OLYMPICS
LeBron James made his Olympic return after a 12-year absence. Kevin Durant played for the first time this summer. And the two most-experienced Olympians on this U.S. team opened the Paris Games — not to mention a bid for a fifth consecutive gold medal for the Americans — with a near-perfect show. Durant made his first eight shots on the way to 23 points in less than 17 minutes, James added 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and the U.S. rolled to a 110-84 win over Serbia in the Olympic opener for both teams on Sunday. Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic scored 20 points for Serbia.
The Americans won without Jayson Tatum of the NBA champion Boston Celtics — someone who just agreed to the richest contract in NBA history — in the rotation, which even U.S. coach Steve Kerr thought was crazy when he decided to do it.
Simone Biles posted an all-around total of 59.566 during Olympic qualifying inside a packed and star-studded Bercy Arena in Paris despite complaining of a left calf injury that had her limping. Biles appeared to tweak the leg while warming up on floor exercise during the second rotation. She had the ankle taped and then returned to put on the kind of show-stopping performance that has long been her signature.
Sophia Smith scored a pair of goals to help the United States beat Germany 4-1 and advance to the quarterfinals at the Paris Olympics. Mallory Swanson and Lynn Williams also scored for the Americans. Canada's Vanessa Gilles scored in the 12th minute of stoppage time to beat France 2-1 and keep alive its hopes of advancing. Australia produced a stunning comeback to beat Zambia 6-5 in Nice. Momoko Tanikawa scored deep in stoppage time to clinch Japan’s 2-1 comeback win over Brazil. World champion Spain beat Nigeria 1-0 to make it two wins from two in Group C. Colombia beat New Zealand 2-0 in Lyon.
American rider Haley Batten has been fined 500 Swiss francs, or about $565, by Olympic mountain bike judges after winning the silver medal. It was decided that she broke a rule on the final lap of the race. Batten posted the best finish ever by an American rider. She was jockeying for second place with Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds, well behind eventual champion Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, when she went through a lane dedicated for taking on food and drink or stopping for mechanical problems. But after the judges reviewed the footage, they decided Batten had done neither and broke one of the rules of the race. The judges issued the fine as a penalty.
With a flag-waving crowd cheering his every stroke, Léon Marchand delivered a swimming gold for France with a dominating victory in the men’s 400-meter individual medley. Marchand fulfilled the hopes of his nation with a performance that sets him up to be one of the biggest stars of the Paris Games. He came up just short of his world record but set an Olympic mark with a winning time of 4 minutes, 2.95 seconds — nearly six seconds ahead of everyone else. In other finals on Day 2 of swimming, Torri Huske beat world-record holder Gretchen Walsh in a 1-2 finish for the U.S. in the 100 butterfly. And Adam Peaty's streak in the 100 breaststroke came to an end when he tied for the silver with American Nic Fink, just two-hundredths behind winner Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy.
South Sudanese runner Perina Lokure Nakang first ran for sport along the road near her refugee camp in Kenya. Now, the 21-year-old is among many of the 37 athletes on the refugee team who are pushing to see more refugees like her able to compete at the Olympics. They're getting support from former refugee Olympians and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. Filippo Grandi told The Associated Press that the team is “a symbol of inclusion" and achievement for the refugee community worldwide. The Paris Games have underscored themes like diversity and inclusion at a time of historic global migration.
Rafael Nadal made a last-minute decision to play singles at the Paris Olympics and won his first-round match against Marton Fucsovics 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. Sunday’s victory by Nadal sets up a blockbuster showdown against rival Novak Djokovic today. Nadal was greeted by a standing ovation from spectators, many of whom used cameras on their phones to capture the moment when he strode into Court Philippe Chatrier. That's the same stadium where he has captured his record 14 French Open titles. There is a statue of Nadal outside, and fans gathered around it Sunday morning, when it was still unclear whether the 38-year-old Spaniard would be competing in the afternoon.
Torri Huske thought she might have finally won her first Olympic gold but couldn't yet be sure. Her American teammate and reigning world-record holder Gretchen Walsh swam to her right and they were millimeters apart over the fantastic finish in the 100-meter butterfly. Huske caught Walsh this time, something she couldn’t do at the Olympic trials last month. Huske finished just .04 seconds ahead of Walsh in a captivating 1-2 U.S. finish ahead of Chinese bronze medalist Zhang Yufei.
For Nic Fink, this was a long time coming. Which only made it sweeter. The 31-year-old swimmer who splits time at the pool with a full-time engineering job claimed the first Olympic medal of his late-blooming career. Fink tied for the silver medal in the 100-meter breaststroke with British great Adam Peaty, just two-hundredths of a second behind winner Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy. For some, coming that close to the top step on the podium would be gut-wrenching. Not so for Fink. Not after all he’s been through. He failed twice to make the Olympic team before breaking through at the Tokyo Olympics. Now, Fink finally has a medal.
