Half a fateful foot caused China to be dethroned by the US at the Olympics

Except for the 2008 Beijing Olympics when it played host, the Chinese team has always finished behind the US throughout the history of the Olympics. However, the competition for medals between the US and China has never been less attractive.

At the Tokyo Olympics, the US won first place with 39 gold medals, just one more than China. This year, the race was even more fierce, as both teams had to wait until the last day, in the last event, to determine the number one position.

The US women's basketball team's gold medal helps the US sports delegation surpass China

Before the women's basketball final (one of the final events at the Olympics) between the US and France, the Chinese sports delegation led the overall rankings with 40 gold medals, 27 silver medals and 24 bronze medals (a total of 91 medals), while the US had 39 gold medals, 44 silver medals and 42 bronze medals (a total of 125 medals).

The US has more medals overall, but ranks below China due to fewer gold medals. To surpass China, the US must win a gold medal in women's basketball to bring its total to 40 gold medals, equal to China. At that time, the US will take the top spot with more medals overall.

Basketball has long been the exclusive domain of the Americans, with both the men's and women's teams dominating the Olympics. Before the women's basketball final against host France, most opinions predicted that the US would win overwhelmingly. The day before, in the men's basketball final, the US had beaten France by 11 points. However, in the final match on the morning of August 12, things were not so simple.

The host France (in white) played very hard.

The US easily dominated the first half, leading 15-9, but France came out strong in the second half. Marine Fauthoux and Valeriane Ayayi played extremely well, helping France tie the score at 25-25. Without the direct coordination to dunk like the US, France applied the three-point shooting strategy and reaped impressive results.

The long shots of the host France made the match fall into a stalemate from the third quarter. France led 35-25 in this period, but the US still fought back bravely to get back to 33-35, then even though France led 40-35, the US played impressively to turn the game around, leading 45-43. The defending champion team scored 10 points in a row to gain the advantage before the final period.

The game was still up in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, with the score at 65-64. Then the US made two free throws with four seconds to take a 67-64 lead. Then the drama happened in the final second. France's Gabby Williams made a stunning three-pointer to tie the game at 67-67. If the score remained the same, the two teams would have gone into overtime.

Gabby Williams (in white) stepped on the line with half of her foot, causing France to lose regrettably.

Fate was on the Americans' side, though. Slow-motion replays showed that Gabby Williams's foot was halfway across the line as she jumped for the three-pointer. Because the shot was taken inside the semicircle, France only got two points, losing 66-67. For the Americans, it was a gold medal won by the skin of their teeth, with France trailing very closely.

Thanks to the gold medal in women's basketball, the US overtook China at the decisive moment with 40 gold medals, 44 silver medals and 42 bronze medals (a total of 126 medals), while China came in second with 40 gold medals, 27 silver medals and 24 bronze medals. The opportunity to surpass the US for the first time after 16 years of waiting was out of reach for Chinese sports because of... half a fateful foot.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nua-ban-chan-dinh-menh-khien-trung-quoc-bi-my-soan-ngoi-o-olympic-185240812111144488.htm