That’s it from us for today. What a day for India! One bronze confirmed. Another medal confirmed. Two semi-finals lost – bronze still a possibility. Neeraj Chopra qualifying for the javelin final. It was a mad, mad day. We had fun, we hope you did too. The schedule for Aug 5 will be up soon. There is some gold to be won.

Athletics: Andre de Grasse is finally a champion!!! So many bronze and silver medals over the years but now the Canadian is finally a champion. A nation record too. Last Canadian to take the title was in 1928!

Golf: The Tokyo Olympics women’s golf tournament could be cut to 54 holes, organisers said, because of an approaching tropical storm due to hit Kasumigaseki Country Club at the weekend.

“We have notified the players that we may have to be forced to reduce to a 54-hole competition,” International Golf Federation official Heather Daly-Donofrio told a media briefing at the course.

“We will not change tomorrow’s schedule. We will play 18 holes as scheduled tomorrow. We will play another 18 holes on Friday and then we will continue to track this tropical system and see what Saturday brings.”

Daly-Donofrio said the idea of playing extra holes over the next two days to complete four rounds by Friday had been explored, but the extreme heat meant it wasn’t feasible.

“The health and safety of our players and caddies is first and foremost,” Daly-Donofrio said.

Athletics: Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai outstripped the field to win the women’s Olympic 3000m steeplechase gold. The 22-year-old Ugandan timed 9min 01.45sec at the Olympic Stadium, outsprinting American Courtney Frerichs with 250 metres to go to win comfortably. Frerichs claimed silver in 9:04.79 with Kenyan Hyvin Kiyeng taking bronze (9:05.39).

Athletics: Kenya’s Emmanuel Korir won the men’s 800 metres Olympic title with compatriot Ferguson Rotich taking silver. Korir timed 1min 45.06sec with Rotch finishing in 1:45.23 while Poland’s Patryk Dobek took the bronze in 1:45.39. Korir succeeds fellow Kenyan and two-time champion David Rudisha, who was unable to defend his title due to injury. (AFP)

Women’s hockey: As heartbreaking as it is, need to wrap things up don’t we? Here’s a look at the full-time statistics...

FULL-TIME STATS: ARG vs IND

Argentina India
Total Goals/Shots 2/6 1/4
Shooting Efficiency (%) 33 25
Field Goals 0/1
Penalty Corner 2/6 1/3
Penalty Strokes
% Possession 53 47
Attacking Circle Penetrations 15 10
Team Video Referrals Total 2 1
Team Video Referrals Upheld 1
Green Cards 1

Women’s hockey: An emotional Navjot Kaur in an interview post-match says that they worked hard in Q4. “One team had to win, one team had to lose. We are sad but we will focus on recovery and do everything for our last match,” she says audibly holding back tears.

Zenia D’Cunha: The hope for a hockey medal is still alive! No matter what happens next, the Indian women’s hockey team made history by reaching the semifinals at Tokyo 2020. Rani Rampal & Co actually beat Australia in QF, a loss to Argentina cannot dim that. Over to the bronze match now...

FULL TIME: The medal matches are set for both the men’s and women’s hockey teams. Can they end on a high?

Women's bracket (Times in JST)
Men's bracket (times in JST)

Siddharth Pandey in Sony Sports Studio: The Indian men and women have lost only to teams ranked higher than them in the world. The finalists are No 1 and No 2 in men, and No 1 and No 2 in the women. India must be really proud of the women’s team performance today.