MLB
Carlos Rodón pitched into the seventh inning, Gleyber Torres hit a two-run single in New York’s three-run first and the Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 8-2 to win a series for just the second time in their last 12 tries. New York took the final two games of the three-game set after blowing a late lead in the opener Friday night. It was the Yankees’ first series win against Boston in three attempts this season. Jazz Chisholm Jr. went 1 for 5 with a single and played center field in his Yankees debut after they acquired him from Miami for three minor leaguers Saturday. Rob Refsnyder and Connor Wong opened the fourth with consecutive homers for the Red Sox, who have lost seven of nine since the All-Star break.
Matt Olson homered in consecutive games for the first time this season, and the Atlanta Braves overcame an injury to All-Star starter Reynaldo López in a 9-2 rout against the New York Mets. Austin Riley, Orlando Arcia and Ramón Laureano also went deep for the Braves, who salvaged a four-game split after losing the first two games of the series. They hold the top National League wild card and moved 1 1/2 games ahead of New York for second place in the NL East. López pitched three shutout innings, lowering his major league-leading ERA to 2.06, before exiting with right forearm tightness. He is day-to-day and headed back to Atlanta for an MRI. Pete Alonso hit a two-run homer and Tyrone Taylor doubled twice for New York.
Steven Kwan hit a go-ahead solo homer in the seventh inning after Jhonkensy Noel tied the score with a three-run shot in the fourth, and the Cleveland Guardians rallied for a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Kwan’s 11th homer of the season came off lefty reliever José Alvarado (1-5) and helped Cleveland win two of three at Philadelphia. The Guardians won their 63rd game, tops in the American League, and trail only the Phillies for most in the majors. Kyle Schwarber homered twice for the Phillies off Cleveland rookie Joey Cantillo, a leadoff shot and a two-run homer in the fourth for a 3-0 lead.
The Tampa Bay Rays took advantage of the Cincinnati Reds bullpen to score twice in the eighth inning for a 2-1 win. With one out, Reds reliever Fernando Cruz walked Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe reached on an infield single and Isaac Paredes walked. Cruz struck out Amed Rosario, but catcher Austin Wynns could not handle the pitch and pinch runner Jose Caballero scored to tie the game. Lucas Sims came in to replace Cruz and walked Richie Palacios to score Lowe. Garrett Cleavinger pitched a scoreless eighth inning and Pete Fairbanks earned his 20th save. Reds starter Hunter Greene gave up just two hits in seven scoreless innings. He had a no-hitter through 5 2/3 innings before Lowe hit a single to right field.
Pete Crow-Armstrong, who came into the game hitting .183, was 3 for 4 with a run and the go-ahead RBI as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Kansas City Royals 7-3. The Cubs won the three-game series two games to one. The Cubs are 12-8 in their last 20 games after going 3-9 in their previous 12. Javier Assad allowed three runs on five hits in six innings. Cole Ragans took the loss, allowing four runs in 5 2/3 innings.
Ryan Mountcastle hit a pair of two-run singles, Cedric Mullins made a terrific catch in center field and the Baltimore Orioles held off the Padres 8-6 to snap San Diego’s seven-game winning streak. The Orioles scored six runs in the third, when their first six hitters reached base before Randy Vásquez was pulled. By then, he’d already walked in a run, allowed an RBI single to Ryan O’Hearn and yielded a single by Mountcastle that made it 4-0. Mullins hit a two-run double later that inning, and then the Orioles nearly blew their six-run lead. Yennier Cano got the save in place of struggling closer Craig Kimbrel.
Teoscar Hernández hit his 22nd home run, River Ryan struck out eight in his first major league win and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Houston Astros 6-2. Gavin Lux and James Outman also homered and Shohei Ohtani stole his career-high 27th base for the Dodgers. With the Dodgers clinging to a 3-2 lead in the eighth, Hernández turned on a slider from Bryan King and sent it 361 feet into the left field seats. Yainer Diaz hit a two-run homer for the Astros in the sixth. Spencer Arrighetti took the loss.
Daulton Varsho homered in the first inning for the second straight game, José Berríos pitched seven sharp innings to snap a three-start winless streak and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers 7-3 to complete a three-game sweep of the defending World Series champions. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a solo home run, his fifth in nine games since the All-Star break, and drove in a pair as the Blue Jays earned their second sweep of the season. Josh Smith hit a two-run homer but Texas lost its third straight after winning the previous five. The Rangers were swept for the fifth time, all on the road.
