olympics roundup A recap of Tuesday’s other events
DIVING
Pool water turns green
Green, not gold, was the color of the day at the Olympic diving venue.
Sure, China won its third consecutive gold medal on Tuesday, but the buzz was about the color of the water in the diving pool — a murky green.
That was in stark contrast to the pool’s light blue color the previous day and also that of the clear water in the second pool used for the water polo competition at Maria Lenk Aquatic Center.
British diver Tom Daley, who earned bronze in men’s synchronized 10-meter on Monday, tweeted a photo of the two pools next to each other and captioned it, “Ermmm...what happened?!”
Water quality has been a major issue surrounding the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, but in the ocean and lagoons, not the pools.
A statement from Olympic organizers said water tests were conducted and there was no risk to athletes. They couldn’t explain the color change, but said it’s being investigated.
TENNIS
Serena Williams eliminated by Elina Svitolina
Out of sorts and out of answers, defending champion Serena Williams is out of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Shanking shots of all sorts, including five — yes, five! — double-faults in one game alone, Williams lost to Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-4, 6-3 in the third round in a real shocker Tuesday, ending the No. 1-seeded American’s bid to become the first tennis player to collect a pair of singles golds.
Facing an unheralded opponent who at times couldn’t seem to miss, Williams had problems right from the start, when she got broken to fall behind 2-1 with a badly missed overhead into the net.
That set a pattern.
By the end, Svitolina had won 63 points, but merely nine came via clean winners of her own doing. The others came thanks to Williams’ 37 unforced errors and 17 forced errors.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
Columbia draws with the United States
With time running out, Catalina Usme beat Hope Solo with a free kick from a tight angle to give Colombia a 2-2 draw against the United States on Tuesday at the Olympics.
Usme also scored in the 26th minute to give the Colombians an early 1-0 lead. It was the team’s first-ever Olympic goal, and first-ever goal against the United States.
Despite the draw, the top-ranked United States still finished atop Group F.
Teenager Mallory Pugh became the youngest player to score for the United States in an Olympics with her goal in the 59th minute, giving the Americans a 2-1 lead. Crystal Dunn also scored for the defending champions.
ARCHERY
Brady Ellison beats best friend
The two best friends made a pact before their archery match at the Olympics — no coaches would join them on the field. No hard feelings would linger, either.
Nothing can break the bond of bow-hunting buddies, no matter how big the stage may be.
Second-seeded archer Brady Ellison made it through the second round of the men’s tournament Tuesday at the expense of American teammate Jake Kaminski. At one point in the match, Ellison put six straight arrows in the top scoring ring on his way to a 6-2 win over Kaminski at the Sambadrome.
“I look at it two ways: It sucks because you train for years and have an American bracket — just like an American tournament,” said Ellison, who’s been drawing comparisons to actor Leonardo DiCaprio on social media since his arrival in Rio de Janeiro. “On the other side, we advanced someone. For Team USA, it’s good. For the individuals, it sucks.”
Associated Press