FULL TIME: What a fight. Not at their best, the Indian team still came one deflection, one reflex save by the opponent goalkeeper away from forcing a shootout against the world No 2! In the dying seconds. So close. Oh sport! Time to regroup for the bronze.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND FULL TIME: Heartbreak for INDIA! WHAT A MOMENT there at the end. Navneet Kaur’s deflection seems destined to go in but the Argentina goakeeper just gets her foot out in time. 35-year-old Maria Belen Succi celebrated that like she scored a goal herself. SO CLOSE! India will go for bronze.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: Free hit India... chance INDIA!! BIG SAVE SUCCI Maria Belen. Navneet Kaur with the deflection that was destined to go in! What a moment. India have asked for a review because they can. 17 seconds to go... but no PC.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: Oh dear. Gurjit tries the long ball but it is intercepted. India are falling back again. Into the final minute. This is all but done.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: 2 mins to go... India ball.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: Three minutes to go... unfortunately for India, the good phase of attacking play they had seems to have fizzled out. Game management from Argentina.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: The Indians starting to tire now. Their minds and bodies are not on the same page. They attempt a quick counter but the intent is there, not the play. Argentina go close with a long ball into the box, no deflection though.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: Six minutes to go. A rare phase of Argentina possession in this quarter.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: SAVED! SUCCI Maria Belen the experienced ARG goalkeeper gets down quickly to her right and saves this drag flick. Top save!

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4: PC for India! The pressure is working. This comes from the right flank.... and can India make the most of it?

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4 : CHANCE INDIA! There is a lovely exchange of passes between Navneet and Monika down the left flank but the shot from the former goes wide. Great play by India and started by Neha in the midfield.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q4 begins: India on the front foot in the first couple of minutes.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q3 ends: Not the best situation to be in for India, given they are a side more comfortable holding a lead or preserving a scoreline than making a push for it. The good news is that there is still only one goal in this. Marijne in a huddle. Can they find a spark in Q4?

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q3: India finishing the third quarter strongly...

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q3: Back to 11 vs 11. India showing more attacking intent. Need this and then some.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q3: It is time for India to press high says Viren Rasquinha on commentary. Neha meanwhile gets green card and as if the pressure is not enough, the Indians are down to 10 for 2 minutes.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 2-1 IND, Q3: Goal, it is. BARRIONUEVO Maria Noel. The captain with the second goal of the night for herself an her side. India are under the pump and can’t just hope to hang on anymore!

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND, Q3: GOAL ARGENTINA! Deflection from the PC and it goes in... but the umpire has asked for a referral to see if there was dangerous play involved. WE WAIT.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND, Q3: PC to Argentina. In a change of events, this comes from the right flank. But the pressure on India is the same. Salima Tete with a good rush again... and ARG have a PC Again.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND: India start off well with pressure on the midfield... Argentina break through the left flank again and they are convinced they have a PC. Referral by Argentina... rejected. The world No 2 will have to finish the match without reviews.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND: Third quarter begins. A penny for coach Marijne’s thoughts.

First half stats: ARG vs IND (SF)

Argentina India
Total Goals/Shots 1 1
Shots 4 2
Shooting Efficiency (%) 25 50
Field Goals - -
Penalty Corner 1/4 1/2
% Possession 48 52
Attacking Circle Penetrations 11 6
Team Video Referrals Total 1
Team Video Referrals Upheld 1

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND HALF TIME: Phew, breathtaking half of hockey! But from India’s point of view, not much went their way after a superb start. They need a serious regrouping for the second half. The pressure has kept mounting.

Ashish Magotra: Almost all of Argentina’s attacks coming from the left flank. A hole that India would need to plug at HT.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND, Q2: Better from India going forward, a pass from Navneet finds Neha in the middle and the shot cannot be found by the Indian. Nearing half time.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND, Q2: Third PC given to India but Argentina refer it immediately. It’s a good referral, they keep their review and PC is overturned. Down the other end and ARG have another PC! Their 4th. This one is blocked out by the rush

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND, Q2: Two PCs for India in the final 5 minutes of the half. The first one is struck well by Gurjit and saved. The second one is a complete miscontrol from the injection. But this is better from India!

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 1-1 IND, Q2: GOAL ARGENTINA! Ah. This was coming. The Argentine pressure was getting too much to handle on the Indians. And the third PC that they earned is converted. BARRIONUEVO with the goal.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND, Q2: The second quarter begins with ARG earning a PC. They try a variation but the Indian defence hangs on.

