Back to last night’s Prime Time--Tirico goes to the B-Ball nail biter which, considering the Millionaire Cheaters involved, should never have happened. The "Event of the Night" is triplefold, and all at the Track. But first are the (sigh) heats.
Then it's the final of Men's 3m Springboard Diving. I love how the cameraman (and I assume it's not a robot) follows each diver, even to the point of bouncing the shot up and down as the diver bounces on the board. As previously noted, China owns most of the diving events. Tirico then sends us to the Heptathlon, but not before noting that Snoop was hanging out in the stands with Simone Biles, and doing a whiparound. We get a video package with Anna Hall, who explains the Heptathlon.
Moving onto the 1500m semis (aaaugh) and the Women's Long Jump final. Tirico does another whiparound before the "Event of the Night". Another Noah Lyles video package takes us to his disappointing run (he got the bronze). We quickly learn that he had COVID--did NBC know this in advance when it was live? The announcers certainly acted like it was a surprise, despite earlier shots of Lyles wearing a mask. BTW--Botswana won. It was followed by a now ironic Kabletown ad featuring Lyles winning “another gold”.
Tara Davis-WoodHall (US) wins the Long Jump again, and then the Women’s 400m Hurdles--Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (US) wins it in a rout (and a world record). Men’s 110m Hurdles--Grant Holloway (US) takes it. Later, Snoop drops by to hype LA2028 (and NBC’s The Voice). Snoop is heading out--first the Bobbsey Twins, now this? McLaughlin-Levrone also stops by.
Late Night--a review of the day (including a post from Noah Lyles that he’s out of the relay due to COVID), before Taylor sends us to Speed Climbing--US gets the bronze. Taylor then interviews Allyson Felix, who was just elected to the QISEOC. Canoe Sprints follow--a sport added to QISE in 1976 Montreal, then dropped in 2012 London, and now it’s back. Grant Holloway stops by, then Taylor does another “Emily in Paris” bit with Gymnastics vet Nastia Liukin. We finish with a rerun of the Women’s Volleyball match.
Today’s Today Show is the final QISE episode. Savannah does a wrap-up with Tirico (Hoda took off early), and visits with Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. Melvin does his final Today sitdown with medalists--and that’s it. Seems like Today got over QISE a few days ago.
Day 14--Lowe sends us to Women’s 3m Springboard Diving. We get the whole thing--China wins it, of course. Melvin shows us highlights of the Millionaire Cheaters B-Ball run, and Fareed tries out his skills at the Track. We go out there as well for Relay and Hurdles heats and semis. Lowe and Melvin talk to legendary skier Mikaela Schiffrin about her experiences watching instead of competing.
Women’s B-Ball gets a video package leading to their match. I thought I would go watch Peacock’s Gold Zone instead, which is showing Breaking (don’t call it Breakdancing). The competitors don’t know what music they will get, so the acts are improvisational. I’m sorry--I’m too old to understand what’s going on. Over to Track Cycling and the “Sprints”. It’s the NASCAR of cycling. I Love the “Gold Medal Alert” badge onscreen. Over to Men’s Soccer, then the Modern Pentathon--shooting and running. The end of the Women’s B-Ball game (a blowout), wrestling, more cycling (we get some on-bike footage). I should have been watching Gold Zone a lot more.
Back to the track for the Women’s 4x100m Relay final on a rainy Paris evening (it is really coming down)--US wins it. The men run the same race, and Canada wins it after the US blew a handoff. We also get the Women’s Shot Put--Germany will eventually win it. Tirico does a quick peek into Wrestling, then Men’s Futbol (Spain would later win the gold in extra time over France). Heptathlon--Anna Hall of the US finds herself outside of the medals after blowing the Javelin (she does get a video package, though). Women’s 400m final--Dominican Republic takes it in a walk.
Kornacki handicaps the remaining Track events. A peek into Taekwondo (US wins bronze), then the Women’s 10K, which runs a half an hour plus--so they keep dipping in and out of that. Kenya’s Beatrice Chebet eventually wins (she already won the 5K, and we’ll see her in the Marathon). Triple Jump--Spain takes the gold. Tirico peeks in on the same Gold Zone I was previously watching. Men’s 400m Hurdle--Roy Benjamin (US) takes it. Meanwhile, Japan wins Women’s Breaking, Netherlands wins Women’s Field Hockey--and US’s Olivia Reeves wins in Weightlifting (the first gold since 2000).
Tirico does a Zoom with Matt Anderson of the bronze-winning US Volleyball team before sending us off to Artistic Swimming-Duet. Fareed aits down with Lashinda Demus and Eric Kynard, gold medalists who won back in 2012 (!?!?), but got silver at the time. Doping issues with the Russkies finally got them upgraded. The wheels of QISE justice turn slowly, but they get there most of the time.
Women’s Beach Volleyball gold medal match--a contentious fight between Brazil and Canada, with Brazil taking the gold. Back to Rasslin’--Helen Louise Maroulis of the US wins the bronze in Women’s Freestyle 57KG, and Aaron Marquel Brooks of the US wins the same in Men’s 86KG.
Medal count--US and China are tied at 33 golds, with the US ahead by 28 medals total. Fareed wraps it up with Breaking.
More to come.