Summer Olympics

LeBron James is feeling appreciative of receiving Olympic MVP honors.

The 39-year-old won his third career gold medal on Saturday when Team USA defeated France 98-87 in the championship game. In addition to the medal, he was voted the MVP of the tournament and said that he was "super-humbled" to receive the honor.

"It's an honor. I don't know who the voting committee, or whatever the case may be, but super-humbled that they even voted for me," James said, per Marc J. Spears of Andscape. "But it came with us winning gold and that's what's more important for me. It's pretty cool."

James won the award over teammate Steph Curry, France's Victor Wembanyama and Serbia's Nikola Jokić. This was his first time winning the MVP and he is the third person to ever win the award.

James averaged 14.2 points, 8.5 assists and 6.8 rebounds across the Olympic slate. He scored 14 points, 10 assists and six rebounds in the gold medal game.

This could have been James' last Olympics, as he said he "can't see myself playing in Los Angeles" for the 2028 Olympics, per Spears. If so, he would end his Olympic career with three gold medals, a bronze and a tournament MVP award.

A'ja Wilson might need to build a second — or third — trophy cabinet at this point.

The Team USA star was honored as the MVP of the 2024 Summer Olympics after helping lift her team to a gold medal in Sunday's final against France. She was also one of two American named to the All-Star squad for the tournament.

Wilson, who was MVP of the 2022 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup as well, averaged 18.7 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks across six contests in Paris. She put up a double-double (21 points and 13 rebounds) in the 67-66 win over France to clinch an eighth straight gold.

On the heels of leading the Las Vegas Aces to their second successive WNBA title, the 28-year-old staked a strong claim to be the best women's basketball player in the world. Her performance in France cemented that status further.

Stewart was the only other U.S. player to average double figures in scoring (16.3 points) while contributing 5.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.7 blocks per game.

Williams was one of the best two-way players at the Summer Games. She filled out the stat sheet (15.5 PTS, 4.7 TRB, 4.8 AST, 2.8 STL) and reminded WNBA fans of what they're missing thanks in part to the league's prioritization rules.

The French forward may have mixed emotions when it comes to the 2024 Olympics, though. While she helped the host country match its best-ever showing, she was mere inches away from sending the final into overtime.

Belgium's Emma Meesseman and Australia's Alanna Smith rounded out the All-Olympics first team. Australia's Ezi Magbegor, Nigeria's Ezinne Kalu, Belgium's Julie Vanloo, Germany's Satou Sabally and France's Valériane Ayayi were named to the second team.

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has filed a formal complaint after she was the target of online abuse and harassment throughout the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Khelif took down China's Yang Liu in the final Friday to win a gold medal. Her attorney, Nabil Boudi, issued a statement Saturday saying she was pursuing legal action with her Summer Games now concluded.

"Having just won a gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, boxer Imane Khelif has decided to lead a new fight: that of justice, dignity and honor," Boudi said (via ESPN's Connor O'Halloran).

"Ms. Khelif contacted the firm, which filed a complaint yesterday for acts of aggravated cyber harassment with the anti-online hatred center of the Paris public prosecutor's office."

The prosecutor's office in Paris has yet to receive the complaint, per O'Halloran, a step that could arrive in the coming days.

The controversy began in large part after Italy's Angela Carini walked away in the middle of her bout with Khelif in the round of 16 after just 46 seconds.

Some observers highlighted the fact Khelif had been disqualified from the 2023 world championships by the International Boxing Association (IBA) because she failed to meet the eligibility requirements. That prompted unfounded accusations about her gender and allegations she had an unfair physical advantage in the ring.

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach affirmed both Khelif and Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting, who had also been disqualified by the IBA, were eligible to compete in Paris under the IOC's guidelines.

"Let's be very clear, we are talking about women's boxing," Bach told reporters.

"We have two boxers who are born as a woman, who have been raised as a woman, who have a passport as a woman and who have competed for many years as a woman.

"This is the clear definition of a woman. There was never any doubt about them being a woman."

Bach described the gender-related outcry against Khelif as "hate speech."

Beyond the fact the IOC provided the 25-year-old with the green light to enter the boxing tournament, the Associated Press' Greg Beacham laid out the existing questions regarding the IBA's original decision and the organization as a whole.

"The non-boxing world largely doesn't know, however, about the IBA's decades of troubled governance and longstanding accusations of a thorough lack of normal transparency in nearly every aspect of its dealings, particularly in recent years," Beacham wrote.