More good news from wrestling. Anshu Malik becomes active in repechage as KURACHKINA Iryna reaches final.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND, Q1: 30 seconds to go and there is a clash of heads it looks like. GORZELANY Agustina comes off worse there. Navneet the Indian. Ouch, the replay hurt,

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND, Q1: After their early goal against Australia, India still did not give up on their structures and attacking intent. But here it feels like they have been pegged back too much already in the first quarter. They need some relief from somewhere.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND, Q1: The PC is defended well, good first rush. (Salima, I think). But India really need to be better defensively than the phase of play that preceded the PC. Warning signs.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND, Q1: India are under all sorts of pressure at the moment. Need to stay in structure, the turnovers are happening. And Argentina have PC.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND: GOOALLLLL INDIA! For the second match running India and Gurjit Kaur have converted the first PC into a goal. What. A. Start.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARG 0-1 IND: An early PC for India. Good attacking start.

Women’s hockey semifinal, ARGENTINA vs INDIA: WE ARE UNDEWAY!

Wrestling, men’s 87kg semifinal, IND vs USA: Deepak Punia defeated by a relentless David Taylor.The American wins 10-0 in the first period. Deepak Punia was overwhelmed but he will learn. It sets up a marquee final in this category while the Indian will have to come back and wrestle for the bronze medal.

Women’s hockey semifinal: INDIA VS ARGENTINA ABOUT TO START FOLKS!

Wrestling, men’s 87kg semifinal, IND vs USA: The American starts strong, Deepak focussing on his defence. But that results in a passivity warning against the Indian.

Wrestling, men’s 87kg semifinal, IND vs USA: Time for Deepak Punia vs David Taylor. Taylor more experienced. Deepak is simply fearless. This is a tough tough bout for the Indian.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 9-7* IND (VFA):

CORRECTION: The previous updates should have said men’s 57kg for Ravi Kumar Dahiya. Please refresh the blog for the corrections to reflect.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 9-7* IND: he was staring down the barrel at 2-9 down... but an injured Sanayev started to struggle immediately. Like any great wrestler would Ravi Kumar pounced! Behind on points but it is a VICTORY BY FALL

RAVI KUMAR DAHIYA HAS DONE IT!! WHAT A COMEBACK FROM 2-9 DOWN. MEDAL NO 4 FOR INDIA.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 9-7 IND: Is this a pin by Ravi?!? CERTAINLY LOOKS LIKE IT!

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 9-5 IND: 65 seconds to go... restart.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 9-5 IND: One point move for IND, followed by a pushout for Ravi.... and that keeps the Indian just about in it! And now Sanayev is injured and needs attention. Ravi is not happy about the time delay, his momentum is gone.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 9-2 IND: OH MASSIVE MOVE BY SANAYEV! That was like Yogeshwar at his best. BEAST OF A MOVE. And eight points go to KAZ. Ravi just about hangs in avoids a tech.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ 1-2 IND: A lovely change of direction from Ravi and he gets a two-pointer, without losing his patience when the passivity ran out. A lead for the India at the end of first period.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ vs IND: Passivity clock against India. And it runs out, KAZ has the first point.

23-year Dahiya won both his bouts on technical superiority to set up a 57kg semifinal clash with Kazakhstan’s Nurislam Sanayev.

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ vs IND: Here we go!

Wrestling, men’s 57kg semifinal KAZ vs IND: A MASSIVE BOUT coming up. Sanayev was bloodied in his previous round as he won an absolutely bizarre bout. But never ever count a KAZ wrestler. Ravi is the seeded wrestler in this bout.

If you are going to be watching Olympics and following cricket...

England vs India 1st Test, Day 1 live updates

Wrestling: Indian wrestlers Ravi Dahiya (men’s freestyle 57kg) and Deepak Punia (men’s freestyle 86kg) reached the semi-finals in their respective categories at the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday.

While Dahiya won both his bouts by technical superiority, Punia, who started off with a win by technical superiority, left it late in his quarter-final bout and won it in the final ten seconds.

Punia and Dahiya are both seeded and were expected to reach the semi-finals, but the going is expected to get tougher from hereon.

Ravi Dahiya will be on the mat at 2.45 pm. Deepak will follow him a little later.

All you need to know about Ravi Dahiya and Deepak Punia’s SF opponents

Hockey: The women’s hockey semi-final between India and Argentina will begin at 3.30 pm.

