Five things to watch in Paris on Friday, Aug. 9

PARIS — From Canada's hopes to repeat as relay medallists to the gold medal match in beach volleyball, here are five things to look out for at the Paris Olympics on Friday, Aug. 9:

BEACH VOLLEYBALL GOLD

The Canadian women's beach volleyball team will play for gold at the Paris Olympics after defeating Switzerland in semifinal play at Eiffel Tower Stadium. Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson, both from Toronto, will play top-ranked Brazil. Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson are the first Canadian women's beach volleyball team to reach the Olympic podium.

PADDLING ON

It's a busy morning at Nautical Stadium, where pair Katie Vincent of Mississauga, Ont. and Sloan MacKenzie of Windsor Junction, N.S. will get things started for Canada in the 500-metre semifinal of women's canoe doubles. They'll be followed by Pickering, Ont.'s Courtney Stott and Manotick, Ont.'s Natalie Davison in the 500-metre semis of kayak doubles. On the men's side, Pierre-Luc Poulin of Lac-Beauport, Que. and Simon McTavish of Oakville, Ont. will compete in the 500-metre kayak doubles semifinal, while Connor Fitzpatrick of Dartmouth, N.S. is in the semis of the 1,000-metre canoe singles event.

RELAY FINALS

Both the Canadian men's and women's 4x100-metre relay teams will race for medals. The men's team of Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, Brendon Rodney and Andre De Grasse advanced to the final by finishing third in their heat Thursday after De Grasse revealed Wednesday he was battling a hamstring injury. Sade McCreath, Jacqueline Madogo, Marie-Eloise Leclair and Audrey Leduc ran a national record of 42.50 seconds to grab one of two non-automatic qualifier spots in the women's bracket.

LIFTOFF

Sarnia, Ont.'s Boady Santavy will try to lift Canada to another medal in weightlifting after Thursday's silver medal performance by Maude Charron. Santavy is competing in the men's 89-kilogram event after finishing fourth in the men’s 96-kilogram category at the Tokyo Olympics. It was the best finish by a male Canadian weightlifter at the Olympics since Jacques Demers at Los Angeles 1984.

FINAL SHOT

Sarah Mitton of Brooklyn, N.S. looks to become the first Canadian woman to earn an Olympic medal in shot put. She advanced to the final round of 12 with a top throw of 19.77 metres on her first attempt Thursday. The 28-year-old earned silver at the 2023 world championships and won the world indoor title in March.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press