Thursday the Americans gained another seven total medals, including five golds and four medals on the track. The great day for the U.S. started in the morning when Kerron Clement took the men’s 400 hurdles. It continued into the evening with wins by Ryan Crouser (men’s shot put), Ashton Eaton (men’s decathlon) and Dalilah Muhammad (women’s 400 hurdles).
The final gold medal for the American’s was in women’s wrestling. Helen Maroulis came through qualifications and won five matches to get the 53kg freestyle gold. It is the first women’s wrestling gold medal in the country’s history.
The U.S. women’s basketball team also advanced to the gold medal game, beating out France in the semifinals. The women’s volleyball team wasn’t as lucky. They suffered a defeat in their semifinals against Serbia. They will now play for the bronze.
Usain Bolt again stole the show on the track. The Jamaican sprinter cruised to an easy win in the 200 meters to win his eighth career gold medal and unprecedented third in the race.
The U.S. now has 100 medals which is 42 more than the second place China. Of those 100 medals, 25 of them are gold. China has 58 total medals, Great Britain with 56, Russia with 44 and in fifth place is Japan, with 35.
Drama is surrounding the Olympics with swimmer Ryan Lochte. Brazilian police say that Lochte and three U.S. teammates were not robbed after a night of partying, as the swimmer alleged. Instead, the intoxicated athletes vandalized a gas station bathroom and were questioned by armed guards before they paid for the damage and left.
Earlier Thursday, a Brazilian police official told The Associated Press that two of the swimmers said Lochte had made the story up and that the gas station manager actually demanded money from them to pay for the door. The swimmers handed over money and left.
More details surrounding the swimmer’s claims will come out over the next few days.