Athletics: Sydney McLaughlin describes her ferocious-but-friendly rivalry with Dalilah Muhammad as iron sharpening iron.

On Wednesday, the two greatest women’s 400m hurdlers in track and field history dragged each other to gold and silver.

The latest chapter of the two Americans’ heavyweight double act lived up to its blockbuster billing, with McLaughlin dethroning 2016 Olympic champion Muhammad in spectacular fashion, smashing her own world record to take gold in 51.46 seconds.

Muhammad, who this year battled Covid-19 and injuries to both hamstrings to make it to Tokyo, took silver in 51.58sec – well inside McLaughlin’s old world best of 51.90sec set in June.

It was the fourth time since 2019 that Muhammad and McLaughlin have met in a championship setting. On each occasion the world record has fallen. (AFP)

Boxing: Cuba’s Arlen Lopez won his second Olympic gold medal on Wednesday as he taught Britain’s Ben Whittaker a boxing lesson in the final of the men’s light-heavyweight in Tokyo.

The 28-year-old Lopez, who won middleweight gold at the Rio 2016 Olympics, was surprisingly only a split-points winner, having been the aggressor and clearly better boxer throughout the three rounds.

Lopez fell to his knees and banged on the floor when he was named the victor, while Whittaker quickly left the ring with his hands over his face. (AFP)

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Golf Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 1: End of round 1, folks. And it is a T-2 for Aditi Ashok, with three more rounds to go.

Women's golf end of round 1

Rank Name To Par (71) R1 R2-R4 Total
1 SWE SAGSTROM Madelene -5 66 66
T2 USA KORDA Nelly -4 67 67
T2 IND ASHOK Aditi -4 67 67
T4 FIN CASTREN Matilda -3 68 68
T4 KOR KO Jin Young -3 68 68
T4 ESP CIGANDA Carlota -3 68 68
T56 IND DAGAR Diksha +5 76 76

12:00 noon: Short break for Indian fans. The action will heat up again from 2.45 pm. Three semi-finals coming up! Ravi Kumar and Deepak Punia in wrestling and women’s hockey at 330. Wins in those matches will confirm medals... but importantly, defeat also doesn’t mean end of the road.

Wrestling next session schedule

Time (IST)
14:45 Men's Freestyle 57kg Semifinal KAZ SANAYEV Nurislam vs IND RAVI Kumar Makuhari Messe Hall A Mat B
Followed by Men's Freestyle 57kg Semifinal IRI ATRINAGHARCHI Reza vs ROC UGUEV Zavur Makuhari Messe Hall A Mat B
Followed by Men's Freestyle 86kg Semifinal IRI YAZDANICHARATI Hassan vs ROCNAIFONOV Artur  Makuhari Messe Hall A Mat B
Followed by Men's Freestyle 86kg Semifinal #USA TAYLOR David Morris vs IND PUNIA Deepak Makuhari Messe Hall A Mat B
Followed by Women's Freestyle 57kg Semifinal JPN KAWAI Risako vs USA MAROULIS Helen Louise Makuhari Messe Hall A Mat B
Followed by Women's Freestyle 57kg Semifinal BLR KURACHKINA Iryna vs BUL NIKOLOVA Evelina Georgieva Makuhari Messe Hall A Mat B

Golf Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 1: That is a superb first round for India’s Aditi Ashok, finishing through with a score of 67 (-4 on a Par Score of 71). Few golfers are still in action, including her teammate Dagar, but the Indian is currently tied-2nd. Long way to go with golfers competing over four rounds to decide medals. If you recall, Aditi had an impressive debut in Rio as well placing eighth after two rounds. Now. for her to keep this up over the next three rounds.

Aditi Ashok Round 1 total: 67 (-4)

Aditi Ashok Round 1
Eagles 0
Birdies 5
Pars 12
Bogeys 1
Double Bogeys 0
Fairways Hit 10
Greens in Regulation 13
Scrambling 80.00
Total Putts 1.88 m
Sand Saves 1
Driving Distance 209.1 m
Approach Shot Distance to Pin 9.00 m

BRONZE MEDAL FOR INDIA: That was a tough, tough bout for Lovlina Borgohain but credit to her for trying to throw punches till the very end. And at 23, time on her side to return to this stage and go better.

