Olympics day 3, late wrap: It’s Summer time as McIntosh makes winning look easy

Here are the leading headlines from the late action on Monday's day 3 at the Olympics:

Swimming: It's Summer time as McIntosh makes winning look easy

Canada declared Summer time in the Paris Olympic pool on Monday and the country's 17-year-old sensation Summer McIntosh made it look easy while others celebrated medals won by barely a fingertip.

The world record holder blew away her four-stroke rivals to win the women's 400 metres individual medley (IM) gold and add a second medal to her haul after Sunday's silver in the 400 freestyle.

“It's Summer Time for Canada,” declared one poolside banner at the La Defense Arena and it was no more than a statement of fact.

McIntosh touched the wall a full 5.69 seconds clear of American Katie Grimes, with Emma Weyant taking bronze for the US.

Canada's first gold of the meet was followed in short order by Romania and South Africa's first, with David Popovici winning the men's 200 freestyle and Tatjana Smith the women's 100 breaststroke.

Australia stayed top of the swimming medals table with three golds, to two for the US, after red-headed rocket Mollie O'Callaghan beat defending champion and teammate Ariarne Titmus to the women's 200 metres freestyle title in Olympic record time.

Hong Kong's Siobhan Haughey took the bronze after setting a cracking early pace.

World record holder Thomas Ceccon of Italy won the men's 100 backstroke gold, his country's second in the pool in two days, with China's Xu Jiayu taking silver and America's 2016 gold medallist Ryan Murphy taking bronze.

Murphy probably had the biggest smile on the night, however, after his wife held up a sign after the medal ceremony to announce they were having a baby girl.

Popovici success might have tempted him to amend the last word of Julius Caesar's famed boast of “Veni, vidi, vici” (“I came, I saw, I conquered”) but instead he just let the emotion flow.

“I feel amazing, it's great to be here, so many Romanians in the crowd, it's beautiful and it's a dream come true, I don't think words can describe it,” he said.

“It's so simple yet so beautiful, it's great, thank you.”

While the winners celebrated, in their wake rivals experienced agony and ecstasy delivered by the slimmest of margins in a pool that has delivered plenty of thrills but no world records as yet.

Ireland's Mona McSharry shed tears of joy and amazement after an extraordinary battle for the 100 breaststroke bronze ended with her pipping not one but two other swimmers to the wall by 0.01 of a second.

While McSharry could scarcely believe her eyes at her country's first medal, she left Italy's Benedetta Pilato and world record holder and 2016 champion Lilly King tied for fourth.

“This isn’t something that little me, dreaming of just going to the Olympics, really thought was possible,” she told reporters after winning Ireland's first swimming medal since Michelle Smith in 1996.

“I had a bad first 50, my goggles filled up with water a little bit,” she added.

Britain's Matt Richards took silver in the 200 free with a time just 0.02 slower than Popovici — the same margin that teammate Adam Peaty missed out on 100 breaststroke gold by on Sunday.

American Luke Hobson took the bronze.

“I'm over the moon and extremely frustrated all at the same time,” said Richards of his first individual medal after his relay gold in Tokyo.

World record holder Regan Smith of the US was fastest in the women's 100 backstroke semifinals, 0.02 quicker than Australian Kaylee McKeown in what promises to be another epic duel between the two countries. 

Swimming: 'It's a girl!': Murphy family celebrates medal with gender reveal

Ryan Murphy may have won the bronze in the men's 100m backstroke but the beaming American had the biggest smile on the night at La Defense Arena on Monday when his wife held up a sign after the medal ceremony to announce they were having a baby girl.

Murphy, a seven-times Olympic medallist, married Bridget Konttinen last year and the 29-year-old swimmer said they will be welcoming a child in January.

“So when I was walking back around, Bridget was holding up a sign and it said, 'Ryan, it's a girl!' So that was Bridget's gender reveal to me,” Murphy told reporters.

“That was the first time I heard. Obviously, I knew she was pregnant, but that was the first time I heard the gender. We honestly both thought it was going to be a boy and everyone we were talking to thought it was going to be a boy.