Bailey Ober allowed one hit in eight scoreless innings, and the Minnesota Twins beat Detroit 5-0 to win the weekend and season series against the Tigers. Willi Castro and Manuel Margot each had three hits for the Twins, who went 2 for 15 with runners in scoring position. Minnesota won two of three to finish 7-6 against Detroit. Ober allowed a clean single to Matt Vierling to lead off the fourth and walked two batters while recording a career-high 11 strikeouts. Detroit is down to three healthy starting pitchers and got nine innings from its bullpen for the third time in six games.
Cal Raleigh hit a two-run homer, Bryce Miller pitched 6 1/3 innings and the Seattle Mariners completed a three-game sweep of the White Sox with a 6-3 win to extend Chicago's losing streak to 14 games. The trip to Chicago came at a good time for the Mariners, who lost eight of nine games before beginning the series. Miller allowed three runs on seven hits with six strikeouts and did not allow a walk. Austin Voth got two outs in the seventh, Yimi García pitched a scoreless eighth, and Andrés Muñoz closed the game with a scoreless inning in steady rain for his 18th save in 21 chances.
Shea Langeliers hit a three-run homer in the first inning as the Oakland Athletics continued their recent power surge with a 3-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels. The A’s have won three in a row over the Angels and eight of their last 10 games overall. Langeliers hit his 20th home run of the season 411 feet to center field. Oakland leads the majors for most home runs in July with 41. Mitch Spence (7-6) allowed one run and three hits in six innings. Tyler Ferguson retired the Angels in order in the ninth to earn his second save. The Angels’ Nolan Schanuel homered for the second consecutive day.
Paul Goldschmidt hit a game-ending homer in the ninth inning, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals 4-3 to snap a three-game skid. Leading off the ninth, Goldschmidt hit a 2-2 sinker from Dylan Floro into the left field stands for his 16th homer of the season and eighth career walk-off shot. It was the Cardinals’ second walk-off win of the season and first since Nolan Gorman homered on April 22 against Arizona. Ryan Helsley got the win with a scoreless ninth. Willson Contreras homered in the first inning for St. Louis.
Miami’s Xavier Edwards became the second Marlins player ever to hit for the cycle Sunday in a 6-2 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. Edwards hit his first career homer on the opening pitch of the game, drew a leadoff walk in the third, doubled in the fifth and tripled in the seventh. He capped his afternoon by beating out an infield single against two-time NL reliever Devin Williams with two outs in the ninth inning. Luis Arráez became the first Marlins player ever to hit for the cycle last year when he went 4 of 5 with two runs and a pair of RBIs in an 8-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Matt Chapman and Jorge Soler each had three hits, and the San Francisco Giants finished off a four-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies with a 5-4 victory. It was San Francisco’s first four-game sweep since 2022. The Giants have beaten Colorado 12 straight times at home, tying a Rockies record for most consecutive losses at any opposing ballpark. Trailing 5-3 heading into the ninth inning, the Rockies scored once and had the potential tying run at second base with one out against closer Camilo Doval. But then Sam Hilliard struck out and Ezequiel Tovar — who had three hits — grounded out to give Doval his 20th save. Casey Schmitt homered early for the Giants, and Derek Hill had an RBI triple.
Ji Hwan Bae scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch in Pittsburgh's four-run 10th inning, Joey Bart hit a tying run-scoring double in the ninth and the Pirates rallied to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-5. Arizona took a 2-1 lead into the ninth inning, only to see it fall apart. Pinch hitter Rowdy Tellez led off the ninth inning with a double against Paul Sewald. Bart followed with a two-out double to tie it. The blown save was Sewald’s fourth in 20 chances. Bae scored on a wild pitch by Justin Martinez after opening the 10th inning with a bunt single. Martinez then hit Alika Williams with a pitch to score another run and Ke’Bryan Hayes made it 6-2 with a two-run bloop single.
NFL
Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams suffered torn ligaments in his left knee while taking part in special teams drills and will need season-ending surgery. Williams got hurt during a blocking drill with the Cowboys not yet in pads in Oxnard, California. He was tended to by trainers for several minutes and didn’t put any weight on his leg while being helped onto a motorized cart that took him off the field. The 6-foot-4, 261-pound Williams was a second-round draft pick out of Mississippi in 2022. He played in 32 regular-season games over the past two seasons, including all 17 last year. He has 8 1/2 career sacks.
F1
Lewis Hamilton has been promoted to first place at the Belgian Grand Prix after race officials disqualified his Mercedes teammate George Russell for driving an underweight car. Russell crossed the line first Sunday after making only one pit stop, finishing just ahead of Hamilton. Russell celebrated the win in Spa but race officials found that his car weighed in below the established limits and ruled to disqualify his result. Russell said it was “heartbreaking.” Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said “We have clearly made a mistake and need to ensure we learn from it." Hamilton took his record haul to 105 F1 career victories. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri moved up into second place. Pole-sitter Charles Leclerc of Ferrari completed the podium.
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