Cemented legacies and tearful goodbyes: Here’s what happened on an eventful Thursday in Paris

A tearful Andy Murray leaves the court after he and doubles partner Dan Evans lost in the quarterfinals on August 1. Murray, a three-time grand slam winner, is retiring from the sport.
Patricia De Melo Moreira/AFP/Getty Images

The competition was fierce and the Olympic medal race stayed tight, but as is so often the case, Thursday’s stories from the 2024 Summer Games can’t be told with statistics alone.

Today we saw two US legends cement their already impressive legacies, and we bid an emotional farewell to one of the greatest British athletes of all time.

Now thunder, lightning and pouring rain have arrived in Paris — delaying some late events and giving the day’s action an even more dramatic feel.

Let’s look back at the day that was:

Simone Biles completes her comeback: The American mega-star is once again the Olympic gold medalist in individual all-around gymnastics, after winning one of the most dramatic finals of these Paris Olympics.

Biles held off a spirited challenge from brilliant Brazilian Rebeca Andrade, who once again won silver, and Biles’ teammate Suni Lee took the bronze. Andrade was a more-than-worthy challenger, energizing the throngs of Brazilian fans who made the trip. She later celebrated her silver medal with them by running a lap of the entire arena floor carrying the country’s flag.

But it was Biles’ day in the end: The most decorated American Olympic gymnast ever has added yet another gold medal to her career achievements, and completed her epic comeback following her widely publicized withdrawal from the Tokyo Olympics.

Katie Ledecky rises to new heights: The American swimmer is now the most decorated female US Olympian of all time after Team USA won silver in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay. Ledecky won her first gold of the Games in spectacular fashion earlier Thursday, with a new Olympic record in the 1500m freestyle.

Canadian 17-year-old superstar Summer McIntosh also won her second gold medal of the Games.

Thanks for the memories, Andy: They say all good things have to come to an end, and that’s now the case for Andy Murray’s tennis career.

The three-time grand slam champion announced he would retire at the end of this year’s Olympics and now, after a remarkable tournament, he’s lost. Murray shed some tears as he waved goodbye to fans following his and partner Dan Evans’ defeat to Americans Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul, who beat Team Great Britain in straight sets to advance.

Murray, who is considered one of the greatest British athletes of all time, cracked wise on social media, which was filled with tearful goodbyes: “Never even liked tennis anyway,” he wrote.

More from today’s action:

The US women’s national basketball team has now won an incredible 57 games in a row — but Thursday’s victory over Belgium will go down as one of its toughest. Belgium had a virtual home court advantage, with loads of fans in attendance cheering them on, but Liberty star Breanna Stewart powered the US women to yet another win.
Australian swimmers continued an impressive Games in the pool. Their latest medal-earning effort came in the form of a new Olympic record in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay. The team of Mollie O’Callaghan, Lani Pallister, Brianna Throssell and anchor Ariarne Titmus withstood a big third leg from Ledecky.
Novak Djokovic has progressed to the men’s tennis semifinals after beating Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets. The 24-time grand slam champion will now face Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti — who defeated the men’s reigning gold medalist today — for a place in the final.
Azerbaijan’s success in judo continued, as the nation won its second gold medal in the sport through Zelym Kotsoiev.
Giovanni de Gennaro of Italy won gold in the men’s K-1 canoe slalom after a thrilling final round that saw him best the host nation’s Titouan Castryck by a whisker.