Maialen Chourraut couldn’t pull off a repeat, but she’s still shining bright…
The 38-year-old Spanish slalom canoeist, who won the gold medal in the K1 event at the 2016 Rio Games, had to settle for silver after the women’s slalom K-1 canoeing event at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
It was Chourraut’s fourth Olympic appearance, having also won bronze at the 2012 London Games.
With this silver, Chourraut, Spain’s oldest competitor at theTokyo Games this year, has completed her gold-silver-bronze set of Olympic medals.
Jose Ramirez is ready to expand his belt collection…
The junior welterweight unification title bout between the 28-year-old Mexican American boxer and Josh Taylor will take place on May 22 at a to be determined Las Vegas venue.
Ramirez, the WBC and WBO champion, and Taylor, the IBF and WBA champion, had initially been planning to fight on May 8, but the fight was moved as to not conflict with the Canelo Alvarez–Billy Joe Saunders title fight. Instead, they’ll fight later in the month, headlining a card on ESPN and simulcast on ESPN+.
“This is the best boxing has to offer, two elite fighters in the prime of their careers colliding in a legacy-defining matchup for the undisputed championship of the world,” Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said in a news release. “It’s a true 50-50 fight, one that the fans and both fighters demanded.”
Ramirez (26-0, 17 KO) last fought in August, winning a majority decision over Viktor Postol in his first defense as both the WBC and WBO titleholder. He has held the WBC belt since March 17, 2018, when he beat Amir Imam and the WBO belt since July 27, 2019, when he TKO‘d Maurice Hooker in the sixth round.
Taylor (17-0, 13 KO) won the IBF title in a May 2019 decision over Ivan Baranchyk and the WBA belt in a majority decision win over Regis Prograis in October 2019. Taylor, 30, last fought in September 2020, knocking out Apinun Khongsong in the first round.
Both Taylor and Ramirez fought as lightweights in the 2012 London Games, each losing in the quarterfinals in a division won by Vasiliy Lomachenko. On the same side of the bracket, they would have met up in the semifinals had they kept winning. Now, they’ll fight to unify a professional world title instead.
Terence Crawford was the last fighter the unify the division, a feat he accomplished in 2017. Crawford then vacated the titles with a move up to 147 pounds.
Matchroom Sports, which promotes Campbell, and Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Garcia, made the announcement on Wednesday, just minutes before a WBC purse bid was to be held for the right to promote the bout.
Last week, the two sides had requested a seven-day extension believing they were close to a deal.
The venue has not been finalized, but Golden Boy president Oscar de la Hoya said it will take place in California.
“We’re very happy that Ryan Garcia will be fighting here in the U.S. in California,” De La Hoya said. “It’s a very difficult fight, and again, we have to give it to DAZN, we have to give it to [Matchroom promoter] Eddie Hearn for making this happen, and we’re looking forward to it.”
The WBC recently ordered this bout to be for their interim title, putting the winner a step closer to a shot at champion Devin Haney. Vasiliy Lomachenko is the WBC “franchise” champion.
Campbell (20-3, 16 KOs) will arguably be the toughest opponent of Garcia’s (20-0, 17 KOs) young career. He won a gold medal in the 2012 London Games and put a good effort in decision losses to Jorge Linares in 2017 and Lomachenko in 2019.
de la Hoya said he believes Garcia, the 2017 ESPN prospect of the year, is ready to face a fighter of Campbell’s caliber.
“Absolutely, 1,000 percent,” De La Hoya said. “We strongly believe that once and for all, Ryan Garcia will be able to shut up the critics, prove to everyone that he’s the real deal. It doesn’t get any bigger or more dangerous than Luke Campbell, being an Olympic gold medalist, being tall, strong, and this is going to be Ryan’s time to shine.”
Garcia and Golden Boy haven’t always been on the same page, but with this fight now being made, it seems as though they are a united front.
“Everything is wonderful,” de la Hoya said. “As Ryan has always said, and the way I’ve always expressed it, we’re a family. Families sometime have their differences, but at the end of the day, we’re still family.”
Esparza, one of the world’s top female amateur boxers will make her professional debut in early 2017, Golden Boy president Eric Gomez said.
“I recently told my fans that I was going pro, and I am happy to announce that it will be the world’s best promotional company — Golden Boy Promotions,” Esparza said. “I am excited to get back into the ring as soon as possible and start climbing the ladder towards winning a professional world title.”
Esparza is the first female fighter signed by Golden Boy, which plans to become much more involved in women’s boxing.
“We really want to jump into women’s boxing,” Gomez said. “We feel she is someone who can revolutionize women’s boxing in the U.S. and bring awareness and excitement. Women’s boxing has been very successful around the world but we’re a little behind in the U.S. She is a smart young woman and she can fight.”
Esparza, who had around 200 amateur fights and lost about 12, won 12 consecutive U.S. national amateur championships and the flyweight gold medal at the 2014 world amateur championships.
She said she wants a world title as a professional and is very confident she will achieve her goal.
“This is a profession and a career for me but could I win a world title tomorrow? I could,” she told ESPN. “I could win it tomorrow but I want to do things correctly and fight my way to the top and do things the way they are supposed to be done, move my way up. I want to earn what I get. What I see myself doing is winning a world title when the time is right and when my team says it’s OK.
“I’m kind of for the first time feeling I’ve arrived. I’ve done so many things, but this (signing with Golden Boy) is something I feel I deserve. I am so ready for this. I’m not scared, I’m ready.”
She said she plans to get back into training right away and will go to England to train over the holidays with her good friend Nicola Adams, who won flyweight Olympic gold medals for Great Britain in 2012 and 2016.