Boxing, women’s welterweight semifinal, IND 0-5 TUR: Unanimous win for Surmeneli. An extraordinary performance of arrogance and technique and belief, is how the commentator puts it. Brutal from her. But in the end, a memorable bronze for Lovlina Borgohain!

Boxing, women’s welterweight semifinal, IND vs TUR: Another standing count for Lovlina in the third round. Ouch. But to the Indian’s credit she is not backing out.

Boxing, women’s welterweight semifinal, IND vs TUR: A penalty as well for Borgohain and the only she can win this bout is now through a stoppage.

Boxing, women’s welterweight semifinal, IND vs TUR: First round all the way across to the Turkish boxer. Coach Nieva trying to gee the Indian up but the second round has also started much the same way the first ended.

Boxing, women’s welterweight semifinal, IND vs TUR: Standing count for Lovlina towards the end of that round. The Indian started well but that is not going her way, surely.

Zenia D’Cunha: MASSIVE match-up coming up folks, Lovlina Borgohain semi-final vs Busenaz Surmeneli. She has already assured a medal but she can become the first Indian boxer to reach an Olympics final.

Boxing, women’s welterweight semifinal, IND vs TUR: SURMENELI Busenaz vs BORGOHAIN Lovlina. Two entertaining 23-year-old boxers.

Wrestling wrap: Ravi Dahiya was his usual dominant self while Deepak Punia pulled off a decisive two-pointer towards the end of his quarterfinal as the two Indian wrestlers stormed into the semifinals of the Tokyo Olympics. Such was the dominance of 23-year Dahiya that he won both his bouts on technical superiority to set up a 57kg semifinal clash with Kazakhstan’s Nurislam Sanayev. Deepak made the most of an easy draw by getting past Nigeria’s Ekerekeme Agiomor, the African championship bronze medallist by technical superiority and then prevailed 6-3 against China’s Zushen Lin in the quarterfinal. (VIA PTI)

Wrestling, women’s 53kg: That is one heck of a draw for Vinesh Phogat. The Swede, American are tough opponents. Let’s see how she goes.

Boxing: Next up for India... Busenaz Surmeneli vs Lovlina Borgohain in the women’s Welterweight semi-final. Bout starts at 11 am. Clear the schedule.

Golf Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 1: A good start by Aditi Ashok who is tied 2nd at the moment with FOUR BIRDIES through the first 15 holes. Long, long way to go. But that is a good start. Diksha Dagar is T-49th.

Wrestling: That doesn’t sound like the best of draws for someone who is the top seed!

via Sony broadcast

Not a bad morning. Not a bad morning at all. What say India fans? Neeraj Chopra into the final Ravi Kumar into the semis. Deepak Punia into the semis. Anshu’s hopes alive through repechage. Aditi Ashok doing well in golf (update coming).

Repechage in wrestling, a quick explainer:

Repechage roughly means a second chance for all wrestlers who lose against both finalists. If you lose against someone who goes on to be a finalist in your category, you become active again and will have repechage matches. 

There are two separated groups of repechage: one group of wrestlers who lost against the first finalist, and another group of wrestlers who lost against the second finalist. The repechage matches begin with wrestlers who lost in the first round against one of the two finalists up until two to the losers in the semi-finals by direct elimination. 

So in the case of an event starting with round of 16, the loser in that round against a finalist will fight against the loser in the quarterfinal against the finalist. The winner of that bout will fight against the loser of the semifinal for bronze. (Basically losing in the semifinal takes the wrestler to the bronze medal bout directly).

The winners of the two repechage groups will receive each the bronze medal. 

