Teenage sport climber Toby Roberts won Great Britain’s 14th gold of the Paris 2024 Olympics after victory in the men’s boulder and lead competition.
Roberts, 19, secured 155.2 points to beat favourite Sorato Anraku of Japan, who lost his grip and fell needing only 86 points on the lead wall to relegate Roberts into silver-medal position.
Austria’s Jakob Schubert took bronze, with another Briton, Hamish McArthur, finishing fifth.
Roberts, given the nickname ‘The Terminator’ due to his determination told the BBC: “I’m just absolutely lost for words. To find out that I got the gold in that moment, it was just truly incredible.
“I’ve been training for this moment my whole life, and now I’ve just won. To say it hasn’t sunk in is an understatement.
“I don’t really know what to think right now, but I imagine later, there’s just going to be a flood of emotions. It’s a goal I’ve been training towards for 10 years, basically. Just no words.”
Roberts later added: “To find out you’ve won Olympic gold is definitely a shock. It was a rush of adrenaline, emotion and then happiness.
“I hope this makes climbing bigger and bigger. The sport is growing in the UK with climbing gyms opening up, and it’s so cool to see climbing on this big stage.”
KJT misses out on Olympic gold
Katarina Johnson-Thompson was forced to settle for a silver medal in the women’s heptathlon
At the Stade de France, Katarina Johnson-Thompson laid it all on the line to secure heptathlon silver for her first Olympic medal.
The Liverpudlian sat 121 points behind Belgian champion Nafissatou Thiam entering the final event, the 800m.
She faced a nearly impossible task, needing to beat Thiam by more than eight seconds to surpass her main rival.
Johnson-Thompson clocked a personal best 2:04.90, but it was not quite enough as she finished 36 points behind Thiam, who has now twice successfully defended her Olympic title.
Belgium’s Noor Vidts rounded out the podium.
“I can’t even describe the words that this weekend has taken. I’m just so relieved, I’m so happy, so so happy to add an Olympic medal to my collection. It’s the only one I didn’t have. It’s been so hard getting back to this point so I’m so relieved. I really don’t know what to say at the minute, I’m so overwhelmed,” said Johnson-Thompson, a two-time world champion.
“In the lead up to this Games, all I’ve been saying is I wanted to have a chance. Obviously I wanted a medal, but I wanted a chance when I turned the line at the start of the 800m. I had a chance, I had an eight second, far off chance but that’s what this sport is, getting to that point and seeing who had it at the end. I can’t complain.
“Nafi ran a PB [personal best] and she’s probably the greatest of all time. I’m so blessed to be having these big rivalries with one of the best of all time and I ran a PB myself and that’s all I can ask of myself.”
Brilliant silver for Brits in women’s Madison
Elinor Barker and Neah Evans won Olympic silver in the women’s Madison
Elinor Barker and Neah Evans won silver for in the women’s Madison.
A big late charge from Barker saw Britain win the last of the 12 sprints in the 120-lap race and move above the Netherlands as Italy’s Chiara Consonni and Vittoria Guazzini celebrated gold.
Italy finished with 37 points to Britain’s 31 and the Netherlands’ 28.
The British pair had been on the attack from the off, winning the first sprint and staying in the medal positions for the rest of the race.
They took the most points of any team purely from the sprints, but Italy and the Netherlands both gained a lap on the field, picking up 20 points in the process.
Evans said: “It’s an Olympic silver medal. That is fantastic.
“But as world champions we came in with really high expectations, we wanted to win and we felt we were in a really good position and there was an attack that went that we weren’t 100 per cent ready for and by the time we responded there was a different race dynamic.
“We gave it everything and I think on reflection we’ll be so proud of the ride we did. But at the same time when you come for gold it’s like, eurgh, not quite. But still, silver.”
Dame Laura Kenny and Katie Archibald became the first female Olympic champions at the Tokyo Games when the Madison made its debut in the women’s programme. Barker and Evans are the reigning world champions after their win in Glasgow last summer.
Silver and bronze for relay teams
Daryll Neita, Amy Hunt, Imani Lansiquot and Dina Asher-Smith celebrate winning silver in the women’s 4x100m relay
Dina Asher-Smith, Imani Lansiquot, Amy Hunt and Daryll Neita won silver in the women’s 4x100m relay.
Team GB won bronze in the same event for the last two Olympics and were one of the favourites on Friday night.
They looked like they might be on course to secure gold before a messy handover between Hunt and anchor Neita cost them time.
The United States’ Sha’Carri Richardson took full advantage to pip the Brits to the line by seven one-hundredths of a second in 41.78.
Asher-Smith said: “We are all so proud and so happy. We have worked so hard for this, so to be able to be in a position not just to challenge for a medal, but also for gold, it’s phenomenal.
“I tried to get to Imani first and I wanted to set up the ladies for a phenomenal run. I did not want anybody else in sight.
“I love how the championships are giving medals and the full squad to have their moment. This is a team effort.
“We have worked so hard as a women’ss team relay squad since 2012, we have pushed so hard for the last ten years. To stand on the podium with everyone is a very beautiful moment.”
Jeremiah Azu, Louie Hinchliffe, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and Zharnel Hughes sealed bronze in the men’s 4x100m relay.
Hughes, who had pulled out of the men’s individual 200m due to hamstring tightness, returned to anchor a line-up also featuring Azu, Hinchliffe and Mitchell-Blake.
It was a season’s best for the British men’s quartet in 37.61, who finished behind Canada, champions in 37.50, and South Africa, who claimed silver.
Carlin wins eventful sprint bronze
Jack Carlin won an eventful individual sprint bronze
Jack Carlin won an eventful individual sprint bronze for Great Britain, edging out Dutchman Jeffrey Hoogland in a deciding race that had to be restarted after the pair collided.
Carlin was already racing on a warning after his tetchy quarter-final with Kaiya Ota on Thursday, and raised his hand in apology after veering up the track and into Hoogland.
The commissaires decided there was no need for any punishment and the race was restarted, with Carlin having the power to hold off Hoogland down the straight to take his second medal of the week after team sprint silver.
Harper misses out on diving medal as China win gold again
In the women’s 3m springboard, Britain’s Yasmin Harper came fifth and compatriot Grace Reid 10th as China won their seventh gold from seven in the diving events in Paris.
Chen Yiwen – who also won the synchronised 3m title with Chang Yani on the opening day of the Games – registered a score of 376.00 to finish ahead of Australia’s Maddison Keeney (343.10) and countrywoman Chang (318.75).
Harper (305.10) was unable to add to the bronze she claimed alongside Scarlett Mew Jensen in the 3m synchro event.
Plus, Great Britain’s Hector Pardoe came sixth in the men’s 10km open water swimming after pipping France’s Marc-Antoine Olivier in a photo finish, while Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen, who won 800m freestyle gold and 1500m bronze in the pool, finishing 18th as he made his debut in open water swimming.
Hungary’s Kristof Rasovszky took open water gold with a time of one hour 50 minutes and 52 seconds, 2.1 seconds ahead of Germany’s Oliver Klemet, with Rasovszky’s compatriot David Betlehem bagging bronze.
Sky Sports+ has officially launched and will be integrated into Sky TV, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app – giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost.
+ There are no comments
Add yours