“So that's really, really exciting, that we're going to have a baby and it's going to be a girl. And I think we're only a couple of weeks behind (Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback) Trevor Lawrence too, so that's pretty cool.”

Murphy has finished on the podium in the event at the last three Olympics with a gold in Rio and a bronze in Tokyo.

Though a second gold was out of reach having finished behind Italy's Thomas Ceccon and China's Xu Jiayu, the American Rio 2016 champion had no complaints.

“That's a really talented field. I think what I've really improved on over the years is being able to frame things really quickly,” Murphy said.

“So immediately when you hit the wall, you're hoping to win and that was obviously my initial emotion — I want to win. But getting third behind Thomas and Xu, they're both really, really talented guys.

“They've been really good at this sport for a long time. They deal well with pressure. So, being third in the world behind them, I'm really not disappointed in that.”

Gymnastics: Japan edge out China in thrilling final to win men's team gold

Daiki Hashimoto turned heartache into unimaginable joy as he overcame a fall from the pommel horse to power Japan to the gold medal, edging China in a nail-biting gymnastics men's team final at the Paris Olympics on Monday.

With Japan left languishing in fifth place at the halfway point of the competition, Hashimoto displayed nerves of steel during his final performance on the horizontal bar as the Asian powerhouse completed an incredible comeback to seal an eighth men's team title at the Games with a total of 259.594. They finished just 0.532 of a point ahead of China.

The US were also left celebrating their first Olympic team medal since 2008 as they grabbed bronze.

The expected battle between China and Japan looked like it would not materialise after Hashimoto's uncharacteristic fall during the second rotation — and he could barely look up when his lowly pommel horse score of 13.100 was shown on the giant screen in the arena.

“The moment I fell I thought to myself, 'Oh no, we're going to lose the gold again because of me',” said Hashimoto, who was part of the Japanese team that finished second behind Russia at the Tokyo Games.

“But when I finished, (teammates Takaaki) Sugino and (Kazuma) Kaya said to me, 'Don't give up. We can still do it.'”

China were undone by stunning late mistakes, including two falls in quick succession from the high bar by first-time Olympian Su Weide in the final rotation.

“I think it was because of lack of experience,” said Chinese rings specialist Liu Yang, who blamed himself for not having sufficiently supported his teammate.

“We came here to win. It was regrettable.”

While nerves got the better of China in the final rotation, the Japanese quintet of Hashimoto, Kaya, Sugino, Shinnosuke Oka and Wataru Tanigawa never stopped believing.

Just when it appeared like China had the title in the bag as they led Japan by more than three points going into their final performances on the high bar, Xiao Ruoteng completely botched his dismount by landing on both knees to earn his lowest score of the day of 13.433.

Su then lost his grip twice while attempting release and catch manoeuvres during his routine as fans at Bercy Arena gasped in disbelief. As he came crashing down on the mat, so too did China's gold medal hopes.

The shell-shocked look on his teammates said it all as they just could not believe that they had thrown away the title that had been within their grasp with impressive performances during the first five rotations. When Su's score of 11.600 flashed up, Hashimoto knew all he needed to do was to stay on the bar and the title would be Japan's.

The Tokyo 2020 all around champion effectively won Japan the gold with a score of 14.566 on the bar.

Even though China still had one more competitor to go on the bar, Zhang Boheng must have known that his chances of scoring 15.265 points to tie with Japan were slim and so it proved to be. As his score of 14.733 came up, the Japanese gymnasts were left in floods of tears, with some of them collapsing to the ground in pure disbelief at what they had pulled off.

The US men put on a superb performance and locked up the bronze after nailing most of their landings to collect 257.793 points. Britain finished fourth and Ukraine fifth.

“I was like five feet in the air jumping,” said American Frederick Richard.

“I was incredibly thankful and just proud of us because we put a lot of work into it and it all paid off.”

Russia, who won the team gold at the Tokyo Games three years ago, are barred from competing in Paris due to the country's invasion of Ukraine.

