The Latest: Venus Williams loses opening match in Rio
By Associated Press
Aug 6, 2016 8:32 PM CDT
People pose in the Olympic rings at the Olympic Park during the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)   (Associated Press)

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The Latest on the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro (all times local):

10:30 p.m.

Venus Williams faded as her opening match at her record fifth Olympics dragged past 3 hours and she lost 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5) to Kristen Flipkens of Belgium.

The 36-year-old American — owner of four gold medals and seven Grand Slam titles — labored at times and even showed frustration by shouting "Ridiculous!" after dropping one point Saturday night.

With U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry watching, the fifth-seeded Williams was broken while serving for the victory at 5-3. She was two points from the win four times but could not close out Flipkens, who is ranked 62nd and only once reached the semifinals of a major tournament.

When the match ended, Flipkens reacted as if she'd won gold, even getting down on the ground to kiss the white five-ring Olympic logo on the green court.

Williams is the first tennis player to participate in singles at five Summer Games.

___

10:30 p.m.

Kosuke Hagino of Japan has ended the United States' dominance in the men's 400-meter individual medley, holding off American Chase Kalisz to win the gold medal at the Rio Olympics.

Hagino and Japanese teammate Daiya Seto raced away from the field on the butterfly and backstroke legs before Kalisz began to close the gap. The American surged past Seto on the breaststroke and set his sights on Hagino.

But the Japanese swimmer, who won bronze in this event at the 2012 London Games, held on to win in 4 minutes, 6.05 seconds. Kalisz settled for the silver in 4:06.75, while Seto grabbed the bronze in 4:09.71.

Hagino became the first non-American to win the 400 IM since Tamas Darnyi of Hungary at the 1992 Barcelona Games.

Ryan Lochte was the defending Olympic champion, but he finished third at the U.S. trials and didn't event qualify. Michael Phelps was the champion in 2004 and 2008, but he's dropped the 400 IM from his program. Tom Dolan was a back-to-back champion in 1996 and 2000.

___

10:20 p.m

UPSET ALERT: 5th-ranked Venus Williams loses opening match at record fifth Olympics to 62nd-ranked Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium.

___

10:15 p.m.

MEDAL ALERT: Kosuke Hagino of Japan wins the men's 400-meter individual medley at the Rio Olympics. Chase Kalisz of the United States takes the silver and Japan's Daiya Seto claims the bronze.

___

10:05 p.m.

The chaotic men's Olympic road race left Italian star Vincenzo Nibali with a broken collarbone and Australia's Richie Porte, a favorite for this week's time trial, with a fractured shoulder blade.

Nibali crashed along with Colombia's Sergio Henao while leading on the final harrowing descent of the 236-kilometer race, allowing Greg Van Avermaet of Belgium to claim the gold medal.

Nibali's coach, Davide Cassani, said on Twitter the Giro d'Italia winner broke his collarbone.

Porte may have had an even tougher day, dealing with mechanical issues even before he crashed on the same tricky descent. Cycling Australia confirmed Porte was taken to Vitoria Hospital in Barra and found to have a broken bone that will keep him out of Wednesday's time trial.

___

10:05 p.m.

Gu Yasha and Tan Ruyin each scored and China defeated South Africa 2-0 in a group-stage match Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro.

It was China's first victory in the Olympics since they were hosts in 2008. The No. 12-ranked Steel Roses did not play in London.

South Africa, known as Banyana Banyana, dropped to 0-2 at the Rio Games and the team's chances of making the knockout stage were slim.

China fell 3-0 to hosts Brazil in its opener.

___

9:40 p.m.

It's party time at the Olympic pool.

Samba dancers in feathers and sequins are tearing it up on deck accompanied by drummers ahead of the first late-night finals session of the Rio Games on Saturday.

Several swimmers and coaches are capturing the entertainment on their cellphones while swimmers warm up in the pool.

