rio olympics
Dutch cyclist Annemiek van Vleuten sustained three small fractures to her spine and is in intensive care at a Rio de Janeiro hospital after her crash during the women’s Olympic road race.
Van Vleuten was leading on the fast, slippery downhill toward the final stretch when she appeared to lock up her brakes. She tumbled onto the road and lay on the pavement as the field swept past.
Chef de Mission Maurits Hendriks and team doctors were with van Vleuten Sunday night, and said she was conscious and speaking.
Her compatriot Anna van der Breggen went on to win the gold medal.
Williams sisters upset in doubles
Serena and Venus Williams lost an Olympic doubles match for the first time, stunned in the opening round of the Rio Games by the Czech Republic’s Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova 6-3, 6-4.
The Williams sisters entered Sunday’s match with a 15-0 career record in the Olympics, winning the gold medal in women’s doubles every time they entered the event: in 2000, 2008 and 2012.
The American duo was seeded No. 1 in Rio and coming off a 14th Grand Slam championship together, at Wimbledon a month ago.
Earlier, Serena won her opening-round singles match.
No bikinis
for Egyptians
The Egyptian women’s beach volleyball team of Nada Meawad and Doaa Elghobashy took the court for their match against Germany on Sunday night wearing long sleeves and long pants.
Elghobashy also had her head covered by a hijab.
It was a stark contrast to the usual beach volleyball uniform – bikinis for women and boardshorts for men.
Germany won the match 21-12, 21-15.
American men lose in volleyball
Brothers Erik and Kawika Shoji and the young U.S. men’s volleyball team lost its Olympic opener in straight sets to Canada on Sunday night.
The No. 5-ranked Americans watched as the hard-hitting and 12th-ranked Canadians celebrated at Maracanazinho arena in the first pool-play match for both countries.
Tied 23-23 in the third set, Canada held on after ending the second set on a 10-2 run.
Kosovo first gold comes in judo
Kosovo’s Majlinda Kelmendi has won her country’s first-ever Olympic medal – and it’s a gold.
Kelmendi defeated Italy’s Odette Giuffrida in the women’s 52-kilogram judo division final.
Sabonis’ 3-point play key in victory
Mantas Kalnietis scored 16 and former Gonzaga player Domantas Sabonis chipped in 10, including a big 3-point play late, as Lithuania held on for an 82-76 win over Brazil after surviving a furious comeback from the host country.
Lithuania jumped out to a 30-point lead in the second quarter and shooting a blistering 72 percent in the first half, including 6 of 9 3-pointers.
Brazil’s Leandro Barbosa played with constant energy in the second half, scoring 13 of his 21 points in the third quarter.
U.S. women’s basketball in record rout
Diana Taurasi and the U.S. women’s basketball team opened their Olympics with a record rout in a 121-56 victory. The Americans set Olympic marks for points scored in a game, margin of victory and assists (36).
Breanna Stewart hit a 3-pointer with 3 minutes left to top the Olympic record of 114 points the Americans had against China in 2012. They also broke the largest margin of victory in U.S. history which had been a 60-point win over Zaire in 1996.