Simone Biles makes Paris debut, Team USA basketball begins gold medal defense on Sunday
LeBron James during the 2024 USA Basketball Showcase match between USA and South Sudan at The O2 Arena on July 20 in London. (Photo by Henry Browne/Getty Images)
Biles will anchor three of four events for the Americans
After a couple days of rain, sunny skies should be out for the second full day of action at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Sunday’s competition features more excitement in gymnastics, basketball and swimming. Here are the biggest storylines to follow:
Gymnastics icon Simone Biles returns to Olympic stage
Simone Biles and the U.S. women’s gymnastics team take center stage with qualifying at Bercy Arena. Biles is looking to earn her fifth Olympic gold medal and seventh overall. She won two medals in Tokyo despite withdrawing from the all-around to focus on her mental health.
Competition begins at 9:30 a.m. CEST (3:30 a.m. EST) with Subdivision 1. Biles and Co. are in Subdivision 2, beginning at 11:40 a.m. in Paris. They’ll start on the balance beam.
Biles will anchor three of four events for the Americans on Sunday: balance beam, floor exercise and vault. She will go next-to-last on uneven bars. Reigning all-around champion Sunisa Lee and Tokyo silver medalist Jordan Chiles also will compete in all four events in qualifying. The top eight teams from qualifying advance to the team final on Tuesday.
The United States team from left to right, Hezly Rivera, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, Jordan Chiles and Simone Biles pose for a picture during a gymnastics training session at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) –
The top 24 individual qualifiers in the all-around will make the finals on Thursday. There’s a limit of two gymnasts per country.
LeBron James, Team USA basketball begin gold medal defense
LeBron James, Stephen Curry and their squad of U.S. stars begin their medal defense against Nikola Jokic and Serbia. The game starts at 5:15 p.m. CEST (11:15 a.m. EST) at Pierre Mauroy Stadium.
The U.S. team is looking for a fifth straight gold medal. It beat Serbia 105-79 in an exhibition game earlier this month. Kevin Durant is dealing with a calf strain, but the team is hopeful he will play.
Jayson Tatum #10 of the 2024 USA Basketball Men’s National Team tosses a towel after a practice session scrimmage against the 2024 USA Basketball Men’s Select Team during the team’s training camp at the Mendenhall Center at UNLV on July 08, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) –
Also in basketball, South Sudan men face Puerto Rico at 11 a.m. CEST (5 a.m. EST), and Serbia women take on Puerto Rico at 9 p.m. CEST (3 p.m. EST). Serbia’s women’s team finished fourth in 2020 and took bronze in 2016.
Medal events continue in swimming
The men’s 400-meter individual medley final will start at 8:30 p.m. CEST (2:30 p.m. EST), followed by women’s 100 butterfly at 8:40 p.m. CEST (2:40 p.m. EST). Another gold medal will be awarded in the men’s 100 breaststroke, set to start at 9:44 p.m. CEST (3:44 p.m. EST).