Rowdy music from the Rolling Stones and AC/DC has been blasting too, ensuring everyone is awake for the first final that begins at 10 p.m.

___

9:30 p.m.

Sopita Tanasan of Thailand won gold in her Olympic debut with an easy victory in the women's 48-kilogram category Saturday in the first weightlifting event at the Rio Games.

Tanasan snatched 92 kilograms and lifted 108 kilograms in the clean and jerk for a total of 200 kilograms. It was her first time competing on the world level at that weight class.

On her first lift in clean and jerk, Tanasan easily succeeded at 106 kilos to take the lead. She lifted 108 kilos on her second attempt, but failed at 110 kilos on her final try.

In a last-ditch bid to snatch the gold, Sri Wahuni Agustiani of Indonesia twice tried to lift 115 kilos to overtake Tanasan. She failed on the first try and Tanasan celebrated by hugging her coaches in the green room.

Agustiani was able to lift the bar on her second attempt and her coaches screamed in celebration, but she couldn't jerk the weight.

Agustiani won silver and Hiromi Miyake took bronze.

___

9:20 p.m.

Katie Ledecky will be anchoring the United States in the women's 4x100-meter freestyle relay.

Ledecky already swam in the afternoon preliminaries Saturday, leading the Americans to the second-fastest time behind the favored Australians.

She's the only holdover from the morning team. The U.S. rested its top two 100 free swimmers, Abbey Weitzeil and Simone Manuel, and they're also adding Dana Vollmer, who'll be doing double duty in the late-night session. She's also competing in the semifinals of the 100 butterfly, but we'll have more than an hour to rest up between races.

Manuel leads off for the Americans, followed by Weitzeil, Vollmer and Ledecky. They'll be trying to give the U.S. its first gold medal in the event since the 1996 Atlanta Games.

Defending Olympic champion Australia is a big favorite. Emma McKeon and Brittany Elmsie will take the top two legs, followed by sisters Bronte and Cate Campbell.

___

9:20 p.m.

Saskia Bartusiak scored in the 88th minute to pull Germany into a 2-all draw with Australia in a women's soccer group-stage match at Corinthian Stadium in Sao Paulo on Saturday.

Sam Kerr scored for Australia in the sixth minute and Caitlin Ford added another in the 45th, but Germany closed the gap in first-half stoppage time with Sara Daebritz's goal.

Australia is ranked No. 5 in the world. Known as the Matildas, they had a breakthrough last summer when they became the first Austrailain team — male or female — to win a World Cup knockout round match.

Germany, ranked No. 2 in the world, defeated Zimbabwe 6-1 in the Olympic tournament opener. Australia fell to Canada 2-0 to open the group stage.

___

9 p.m.

The U.S. Olympic men's basketball team began its charge toward a third straight gold medal with a 119-62 rout of China on Saturday.

Kevin Durant scored 25 points and Demarcus Cousins added 17 for the win.

Durant and Carmelo Anthony are the only two returning players from the 2012 squad that won it all in London, and the pair of NBA All-Stars showed their young teammates how the American team rolls at the Olympics. Despite not having big-name players like LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Russell Westbrook, the U.S. is an overwhelming favorite to win another title.

Durant made three 3-pointers in the first half as the U.S. opened a 29-point halftime lead and coasted.

The Americans have won 69 straight games, and improved to 81-1 under coach Mike Krzyzewski, who revived the U.S. program and plans to step down following these games.

The U.S. plays Venezuela on Monday.

____

8:35 p.m.

Rio's downtown cauldron has become selfie central. A day after it was lit to formally open the games, thousands of Rio's residents have been taking turns snapping images of themselves in front of the Olympic flame.

Residents such as Thiago Rodrigues say that even some once opposed to hosting the games are now happy they are taking place in their city.

The flame was moved to its new location on Olympic Boulevard at the end of the opening ceremony Friday night in Maracana stadium. The newly-renovated precinct on Guanabara Bay features big screens and live entertainment during the games.