Kaushal Shukla: Belarus’ Iryna Kurachkina reached the semi-finals of women’s 57kg which means India’s Anshu Malik’s repechage hopes are still alive. She will enter the repechage rounds if Kurachkina reaches the final.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 86kg, quarterfinal, IND 6-3 CHN: The challenge from the Chinese camp is not good and that adds another point to the Indian’s score! WHAT A STUNNING WIN. Second seed reaches the semifinal and will fight for a medal for sure.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 86kg, quarterfinal, IND 5-3 CHN: SECONDS LEFT AND DEEPAK HAS DONE IT! HE HAS PULLED OFF A TWO-POINT THROW! China request a challenge. But that is a formality it seems.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 86kg, quarterfinal, IND 3-*3 CHN: The win seems close for Deepak in the second period but a challenge from China puts the score back at 3-1 and the Chinese immedaitely gets two points. Criteria favours China now. TEN SECONDS NOW. Can Deepak fight back?

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, quarterfinal IND 14-4 BUL: RAVI THROUGH TO SF! Aggression from the Bulgarian to start the second period and gets him two points but Ravi comes storming back again with a series of two pointers. AND THAT WILL BE TECH SUPERIORITY AGAIN! WOW. The Indian wins in the final minute, into the semifinal. Will fight for a medal for sure.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 86kg, quarterfinal, IND 1-0 CHN: Just the passivity point for Deepak in the first period against China’s Zushen Lin

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, quarterfinal IND 6-0 BUL: A SUPERB FIRST PERIOD FOR RAVI DAHIYA! He has raced to a 6-0 lead with three two pointers. End of the first three minutes

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 86kg, quarterfinal, IND vs CHN: Deepak Punia is also on at the same time! Madness. Can someone think of the live bloggers?

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, quarterfinal IND vs BUL: Time for the quarterfinal and this will be a tougher challenge for the Indian. Just before this one, an absolutely chaotic between JPN and KAZ that the latter won (Sanayev) on criteria after it was level 4-4.

If you are looking for something to read in the office while waiting for the wrestling bouts, here are two pieces. One on the importance of being PV Sindhu and the other on the shooting contingent.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, quarterfinal IND vs BUL: Done with his R16, Ravi Kumar Dahiya is next up against Georgi Valentinov Vangelov from Bulgaria.

Kaushal Shukla: Deepak Punia and Ravi Dahiya both win by technical superiority in their first rounds to proceed to the quarter-finals. Perfect start to their campaigns. Need more of the same

Wrestling, men’s 86kg round of 16, IND 12-1 NGR: DEEPAK PUNIA INTO THE QF! Easy does it in the second period for the second seed.

Wrestling, men’s 86kg round of 16, IND 4-1 NGR: This is closer than Deepak’s liking too but the Nigerian has come out all aggressive. Deepak does take the first 2 points and then on the defensive goes out of bounds. Finishes the first period strongly, the Indian. 4-1 lead.

Wrestling, men’s 86kg round of 16, IND vs NGR: Deepak Punia (men’s 86kg, 2nd seed) is pitted against Nigeria’s Ekerekeme Agiomor.

Women’s hockey semifinal: Netherlands have stormed into the final with a 5-1 win over Great Britain who will now fight for bronze.

Just a distraction for us all....

Wrestling, women’s 57kg, IND 2-8 BLR: ANSHU OUT, must wait for repechage. The score is not a fair reflection of how the bout went. With a minute left, Anshu had the chance to pull off a leg attack and level things up, could have defended from there. But the experienced third seed pulled off a superb counterattack under pressure.

Wrestling, women’s 57kg, IND 2-4 BLR: Two one-pointers to start the second period for Anshu and she has the chance to get a two-pointer at the end with a minute left!

Wrestling, women’s 57kg, IND 0-4 BLR: A passivity point against the Indian and then the Belarusian bounces back with one point followed by a two pointer. First period goes to the third seed.

Wrestling, women’s 57kg, IND vs BLR: Anshu Malik though will have it slightly tough as she faces third-seeded Iryna Kurachkina in her women’s 57kg first round. The bout begins.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, IND 13-2 COL: RAVI INTO QF. Unanswered 10 pints in the second period. After a close first period, Ravi Kumar Dahiya comes out strongly for the 2nd period and racks up a win by Technical Superiority. Nicely done.