In June 2023, the IOC voted 69-1 in favor of no longer recognizing the IBA as an official governing body for boxing.

One day after winning gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics, LeBron James and others from the men's team were back at the court in a different capacity.

James, Bam Adebayo and Derrick White were in the stands for the U.S. women's team's gold medal match against France. The U.S. would win 67-66 and the men's players were quick to congratulate the victors.

This was the eighth consecutive gold medal won by the women's Olympic team.

The U.S. were led by A'ja Wilson, who had 21 points and 13 rebounds. Kelsey Plum had 12 points and four assists and Kahleah Copper had 12 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.

This was the 61st consecutive Olympic win for the U.S, a streak that dates back to 1992. It was Wilson's first Olympic gold and third overall gold in International play.

The men's team also took down France in the gold medal game, winning 98-87 on Saturday. The team's have both won gold in every Olympics since 2008.

When Gabby Williams hit a buzzer-beater at the end of Sunday's gold-medal game between Team USA and France at the Paris Olympics, it caused a bit of a scare for the Americans.

However, Team USA's Breanna Stewart knew immediately that Williams' foot was touching the three-point line, preserving a 67-66 win for Team USA and giving the team its eighth straight gold medal:

Team USA faced its toughest test of the Olympic Games against a France team that was clearly motivated to deliver a victory in front of its home fans in Paris. After entering the game averaging 14.8 turnovers through its first five games of the tournament, the team had 15 turnovers at halftime against France. The Americans fell behind by as many as 10 points in the third quarter before making a comeback.

Stewart was one of the many Team USA players to struggle offensively on Sunday, as she finished with just eight points on 2-of-8 shooting. However, she didn't let that affect the rest of the game and played great defense with two steals and two blocks, one of which came with just 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter to help preserve the lead.

Williams, who led France with 19 points, had made a three-pointer with five seconds on the clock to cut the lead to 65-64. After a pair of free throws by Kaleah Copper, Williams had one last opportunity to force overtime, and it looked like she pulled off a miracle before it was seen that her foot was on the line.

In addition to Team USA's eighth straight gold medal, the win extends the team's Olympic winning streak to 61 straight games. Per ESPN, it's just the third time during that streak that a game has been decided by single digits.

The United States survived to win its eighth straight gold medal in women's basketball at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Team USA beat host country France 67-66 in the final Sunday. Gabby Williams nailed a shot at the buzzer but was inside the three-point arc when she released the ball, confining the French to a heartbreaking defeat.

Former President Barack Obama lauded Team USA for its achievement:

Kahleah Copper took over late for the U.S. and finished with 12 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals. A'ja Wilson, meanwhile, strengthened her case as the best player in the world by going off for 21 points and 13 rebounds.

The two-time WNBA MVP, who was crowned MVP of the Paris Games, garnered plenty of praise on social media.

Fans aren't taking Team USA's historic dominance for granted, either. Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese was among those glued to the television in the final moments:

With the win, the United States has reeled off 61 straight victories in the Summer Games, and this is probably the closest it has come to tasting defeat during that stretch.

Team USA led for 23 minutes, but this was far from an emphatic performance. Cheryl Reeve's squad was held to just 25 points at halftime. It shot 2-of-12 on three-pointers and turned the ball over 19 times.

In the end, the U.S. simply had too much talent. No other country in the world can call upon a player as good as Copper, a four-time WNBA All-Star and the 2021 Finals MVP, off the bench to provide a lift when the stars aren't getting the job done.

Wilson provided a legendary soundbite when she called Copper "that b---h" in her postgame interview on the court.

While the gulf between the United States and the rest of the world has clearly closed a bit, Team USA will head into the 2028 Summer Games as the favorite once again.

Fans can assume Diana Taurasi (42), Brittney Griner (33), Alyssa Thomas (32) and perhaps the backcourt tandem of Jewell Loyd (30) and Chelsea Gray (31) could be outside of the national team frame four years from now.

But Reese, Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston are among the young stars who will be jostling for a spot during the next Olympic cycle. UConn's Paige Bueckers could be in the mix as well since she will have gained some pro experience by that point.

As Sunday showed, nothing can be assumed for the U.S. Anything short of a ninth straight gold is bound to be considered a disappointment in Los Angeles, though.

After leading Team USA to a fifth straight Olympic gold medal, LeBron James revealed the nickname for this year's squad.

Following Saturday's 98-87 win over France in the gold-medal game at the Paris Olympics, James declared that the star-studded group has been dubbed "The Avengers."

