PARIS – From the punishment for the Canadian football scandal to Summer McIntosh’s first Olympic medal, here are five things to know about Saturday at the 2024 Paris Games:
FIRST MEDAL
Canada opened its Olympic medal count on the first day of the Paris Games when Summer McIntosh swam to a silver medal in the women's 400-metre freestyle. McIntosh finished fourth in the event as a 14-year-old three years ago at the Tokyo Games. She won her first career Olympic medal with a time of three minutes, 58.37 seconds, 0.88 seconds behind world record holder Ariarne Titmus of Australia. McIntosh is expected to compete in at least three more events in Paris, including the 400-metre individual medley on Monday. She set a world record in the event in May.
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CONSEQUENCES OF THE SCANDAL IN FOOTBALL
FIFA cracked down on the Canadian Football Federation on Saturday following a drone spying scandal that cast a shadow over Canada's entire Olympic team at the Paris Games. Canada's women's soccer team was penalized six points (the equivalent of two wins) and fined C$313,000 by the national governing body. Head coach Bev Priestman was one of three members of Canada's coaching staff suspended for one year. The sanctions come after two members of Canada's staff were caught using a drone to record opponents' practices. The Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Soccer Federation are considering appealing the six-point deduction.
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ON GUARD!
Fares Arfa failed to win Canada's first fencing medal, but he made a name for himself by reaching the quarterfinals of the men's sabre. The 29-year-old athlete from Laval, Quebec, defeated three-time Olympic champion defender Aron Szilagyi of Hungary in the quarterfinals before losing a little over 15-13 to eventual gold medalist Oh Sang-uk of South Korea in the quarterfinals. Arfa was part of the Canadian sabre team that won gold at the 2023 Pan American Games. That event begins Wednesday with Arfa's Canadian team taking on Oh and the top-seeded team, South Korea.
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BARRETT EMPOWERS CANADA AGAINST GREECE
RJ Barrett's 23-point performance, highlighted by an emphatic dunk at the buzzer, propelled Canada to an 86-79 victory over Greece on the opening day of the men's basketball competition in France. Canada never trailed in the game but let things get tough late in the fourth quarter. Greece found itself within three points of the Canadians with 32 seconds left, but two free throws by Jamal Murray and a late dunk by Barrett sealed the victory. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a Greece-high 34 points. Canada next faces fifth-ranked Australia on Tuesday.
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STRONG START, STRONGER END
China topped the medals table with the first two golds of the Paris Games. Huang Yuting and Sheng Lihao won gold in the mixed air rifle in the first medal event of the Olympics, then Chang Yani and Chen Yiwen stepped onto the podium in the women's synchronized three-metre springboard. But it was the Australians who finished the day on top with three golds and two silvers, including four in the pool.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 27, 2024.
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