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, IND 9-2 COL: Blistering start to the second period for Ravi and he has raced to a 9-2 lead wit a series of 2 pointers

Wrestling, men’s freestyle 57kg, IND 3-2 COL: Ravi opens his 57kg campaign in the Tokyo Olympics against Colombia’s Tigreros Urbano. This is closer than the Indian would have liked, started off really well with a 2-pointer but allowed the Colombian to come back. Gets a one point just before first period is over.

Wrestling: Ravi Kumar’s bout begins. Here we go. Ravi Kumar is the 4th seed.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification: WELL, WELL, WELL. The qualification is done for men’s javelin and Neeraj Chopra (who qualified with his first attempt) goes through as the man with the best throw on the day. Remember, this list means nothing for the final and it will be a fresh start under completely different conditions. So, temper your expectations accordingly! But what is now a fact is that: London 2012 champion Keshorn Walcott, Doha 2019 World Champion Anderson Peters, Polish athlete Marcin Krukowski (2nd on SB list) are all OUT of the final. (Julius Yego too but he hasn’t been in the mix for a while).

Men's Javelin Throw FINALISTS

Rank Name Result
1 IND CHOPRA Neeraj 86.65
2 GER VETTER Johannes 85.64
3 PAK NADEEM Arshad 85.16
4 CZE VADLEJCH Jakub 84.93 SB
5 FIN ETELATALO Lassi 84.50 SB
6 GER WEBER Julian 84.41
7 ROU NOVAC Alexandru Mihaita 83.27 SB
8 CZE VESELY Vitezslav 83.04 SB
9 BLR KATKAVETS Aliaksei 82.72
10 MDA MARDARE Andrian 82.70
11 BLR MIALESHKA Pavel 82.64
12 SWE AMB Kim 82.40 SB

Women’s hockey semifinal: Netherlands are overpowering Great Britain. After two goals in the space of a minute in second quarter, they have started with a goal in the third quarter too

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: Shivpal Singh misses out on the final as well with throws of 76.40 74.80 74.81.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: These are some interesting numbers... four men in the mid-80s mix are yet to get going and are in danger of missing out for the final. They are all outside the top 12 overall with one attempt left.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: Shivpal’s second throw in 74.80. Doesn’t seem to be getting the release and trajectory right. Next up, ARSHAD NADEEM! 85.16! Third best thrower of the day and the Pakistan athlete is into the final. Earlier, Marcin Krukowski who has reportedly had a rocky build-up goes 74.65 after a X on first attempt

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: Oh wow. That is not a good throw from Walcott, the London 2012 champion and a medal favourite here. He starts with a rather ordinary 76.13.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: Weber, another German who is not half bad, gets the big Q with his first throw of 84.41m. Looked pumped for it. He has been overshadowed recently by Vetter but is ONE AND DONE. Time now for Keshorn Walcott.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B Julius Yego in action and he has not really been too great recently but it is a lovely story he has.

How Julius Yego became world javelin throw champion and Olympic medallist – with help from YouTube

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: India’s Shivpal Singh and Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem are next to each other on the throwing order in Group B. They start with 76.40 and 78.50 respectively. Not good enough at the moment.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group B: Shivpal is sixth in the order. He will have three attempts.

Shivpal Singh: PB = 86.23, SB = 81.63

We are all set for Group B action to begin in men’s javelin throw. Plenty of big names in the fray here, India’s Shivpal Singh is in action too. If he gets close to his PB he has a chance of reaching the final as well.

Wrestling: A big day for Indian wrestlers too, with three in action in their respective categories.


Tokyo 2020, wrestling: India’s Ravi Dahiya, Deepak Punia get good draws; tough test for Anshu Malik

Indian wrestlers in action

IST  Category
8:30 (Approx) Men's Freestyle 57kg - 1/8 Final Ravi Dahiya
8:40 (Approx) Women's Freestyle 57kg - 1/8 Final Anshu Malik
9:10 (Approx) Men's Freestyle 86kg - 1/8 Final Deepak Punia

If you are looking for something to read this morning during your personal time...