James already had "Captain LeMerica" added to his long list of nicknames earlier during the Paris Olympics, so the Avengers theme fits. It's not exactly clear which members of Team USA earned the roles of Thor, Iron Man or the Hulk, but fans can certainly make their own inferences.

Similar to the famed comic book superhero team, this year's Team USA roster brought together some of the biggest stars from all corners of the NBA. With James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid, the team featured an astounding eight NBA MVP awards between them.

Team USA's roster was so stacked that it was hard for some of the best players in the league to even see playing time during the Paris Olympics. Jayson Tatum, who was coming off leading the Boston Celtics to the 2024 NBA championship, struggled to earn consistent time on the floor and had multiple DNPs during the team's run to the gold medal.

Still, like the Avengers, the pieces came together perfectly for Team USA to achieve its ultimate goal. Multiple stars put their egos aside to reach the height of success at the international level.

It can be expected that this year's squad will serve as the blueprint for future Team USA rosters as they try to extend their streak of five straight Olympic gold-medal victories.

The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee announced Sunday it plans to appeal the decision to request gymnast Jordan Chiles relinquish her bronze medal from the floor exercise.

"We firmly believe that Jordan rightfully earned the bronze medal, and there were critical errors in both the initial scoring by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and the subsequent CAS appeal process that need to be addressed," the organization said, per Will Graves of the Associated Press.

USA Gymnastics also said it submitted video evidence that the initial inquiry came within the required one minute:

Chiles was awarded the bronze after her coach, Cecile Landi, filed an inquiry over her original score. The judges raised her difficulty score by 0.1 points following the review, and that put her overall score at 13.766.

As a result, Chiles leapfrogged Romania's Ana Bărbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea and moved into third place.

However, the Romanian federation filed an appeal of its own, which culminated in the Court of Arbitration for Sport finding that Landi missed the window to formally lodge an inquiry by four seconds. It said the original finishing order should be restored, with Bărbosu, Maneca-Voinea and Chiles occupying third, fourth and fifth respectively.

The CAS did, however, allow for the International Olympic Committee to hand out medals as it saw fit. Romania, for its part, argued in favor of giving bronze medals to Chiles, Bărbosu and Maneca-Voinea. In the case of Maneca-Voinea, she was deducted 0.1 points for stepping out of bounds when a replay showed she had stayed inside the perimeter.

Instead, the IOC is seeking to retrieve Chiles' medal.

USA Gymnastics issued a statement Saturday saying it was "devastated" by the CAS ruling, adding that Chiles has been the target of abuse on social media in the aftermath of the floor event.

Beyond pointing to the initial judging error with Chiles' score, the USOPC is maintaining it "was not given adequate time or notice to effectively challenge the decision" in the moment.

Amid the International Olympic Committee's ruling that Team USA gymnast Jordan Chiles would have to return her floor exercise bronze medal, the 23-year-old received support from her teammates.

"Sending you so much love Jordan," Simone Biles posted in an Instagram story, per ESPN. "Keep your chin up 'Olympic champ' we love you."

"All this talk about the athlete, what about the judges?" Sunisa Lee added on her Instagram story. "Completely unacceptable, this is awful and [I'm] gutted for [Jordan]."

The IOC made the ruling that Chiles must return her bronze medal after the Court of Arbitration for Sport voided a scoring appeal made by Team USA coach Cecile Landi that helped her earn a spot on the podium. The medal will be reallocated to Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu.

The CAS reportedly determined that Landi's appeal to have 0.1 added to Chiles' score occurred outside of the one-minute window allowed by the International Gymnastics Federation. Landi's appeal came 1 minute, 4 seconds after Chiles' score was posted, the court stated.

It was suggested that the original finishing order be restored, with Barbosu third, Romanian Sabrina Maneca-Voinea fourth and Chiles falling all the way to fifth behind gold-medal winner Rebeca Andrade of Brazil and Biles, who earned the silver medal.

Chiles appeared to allude to the disappointment caused by the decision when she wrote in an Instagram story on Saturday that she was "taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you."

Chiles' sister, Jazmin, wrote on Instagram that she was stripped of her bronze medal "not because she wasn't good enough. But because the judges failed to give her difficulty and forced an inquiry to be made."

USA Gymnastics said in a statement that it was "devastated" by the court's decision.

"The inquiry into the Difficulty Value of Jordan Chiles' floor exercise routine was filed in good faith and, we believed, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring," the organization stated.