Beyond her ring success, Esparza will come into the pro ranks already having established herself commercially. She has an endorsement deal with CoverGirl cosmetics and has appeared in Spanish-language television ads for Coca-Cola and McDonald’s, among others.
“Before she ever steps foot into the ring as a professional, Marlen Esparza has already established herself as a rising star,” Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya said. “At Golden Boy Promotions, we pride ourselves on developing fighters and transforming them into the best of the best. We look forward to doing the same with Marlen.”
Sérgio Santos is back at the top of the medal podium…
The 40-year-old Brazilian volleyball player, the only Olympian ever to reach four finals in a row in Men’s Volleyball, helped lead his team past Italy to reclaim the gold medal at the 2016 Rio Games.
Brazil beat a strong Italian team in straight sets, 25-22, 28-26, 26-24, on Sunday for the home team’s first Olympic title in 12 years since a championship at the 2004 Athens Games.
As the delirious home crowd hung out to watch the medal ceremony, fans danced in the stands and chanted “Campeao! Campeao!”
“It’s really special, especially winning in our own home it leaves a really good taste,” Brazil’s William Arjona said. “It’s a whole life of work and this is our result. We are very happy for this.”
At the very end, Santos grabbed the microphone and expressed his gratitude to thousands inside and millions elsewhere, thanking the adoring crowd and telling all the fans how much he cherishes wearing Brazil’s yellow shirt on his chest.
Then, he and the champion Brazilians took a victory lap and celebrated some more. They capped the final day of the 2016 Summer Olympics with a memorable, emphatic volleyball victory.
Brazil’s men avenged a loss to Russia in the 2012 London Games gold-medal match with a straight-set victory Friday night, then carried that momentum — and rode the energy of their huge crowd — to the top spot of the Olympic podium.
The Brazilians reached their fourth straight Olympic title match and finally came out champions once more. Even sweeter to reach the gold-medal match by knocking down the Russia team that beat them for gold in London.
The Brazilians then grabbed Santos and tossed him in the air, time and time again. The fitting gesture for a national team treasure and beloved libero in what likely was his last Olympics.
The 34-year-old Spanish mountain biker, participating in his third Olympics, won the bronze medal in the Men’s Cross-Country competition in mountain bike cycling at the 2016 Rio Games.
Coloma finished the race with a time of 1:34:51, just shy of Switzerland’s Nino Schurter, who claimed the gold with a time of 1:33:28 and the Czech Republic’s Jaroslav Kulhavý, who finished just ahead of Coloma at 1:34:18.
In his first Olympics, Coloma finished in 28th place at the 2008 Beijing Games. Four years later, he moved up to 6th place at the 2012 London Games.
They may not be this year’s Golden boys, but Pau Gasol and his Spanish teammates still have reason to celebrate.
The 36-year-old professional basketball player, who will be heading to the San Antonio Spurs this upcoming NBA season, scored 31 points in what could be his Olympic farewell, as Spain collected the bronze medal in Men’s Basketball at the 2016 Rio Games on Sunday with an 89-88 win over Australia.
Sergio Rodriguez made two free throws with 5.4 seconds left and the Spaniards, who captured silver at the 2008 Beijing Games and the 2012 London Games, got the defensive stop they needed as Australia fumbled the ball away on its last possession.
Gasol, who hasn’t committed to playing at the 2020 Tokyo Games, and his teammates celebrated by piling on top of each other near center court.
It wasn’t the medal they wanted, but after losing their first two games in Brazil, it beats nothing.
“Unbelievable,” forward Rudy Fernandez said. “It’s an amazing feeling.”
It’s a feeling Gasol wishes could last. He isn’t ready to shed his España jersey.
“I’m getting older and at some point I’m not going to be able to play,” said Gasol. “So when that day comes, I’ll accept it. It’ll be hard, but I had an incredible run. I can’t ask for anything else. Everything I gave, everything I lived as a basketball player, it’s a plus. It’s a gift.
He may have switched divisions, but Robeisy Ramirez is still an Olympic champion…
The 22-year-old Cuban amateur boxer out-pointed Team USA’s Shakur Stevenson at the 2016 Rio Games to decide the first Olympic gold medal fight between the two boxing powerhouses in 20 years.
The two nations are the most successful in Olympic boxing history yet had oddly avoided each other with the top prize on the line until Ramirez beat Stevenson via split decision to settle the bantamweight gold.
Ramirez, one of the most technically proficient punchers at the 2016 Summer Olympics, has become just the third boxer in history to win two Olympic golds in separate weight divisions.
The 24-year-old Brazilian soccer star helped lead Brazil’s Olympic soccer team to victory against Germany in the gold medal match at the 2016 Rio Games.
Neymar, who had to settle for a silver at the 2012 London Gamesafter losing to Mexico in the gold medal match, scored the winning goal in a dramatic shootout that ended with a score of 5-4, following a 1-1 draw in regulation.
All around him, 70,000 Brazilians inside the vast Maracana Stadium chanted his name, expecting — no, demanding — their nation’s biggest soccer star deliver a historic success at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Neymar paused, gathering his thoughts as he stuttered towards the ball, almost grinding to a halt before stroking his penalty kick high to the left of Germany’s goalkeeper Timo Horn.
Neymar also scored in the 27th minute as Brazil took a 1-0 lead.
Max Meyer scored the equalizer for Germany in the 59th minute.
For Brazil, this was a landmark victory over a country that had inflicted a humiliating 7-1 defeat on it two years ago, in the semifinal of its own World Cup.
It’s the first Olympic victory for Brazilian footballers in a country obsessed with the game.
“This is one of the best things that have happened in my life,” the Barcelona forward said. “That’s it.”
