Biles would play no further part in the team event, but said she would still receive a medal if the heavily favoured U.S. ended up on the podium. "Simone has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue," said USA Gymnastics. "She will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions."…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

At an Olympics without spectators, noisy delegations make up for absent fans

SPORT

EIMI YAMAMITSU and GABRIELLE TETRAULT-FARBER AT boxing, it was drum-wielding Uzbeks. At table tennis, flag-waving Chinese cheered so much that Japanese media complained it felt like an away match for the home team. The Olympics may officially be without supporters but at venues across Tokyo national delegations have brought the noise, replacing fans kept out by coronavirus countermeasures. Technically, cheering is not allowed because of the risk of COVID-19 infection, but the rule has been difficult to enforce during the high drama of Olympic competition. Mongolian coaches pounded on plastic bleachers seats as their women's team faced off in 3x3…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Olympics: Japan enjoy golden day, Tunisian swimmer stuns superpowers

SPORT

SAM NUSSEY, TAKASHI UMEKAWA and MITCH PHILLIPS THE Tokyo Olympics has delivered a day of high drama, with a stunning surprise in the pool, one of the great David v Goliath cycling victories and double sibling judo gold as Japan continued their golden start. The host nation bagged skateboarding's first gold medal courtesy of Yuto Horigome, then saw Uta Abe and her brother Hifumi make history as the first siblings to win gold medals in different events on the same day in any sport. With swimmer Yui Ohashi also victorious, Japan's overall gold medal tally rose to five, one behind…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Africa hopes for medals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics

SPORT

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER THE Tokyo Olympics are finally upon us - albeit with questionable energy - and this instalment of games sees a number of new and returning faces representing the African continent. While known countries such as Uganda; Egypt; Nigeria and South Africa have increased their representation at the summer games with the introduction of new sporting codes, some notable faces will be missing the tournament due to IAAF rulings or reluctance to participate amid the coronavirus pandemic. Many sports fans will be eager to see how South Africa’s sprinters and swimmers will do against the USA’s dominant sprinters,…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Chad Le Clos: “I hope South Africans can see the pride in all of us.”

SPORT

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER FOUR-time Olympic medalist Chad Le Close hopes to make South Africa proud as he and the national team begin their Olympic battle. The South African swimmer spoke to media after being announced as one of the flag bearers for his home nation, walking alongside Olympic debutant and women’s hockey vice-captain, Phumelela Mbande. "It is a huge thing, this is special for me, and it means a lot to my family and me. Just being here [at the Olympic Games] is a huge honour after everything that has happened," Le Clos told Tokyo 2020. Le Clos first shared…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

‘I never lose hope’: Refugee runner Lohalith revs up for Tokyo

SPORT

JACKSON NJEHIA ANJELINA Nadai Lohalith, a 26-year-old refugee from South Sudan, pounds around a running track outside Nairobi, trying to shave seconds off her time in the build-up to her appearance at the Tokyo Olympics. There are no national emblems on her training gear - she will not be running for South Sudan, the country of her birth that she fled in 2002, nor for Kenya, the country that took her in. She will be one of a 29-strong team of refugee athletes competing under the Olympic flag, with other members from as far afield as Syria, Eritrea, Afghanistan and…