GOLF, Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 1: Women’s golf has started today. Remember, India have two athletes in contention here as late entry Diksha Dagar joined Aditi Ashok in the field. Aditi in action now and has started with Par on Hole 1 & 2. We will keep you posted during the day with score updates from the Country Club.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Good enough throws from three athletes in that session (fewer than we expected) and that leaves the door open for more qualifiers from Group B. Shivpal Singh is in the mix next.

Top 5 in Group A

Name Result Status
IND CHOPRA Neeraj 86.65 Q
GER VETTER Johannes 85.64 Q
FIN ETELATALO Lassi 84.50 Q
ROU NOVAC Alexandru Mihaita 83.27
CZEV ESELY Vitezslav 83.04
Start Time Sports Events Athlete
4:00 Golf Wome's Individual Stroke Play Round 1 Aditi Ashok (05.35 am) & Diksha Dagar (05.55 am)

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Vetter gets his warm-up done with, wrapping up qualification with 85.64. Jokes apart, it was an important throw for him to get the Q because there is no reason risking a “q” given that Group B is also loaded.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Third attempts are underway and still only Neeraj Chopra and Lassi Etelatalo have made the “Q” mark of 83.50.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Vetter must really want this warm-up session, eh? 82.08 in his second attempt. Currently sitting sixth in this Group A.

Ashish Magotra: Neeraj Chopra showing that PBs and SBs don’t matter unless you can get close to them in a real competition. Superb.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: The final is on August 7 and Neeraj Chopra will be back for that. Shivpal Singh is in action in Group B and will look to join him there later. We will continue to watch this event to see what the competitors do but Neeraj is not hanging around. Off the tracks, back to his routine. Only two athletes qualified with their first attempts, Vetter taking it easy there.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: One. And Done. Indeed. Nice one from Neeraj Chopra, a 86.65 to start and he is through to the final with the big Q.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: The first athlete to qualify for final, Finland’s ETELATALO Lassi.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Starts with a 82.04m, released nice and early before the white line. Getting warmups done one supposes.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Well maybe not the greatest of conditions, only three more than 80.00 so far. And now it is time for Vetter. One and done, surely.

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification, Group A: Romanian Novac starts off proceedings with a 83.27 to get the ball rolling! Indications the conditions are not bad. Chopra is the 15th in action in Group A, Vetter is 11th.

DID YOU KNOW: Vetter is the only man in the world to have thrown beyond 90.00 in the past 24 months. He has done so 18 times in competitions – including a record streak of seven competitions between April and June this year. (via World Athletics)

Athletics men’s javelin throw qualification: Qualifying performance 83.50 (Q) or at least 12 best performers advance to the Final (q). But given the quality of the field, would be alright to say a “Q” is almost essential to make it through. There are 32 athletes in the fray and more than 15 have a season best of 83.50 or more. Many athletes will hope to be one and done (qualify with first out of three attempts).

Men's javelin throw top 5 season bests

Name Season Best Personal Best Order / Group NOC
VETTER Johannes 96.29 97.76 11 A GER
KRUKOWSKI Marcin 89.55 89.55 1 B POL
WALCOTT Keshorn 89.12 90.16 14 B TTO
CHOPRA Neeraj 88.07 88.07 15 A IND
CAKSS Gatis 87.57 87.57 16 A LAT

Athletics Men’s Javelin Throw Qualification - Group A: Neeraj Chopra, one of India’s star athletes in the contingent for Tokyo Olympics, begins his competition shortly the qualification round for men’s javelin throw. To say Germany’s Johannes Vetter is the favourite for this event would be an understatement. Later in Group B, Shivpal Singh is in action as well.

Tokyo 2020, men’s javelin throw: Ahead of Neeraj Chopra’s event, a look at start list & season bests

05.25 am: Hello all and welcome to the live coverage of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on action this Wednesday. It has the potential to be a massive day for Indian sport. Plenty of events to look forward to and we will come to the rest of it later, but first up, all our focus is on a debut that many of us have been waiting for. Rio 2016 came too soon for the record-breaking, path-breaking Neeraj Chopra but he is now at the Olympic Games.

India at Tokyo 2020: Day 12 complete schedule