Chinese squad grabbed the lead at the midway point with stellar performance on still rings and looked unbeatable after Zou Jingyuan secured 16.000 on parallel bars.

But the drama that then unfolded left everyone on the edge of their seats. 

Basketball: US on target for eighth gold after beating Japan, France upset Canada

The US romped to a resounding 102-76 victory over Japan in the women's basketball tournament at the Pierre Mauroy stadium on Monday, demonstrating that the defending champions are positioned to make a strong push for their eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal.

In their Group C opener, the Americans took to the court with all the firepower of Breanna Stewart and A'ja Wilson under the leadership of captain Diana Taurasi, who is making her sixth Games appearance in Paris.

The Japanese, however, showed that they can also dance around the court, capitalising on some brilliant three-point shooting by Rui Machida and Mai Yamamoto. A just 5-foot, 7-inches (1.62m) tall, they proved they can still be dangerous and daring.

Hosts France pulled off a major upset in Group C, after overcoming a first-quarter deficit to beat Canada 75-54.

Fifth-ranked Canada withered under a rally by the seventh-ranked hosts, scoring just two points in the second quarter — the fewest points ever scored by any team in a single quarter at the Olympics, men or women.

French centre Marieme Badiane and forward Gabby Williams were the heroes of the 'allez les bleues' evening, with the pair receiving a rousing post-match ovation and posing for selfies with the crowd.

On a day of surprises, favoured Belgium got their Olympic bid off to a bad start, losing 83-69 to debutantes Germany in Group B.

Belgium were partly undone by Germany's dynamic Sabally sisters, Satou and Nyara, who poured in 33 points between them.

The second shock of the Group B came when Nigeria beat Australia 75-62 as point guard Ezinne Kalu scored 19 points to help 12th-ranked Nigeria, the three-times defending African champions, beat third-ranked Australia.

“Our defence were relentless,” Kalu said.

“When we were on court, we smelt blood for the ball. Nobody defends like us, and that's what kept us going. In the second half Australia came out very strong... But we just kept our foot on the gas and kept going.”

Hockey: Harmanpreet strikes again to save India, Dutch women come from behind to topple Germany

India skipper Harmanpreet Singh scored a late goal for the second game in a row to force a 1-1 draw with Argentina in Pool B of the men's hockey at the Paris Olympics on Monday, while the Dutch women came from behind to top Germany 2-1 in Pool A.

A determined German team put the top ranked Dutch squad on their heels with a third quarter strike after dominating time of possession, but a set piece goal by Dutch forward Yibbi Jansen quickly followed, with Marijn Veen netting the winner just four minutes later.

“We were 1-0 down, so we really had to score. I think we got loose with the nerves, and we just put pressure higher on the field,” said Yibbi, the current top women's goal scorer with five goals from penalty corners.

“Germany definitely challenged us today, and we will have challenges in the upcoming games as well. Nobody said it was going to be an easy ride. Every game is a challenge.”

In the men's games, Indian dragflick specialist Harmanpreet struck in the penultimate minute of India's second game to level the score against Argentina, matching his heroics from Saturday when he netted a late winner against New Zealand with a penalty stroke.

“I think we create so many chances, we are going into the circle and getting some good pieces but the finishing was not there today,” Harmanpreet said.

Belgium, defending Olympic champions, and Australia top the men's Pool B after the Kookaburras' earlier 2-1 win over Ireland. India are in third place with four points, Argentina are fourth with a single point. The top four from each group go through to the quarterfinals.

The Dutch women, gold medallists in Tokyo, top Pool A with Belgium after The Red Panthers beat hosts France 5-0 in the other evening game, while China also ran up the score against Japan with a 5-0 win for a third-place tie with Germany.

Argentina's women's squad came back twice from a goal down to beat South Africa 4-2 in a Pool B win that was put away in the 53rd minute with a strong shot by Julieta Janukas, and Australia thrashed Britain 4-0.

The US also secured a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Spain in the other Pool B game to secure their first point of the Games, with a tough challenge against Australia set for Wednesday.

