The United States snatched top spot in the 2024
Olympic medal table as their women's basketball team earned a thrilling
victory over hosts France to win the final gold on offer in Paris.
The fearsome US team were in danger of one of the all-time
Olympic upsets but won 67-66 to take gold for a record-breaking eighth Games in
a row, meaning the US moved level with China's tally of 40 golds in the medal
table.
But with the American team having won 44 silvers to China's
27 – they have also won 126 medals overall to China's 91 – they top the medal
table for the fourth time in a row.
In a repeat match-up of Saturday's men's final that
was won by the star-studded US at France's expense, Team USA trailed 53-51 with
five minutes to play.
The occasion provided one last taste of the atmosphere of
wild home support in the French capital.
LeBron James, the NBA superstar and men's gold medallist for
the US, was courtside, while French President Emmanuel Macron was in the stands
in support of the hosts.
The US edged back in front and in a dramatic finale, with
the lead at 67-64, Gabby Williams sank a buzzer-beater for France, but it was
judged to have come from inches inside the three-point line and that meant the
USA won by a point.
The Americans were jubilant at the finish, having won the
title for a 10th time, and the French were crestfallen, but a crushed
atmosphere soon turned to cheers of support.
The result may have been agonising for France but the game
was a fitting finale for these Olympics.
From Leon Marchand in the pool to Keely Hodgkinson on the
athletics track and Simone Biles in the vault, 329 medal events have been
contested across a thrilling 16 days in the French capital.
Paris 2024 will officially draw to an end with the closing
ceremony from 20:00 BST.
One last thriller in Paris
The stature of the figures at courtside matched this
remarkable finale.
French NBA star and silver medallist Victor Wembanyama, plus
judo gold medallist Teddy Riner, roared on their Olympic team-mates.
US legend Scottie Pippen, World Cup-winning footballer Megan
Rapinoe and three of the daughters of the late, great Kobe Bryant were also
courtside.
The American team, unsurprisingly, were huge favourites. All
12 of their squad had won an Olympic or World Cup title and the US women had
not lost a match at the Games since Barcelona 1992.
The French were silver medallists 12 years ago in London and
took bronze in Tokyo, but they have never won basketball gold. They defied
their past to push the Americans all the way.
Each of their point-scoring shots resulted in huge roars,
while boos greeted the American free throws.
Crucially, with three seconds on the clock, American Kahleah
Copper held her nerve amid the distracting noise to sink both of her free
throws, meaning Williams' last-gasp effort was in vain.
A'ja Wilson finished with a game-high 21 points, while gold
for Diana Taurasi has made her the first athlete to win six basketball golds.
There was also an emotional medal for Brittney Griner in her
first international tournament since leaving a Russian prison in a high-profile
prisoner exchange in 2022.
