Marco Arop, of Canada, wins a men's 800m semi-final at the Summer Olympics on Aug. 9, 2024, in Saint-Denis, France.Petr David Josek/The Associated Press
MEDAL HOPES AT TRACK
Three track and field finals in the afternoon will feature Canadians, with Edmonton’s Marco Arop kicking things off in the men’s 800-metre final. Arop is the reigning world champion in the event and looks to win Canada’s first Olympic medal in the 800 since the 1964 Tokyo Games. Canada’s women’s 4x400 relay team of Zoe Sherar, Aiyanna Stiverne, Lauren Gale and Kyra Constantine will also compete for a medal after finishing fourth in their heat. Thomas Fafard of Repentigny, Que., rounds out the group in the men’s 5,000-metre final after advancing in eighth place of his heat.
PADDLE TO THE MEDAL
Four semi-finalists from Canada are in action at Nautical Stadium in the morning, beginning with Riley Melanson of Dartmouth, N.S., in the women’s kayak 500-metre singles. She’ll be followed by Michelle Russell of Fall River, N.S. in the event. In the women’s canoe 200-metre singles, Katie Vincent of Mississauga will hope to continue her momentum after claiming a bronze medal with Sloan MacKenzie in the doubles 500-metre final. Sophia Jensen, of Chelsea, Que. will be up in a separate semi-final of the event.
BREAK IT DOWN
As breaking, or breakdancing, makes its Olympic debut, Vancouver’s Phil Kim will try to bust the right moves to convince judges he belongs on the dance floor in the knockout round. The 27-year-old, better known as B-Boy Phil Wizard, will take part in three round robin matches against fellow breakers from France, Ukraine and Australia. Kim, a former world champion, has helped elevate the sport, which sees competitors go head to head in short bursts of breakdancing to a DJ’s soundtrack as judges look on.
DIVING IN
At the Aquatics Centre, a pair of Canadian divers who won bronze together in the synchronized 10-metre event are in the semi-final of the individual men’s 10-metre platform. Rylan Wiens of Pike Lake, Sask., finished third in Friday’s preliminaries with a score of 485.25, while Nathan Zsombor-Murray, of Pointe-Claire, Que., secured 10th place with 407.20 points. Their joint performance earlier in the Games was Canada’s first-ever medal in the men’s 10m synchronized event.
MARATHON MEN
A pair of Canadians are among those running in the men’s marathon in Paris. Black Creek, B.C.’s Cameron Levins, ranked 79th in the world, is representing Canada at his third Olympics after placing 72nd at the event three years ago in Tokyo. He’ll be joined in the field by Calgary’s Rory Linkletter, who is ranked 290th and is making his Olympic debut.