Golds in trampolining, showjumping and rowing make it a fabulous Friday for GB
Two silvers in swimming and one in rowing plus a diving bronze made up a seven-medal haul on Day Seven of the Paris Games.
It was a fabulous Friday for Great Britain as the medals continued to flow, with three more golds added to the tally in Paris.
Bryony Page completed her full set of colour as she took top spot in the trampolining while showjumper Harry Charles followed in the footsteps of his father Peter as he claimed team final gold alongside Ben Maher and Scott Brash.
The current of gold keeps flowing at the rowing too, where Emily Craig and Imogen Grant triumphed in the last running of the lightweight women’s double sculls, with the event out of the programme in Los Angeles in four years’ time.
We look back on a fruitful day seven in France for Team GB.
Page puts on a show
Bryony Page wants to realise her dream of heading off to join the circus after completing her set of Olympic trampolining medals with gold in Paris.
The 33-year-old became the first British medallist in the discipline when she won a surprise silver medal in Rio eight years ago before taking bronze in Tokyo.
She went into this competition as the reigning world champion and gold medal favourite, and she lived up to that billing in spectacular style.
Page did not rule out competing again in Los Angeles in four years’ time but first she wants to pursue an opportunity to join Cirque du Soleil as an acrobat and tour with them.
Jumping for joy
Harry Charles, Ben Maher and Scott Brash secured Britain’s second team equestrian medal of the Games in the showjumping arena.
With the eventing team having triumphed on Monday, the jumping side put on a show at the Chateau de Versailles with all three jumping clear, while Brash and Maher’s time penalty point apiece did not prove too costly as Britain beat the USA to the main honours.
Charles’ father Peter was part of the British team that won gold at London 2012, with Brash and Maher – who now has three Olympic golds to his name – also members of that squad.
Having broken bones in his arm four weeks ago, Charles faced a race against time to be fit to ride, but he made the Games and secured a piece of history as the first father-and-son to win Olympic gold since 1948.
Golden moment for Craig and Grant
Emily Craig and Imogen Grant banished the demons of Tokyo 2020 by becoming the last Olympic lightweight women’s double sculls champions.
The event will be taken out of the rowing programme after the Paris Olympics, with beach sprints introduced in their place at Los Angeles in four years’ time.
So Craig and Grant will forever be enshrined in Olympic history after surging to gold at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, three years on from the most painful of near-misses at the delayed Tokyo Games.
Ben does himself proud
Away from the golds, there were plenty of place honours for Britain – not least Ben Proud’s silver in the men’s 50 metres freestyle final.
Proud has won world, European and Commonwealth titles in his decorated career but he has had a couple of near misses for a podium spot at the Olympics – fourth at Rio 2016 and joint fifth at Tokyo 2020.
He ended his wait on Friday night but missed out on gold by five hundredths of a second as Australia’s Cameron McEvoy took top spot in a time of 21.25 seconds, with France’s Florent Manaudou third.
Duncan Scott also took silver in the pool as home favourite Leon Marchand bossed the men’s 200m individual medley final.
Pushed to the Max
Max Whitlock will be pushed to the brink in his bid to nail a third consecutive Olympic pommel title at the Bercy Arena.
Whitlock was out-scored in qualifying by Ireland’s Rhys McClenaghan, the defending world champion, and Stephen Nedoroscik of the US. The 31-year-old will need to produce one of the best performances of his career at 5.16pm (4.16pm) if he is to end his career on a high.
The athletics action kicks up a gear with European 100m champion Dina Asher-Smith looking to end her quest for a first individual Olympic medal when she and fellow GB sprinters Daryll Neita and Imani-Lara Lansiquot aim for a place in the 9.20pm (8.20pm BST) final after booking places in the evening’s semis.
Britain has live chances as the Paris 2024 rowing regatta comes to a close at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, while Adam Peaty could be back in the pool if he competes in the 4×100 metres medley relay heats.
Picture of the day
