Paris (AFP)
The race between the United States and China for gold medals continues, with each raising its tally to 33, two days before the conclusion of the Olympic Games in Paris.
The Americans won two more gold medals in track and field in the 400m hurdles through Rae Benjamin and the women’s 4x100m relay, but the Chinese continued their advances in diving and table tennis.
Four days after winning the 5,000m, Kenyan Beatrice Chebet completed the double by winning the 10,000m.
The world record holder for the distance outperformed Italy’s Nadia Pattuccilletti and the Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan, who had to settle for bronze for the second time after the 5,000-meter race, thus failing miserably to repeat the double in the two races in Tokyo three years ago.
She has one last chance to win gold on Sunday when she runs the marathon.
American Ray Benjamin avenged his loss to Norwegian Karsten Warholm in the Tokyo final by winning the Paris gold medal against his rival who had deprived him of the title three years ago.
The podium was unchanged from the previous one in the Japanese capital, with Brazilian Alisson dos Santos finishing third again.
Dominican Maryleidy Paulino won the 400m gold, three years after taking the silver medal in Tokyo, beating Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser.
Paulino clocked 48.17, breaking by 8 hundredths of a second the Olympic record of France’s Marie-Josée Perec (48.25 in Atlanta 1996).
If the dream quartet of Melissa Jefferson, Tawanisha Terry, Gabby Thomas and Sha’Carrie Richardson took gold in the women’s 4x100m relay, the men’s team was disqualified due to a disastrous first handoff between Christian Coleman and Kenny Bednarik.
Canada, led by Andre De Grasse, took advantage of the situation and won the title against South Africa and Britain.
Noah Lyles, who won the 100m last Saturday, did not compete due to his COVID-19 infection.
China is just one title away from a diving Grand Slam after Yiwen Chen won the gold medal in the 3m springboard.
It is China’s seventh gold medal in seven diving events so far at these Games, with the final event, the men’s 10m platform, taking place on Saturday.
#America #China.. #Partnership #Paris #Gold