Women's Sevens: Record-breaking NZ and US into semis

New Zealand brushed past China with a record 55-5 victory to set up an Olympic women's rugby sevens semifinal with the US after they fought back to beat Britain 17-7 in the second quarter-final on Monday.

Defending champions New Zealand have barely needed to get out of second gear to reach the semifinals, with three hefty pool wins earning them a last eight clash with outsiders China — who they battered 43-5 on Sunday.

New Zealand were on the board after 19 seconds when Sarah Hirini ran back the kick off but the captain was then yellow-carded for a head-on-head tackle and China took advantage with a try by Dou Xinrong — much to the delight of the “neutrals” in the 66,000 crowd. Any hopes of seeing what would have been the biggest upset in Olympic sevens history soon disappeared though as quick-fire tries by Jasmine Felix-Hotham, Michaela Blyde and Portia Woodman-Wickliffe had the favourites 24-5 ahead at the break.

Blyde added her second — taking her tournament tally to seven — and further scores for Felix-Hotham, Mahina Paul (two) and Hirini completed by far the biggest knockout stage victory in the short history of Olympic sevens.

The second quarter-final was a much tighter affair as Britain roared out of the blocks to send Ellie Boatman over. The US hit back when Ilona Maher dragged in two defenders to allow Naya Tapper to reduce the deficit to 7-5.

Only a fantastic tackle by Jasmine Joyce on a marauding Maher prevented a second US try to preserved Britain’s 7-5 lead at the break. That lasted all of 10 seconds of the second half as Britain messed up the restart and Kristi Kirshe gobbled up the loose ball to score. Britain’s tackling then started to slip and Sammy Sullivan forced herself through to make it 17-7 and they then defended securely to claim a place in the semifinals for the first time.

In the remaining quarterfinals, Tokyo silver medallists France, seeking to emulate their men by going one better on home soil, take on Canada, with Australia and Ireland meeting in a repeat of their pool match earlier on Monday that Australia edged 19-14.

The semifinals and medal matches take place on Tuesday. 

Tennis: Djokovic survives wobble to ease past Nadal, Swiatek cruises

Serbia's top-seeded Novak Djokovic overcame a brief bout of nerves in the second set before beating 14-times French Open champion Rafael Nadal 6-1 6-4 at the Paris Olympics on Monday and moving into the third round.

His counterpart in the women's draw, world number one Iga Swiatek of Poland had an even easier morning, crushing France's Diane Parry 6-1 6-1 to book her own third round spot.

While Djokovic remains in the hunt for his elusive Olympic gold, Spain's Nadal now has only the doubles competition left to add to his two Olympic gold medals, partnering Carlos Alcaraz.

Djokovic led 6-1 4-0 before a Nadal comeback attempt that saw him briefly level 4-4.

“I was just very proud to be part of this match and ... I wanted to do my job on the court and really execute the game plan as much as I possibly can,” Djokovic said.

“So almost a perfect match, the 6-1 4-0. Then things got complicated, I started to hesitate a little bit on my shot he stepped in, the crowd got involved and for all, it was really anybody's set, anybody's game. Just very glad to overcome this incredible challenge.”

Alcaraz was also in action in the singles but was never seriously pressured in his 6-1 7-6 victory over Dutch opponent Tallon Griekspoor. Eighth-seed Stefanos Tsitsipas punched his ticket for the next round, with the Greek finding even less resistance in his 6-1 6-2 victory over Britain's Daniel Evans.

Sixth seed Casper Ruud of Norway was made to work harder in his three-set win over Italy's Andrea Vavassori.

In the women's draw Swiatek was joined in the next round by Czech Barbora Krejcikova, the new Wimbledon champion, who advanced with a straight sets victory over China's Wang Xinyu as did American Coco Gauff, beating Argentine Maria Lourdes Carle 6-1 6-1.

But all eyes were on the Nadal-Djokovic showdown with the crowd desperate to see the world's best clay court player make one last one run in Paris even though his best playing days are long behind him.