It is also home to architect Santiago Calatrava's iconic Museu do Amanha, or Museum of Tomorrow. Its soaring silhouette provided the perfect backdrop for more sunset selfies.

___

7:45 p.m.

The leading contenders for the first Olympic gold medal in women's rugby qualified for the quarterfinals with two wins each Saturday, with world series champion Australia, New Zealand and Canada posting lopsided wins.

New Zealanders Portia Woodman and Kayla McAlister had a share of the lead in the try-scoring stakes with four each, along with Australia's Charlotte Caslick and Bianca Farella of Canada. Rugby is returning to the Olympics for the first time in 92 years — the sevens format and the women's competition are on debut at the Summer Games.

Second-seeded New Zealand topped Pool B with wins over Kenya and Spain, and France was unbeaten behind them to also qualify for the finals.

Canada had convincing wins over Japan and Brazil and will progress along with Britain, which was also unbeaten.

The Australians were atop Pool A with wins over Colombia and Fiji, which earlier edged the United States 12-7. The Americans recovered from that to beat Colombia 48-0 to improve their chances of advancing.

___

7:45 p.m.

Brazilian fighter Michel Borges had the home country and the judges behind him, defeating professional fighter Hassan N'Dam in the boxing tournament.

N'Dam, out of Cameroon, fought in the 2004 Olympics in Athens and won two bouts before he lost in the quarterfinals. As a pro, the 32-year-old fought twice for the middleweight championship and has a 34-2 record.

N'Dam is one three professional fighters in the Olympics this year after 112 years of amateurism. He was easily the most high-profile one who accepted the International Boxing Association's plan to entice prominent pros to Rio de Janeiro.

The 25-year-old Borges won on the scorecard by judges from Russia, Vietnam and Sweden. The fans stomped so much on the metal bleachers it sounded like thunder inside the arena. Then they gave him a thunderous ovation once the decision was announced.

Italy's Carmine Tommasone became the first professional fighter to win a bout earlier in the day.

___

7:30 p.m.

Russia's first champion at the Rio Olympics suggests his win will help to lift the gloom from the country's doping scandal.

Beslan Mudranov, who won gold in the men's 60-kilogram judo class, is "really pleased I could get a gold on the first day, because everyone knows what kind of situation we had in Russia before the Olympics."

Russia's team at the Olympics has lost over 100 athletes to various measures related to its doping scandals, including large-scale bans on its track and field, weightlifting and rowing teams.

Mudranov says that, besides him, "many (Russian) athletes who could also have won gold, many of them weren't let in." Still he adds, his win is "not our last gold" in Rio.

___

7:10 p.m.

Goalkeeper Hope Solo came up big as the United States fought off France 1-0 on Saturday in an Olympic group stage match at Mineirao Stadium. Carli Lloyd scored the lone goal for the Americans.

Solo became the first goalkeeper, male or female, to reach the 200th-cap mark in international play. She also became just the 11th U.S. player all time — across all positions — to reach that number of appearances.

Despite the milestone, Solo was still peppered with jeers from the crowd, who were riled up about social media posts she made about the threat of the Zika virus. The boos first started during the team's 2-0 tournament-opening win against New Zealand on Wednesday.

___

6:50 p.m.

The United States has claimed one of the biggest wins in its Olympic women's field hockey history, defeating world No. 2 Argentina 2-1 in its opening match.

Argentina's Agustina Albertarrio appeared to break a scoreless tie two minutes into the third period on Saturday, but the goal was nullified. Three minutes later, USA's Katie Reinprecht slipped one under the goalkeeper to give the Americans a 1-0 lead.

Michelle Kasold scored for the USA on a penalty corner with 10:26 to play. Delfina Merino scored for Argentina with 3:27 remaining, but he Americans held on.

The Americans haven't medaled since 1984, when they claimed bronze in Los Angeles. The United States gained momentum this summer by placing third in the Champions Trophy event in June, and its No. 5 world ranking is its highest slot ever.