“I was not able to put him in difficult positions,” Nadal said. “I was not able to have enough quality shots, enough quality of movements. Playing against Novak without creating damage to him and without having the legs of 20 years ago is almost impossible.”

At age 37, Djokovic, with 24 Grand Slam singles titles to Nadal's 22, has remained more competitive than his injury-plagued opponent. He left nothing to chance in a flawless display over a set and a half.

The world number two stretched the 38-year-old with punishing groundstrokes and perfect drop shots, making him look his age and racing through the first set and a half.

The crowd, ready for a mouth-watering epic on their record-extending 60th encounter, instead were being treated to what looked like a fast-track Djokovic win.

Nadal, with his thigh strapped due to a recent injury, was spilling unforced errors across Court Philippe Chatrier, lacking precision and consistency.

With the crowd sensing the end of an era was approaching, Nadal was desperate to avoid one of the most bruising defeats of his career on his favourite clay surface.

A Djokovic double fault saw Nadal pull back to 4-2 and that was celebrated like a victory with almost the entire stadium jumping from their seats to cheer him on.

The Spaniard was level a little later but it was nothing more than a brief reprieve as Djokovic sealed victory on his first match point with an ace.

Archery: South Korea beat host nation to win gold in men's team event

South Korea won the gold medal in men's team archery at the Paris Olympics on Monday, beating the host nation 5-1.

The win reinforces South Korea as the country to beat in archery, as South Korean men have now claimed seven of 10 gold medals since the Olympic event was introduced in 1988 in Seoul. On Sunday, the South Korean women's team won their 10th consecutive gold after an intense shoot-off against China.

France is left with the silver medal and Turkey claimed bronze.

Archer Kim Woojin now has three gold medals, more than any other athlete in the men's team event. He said he will now work to shake off any nerves as he looks for his first individual medal in Paris.

“The higher the goals, you usually have a lot of mistakes. I will try to relieve my head of those goals and just focus on my heart,” he said.

The French team, cheered on by a boisterous crowd at Esplanade des Invalides, put up a strong fight in the first set with an even score against South Korea, giving each team one set point.

But South Korea's dominance in the sport proved too much. In the third set, the South Korean men hit the bullseye with all but one of their arrows.

The matchup between the host nation and defending gold medallists brought wildly enthusiastic support for both sides, with spectators appearing to wave the France and South Korea flags in equal measure.

It also took place on the hottest day since the Games began, though the South Korean athletes said they weren't bothered by the weather.

“I really enjoyed the finals, so that enjoyment was the result,” said Lee Wooseok. 

Canoeing: Glorious Gestin grabs canoe slalom gold for France

Nicolas Gestin laid down two stunning runs in the semifinal and final to obliterate the field and claim gold for France in stunning fashion in the men's single canoe slalom at the Vaires-sur-Marnes Nautical Stadium on Monday.

Last to descend in the final after his superlative semi, he flashed through the course to finish more than five seconds ahead of Britain's Adam Burgess, who took silver, with Matej Benus of Slovakia securing the bronze.

It was an afternoon of high drama on the stadium's white water as the last 12 paddlers fought it out for the medals, with thrills and spills aplenty before Gestin stole the show.

Fourth out of the 12 athletes in the final, Senegal's Yves Bourhis looked to have sensationally taken lead after a hair-raising run, but the judges hit him with a 50-second penalty for missing the ninth gate that quickly dashed his hopes after he passed the finish line.

Tokyo gold medal-winner and world number two Benjamin Savsek of Slovenia suffered a similar fate when he clattered into the fifth gate, incurring a 50-second penalty for not going through it correctly.

There was also agony for Ireland's Liam Jegou, whose brilliant run was ruined by touching the 23rd and final gate on the course to drop him from first to third with five paddlers to come after him.

The tide of luck began to turn when Briton Burgess thundered through his run to go into top spot before Germany's Sideris Tasiadis and Miquel Trave of Spain came up just short.

After outclassing the field in the semifinal, Gestin threw himself at the course and put on a display of incredible skill, speed and power, executing a flawless run that ended in a glorious gold medal.