___

6:30 p.m.

The boos just keep coming for U.S. goalkeeper Hope Solo.

Solo riled some Brazilians before the Rio Games started with when she posted a photo of herself on social media decked out in mosquito netting and armed with insecticide, with the caption: "Not sharing this!!! Get your own! (hashtag) zikaproof."

As a result, fans at Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte were booing her and shouting "Zika!" each time she touched the ball Saturday night during a group stage match against France.

It was a tradition that started for the U.S. Olympic opener against New Zealand on Wednesday.

___

6:30 p.m.

Hungary's Emese Szasz rallied to win the gold medal in women's epee fencing Saturday at the Carioca Arena 3.

Szasz, ranked seventh in the world, stunned two-time world champion Rossella Fiamingo of Italy 15-13 after trailing by as many as four points.

China's Yiwen Sun won bronze, beating Lauren Rembi of France 15-13 on a stab with 37 seconds to go.

Szasz's win capped an opening day marked by big upsets. Top-ranked Anqi Xu of China, third-ranked Tatiana Logunova of Russia and all three U.S. fencers were eliminated in the round of 32.

Second-ranked Sarra Besbes of Tunisia was knocked out in the quarterfinals.

___

6:30 p.m.

Brazilian military and police "have absolute confidence" that the bullet which flew through the roof of a media tent at the Olympic Equestrian Center was simply "an unfortunate incident."

There was a scare during the lunch break at the dressage event Saturday as a military-looking bullet pierced the roof of the tent and landed on the floor. The competition was not disrupted and nobody was hurt.

Rio 2016 communications head Mario Andrada says authorities are investigating the incident and "they can clearly determine this area was not the target, it was a stray bullet."

Andrada adds "they can confirm it has nothing to do with the games but they cannot be more precise at the moment."

The security around the Deodoro competition venue has been reinforced.

___

6:15 p.m.

South Korea was nearly flawless to beat the United States in the men's team archery final Saturday at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

The Korean powerhouse scored in the 10 range on 15 of its 18 arrows to knock off the Americans, 6-0. South Korea has now captured five of the eight Olympic gold medals in the men's team event.

The U.S. took home silver for a second straight Olympics. Australia beat China for bronze.

New world-record holder Kim Woojin scored a 10 on five of his six shots in the final. His teammate Ku Bonchan was 6 for 6.

So convincing was the win that American Jake Kaminski bowed to the Koreans after the match. Kaminski, Zach Garrett and Brady Ellison combined for 10 shots that scored a 10.

___

6:15 p.m.

Make it 2-0 for USA Boxing in Rio.

Nico Hernandez won a unanimous decision over two-time Olympian Manuel Cappai. Hernandez looked sharp over the final two rounds against the Italian fighter in the opening session of the boxing tournament.

There are only six men on the boxing team and just one serious medal contender. The American men failed to win any Olympic medals for the first time in London.

Hernandez is from Wichita, Kansas, and his parents were set to leave the U.S. for the first time to watch their son.

American fans starting "U-S-A!" chanted were quickly drowned out by boos by fans who again seemed to enjoy rooting against the United States. Lightweight Carlos Balderas also heard boos when he became the first American in the boxing tournament to win his bout earlier in the day.

___

6:05 p.m.

Beslan Mudranov is Russia's first medalist of the Rio Olympics after beating Kazakhstan's Yeldos Smetov in a judo final between representatives of two countries recently buffeted by doping scandals.

Mudranov took gold in the men's 60-kilogram division, beating Smetov on a golden score.

Russia is competing in Rio with a team diminished by doping scandals and bans, particularly in track and weightlifting.

Neighboring Kazakhstan faces losing five weightlifting gold medals from the 2008 and 2012 Olympics after its champions' drug test samples were retested and found to contain steroids.

Japan's Naohisa Takato and Uzbekistan's Diyorbek Urozboev took the bronze medals in the 60kg division.

See 4 more photos