By Joshua Berlinger, Aditi Sangal and Adam Renton, CNN
From CNN's Jill Martin
Caeleb Dressel has won the men’s 100-meter freestyle final with a time of 47.02 seconds, an Olympic record.
It’s Dressel’s first individual Olympic gold medal. He previously had earned three relay gold medals, including the men’s 4x100-meter freestyle relay earlier in these Games.
Australia’s Kyle Chalmers takes the silver medal in 47.08, while Russian Kliment Kolesnikov won bronze in 47.44.
From CNN’s Seamus Fagan
Australia’s Izaac Stubblety-Cook has won gold in the men’s 200-meter breaststroke, setting an Olympic record with a time of 2:06.38.
Arno Kamminga of the Netherlands won silver with a time of 2:07.01, while Finland’s Matti Mattsson earned his country’s first medal of the 2020 Olympics, winning bronze with a time of 2:07.13.
The Russian Olympic Committee’s Anton Chupkov, the world record holder in the event, missed out on the podium, finishing fourth with a time of 2:07.24.
Stubblety-Cook’s triumph gives Australia its sixth gold medal and 16th total medal of the Tokyo Games.
Simone Biles acknowledged the "outpouring love & support" she's received since announcing she would not compete in the women's individual all-around competition at the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her well-being.
It remains unclear if Biles, the five-time Olympic medalist, will compete in other events.
"[T]he outpouring love & support I’ve received has made me realize I’m more than my accomplishments and gymnastics which I never truly believed before," Biles tweeted.
Read the tweet:
From CNN Weather’s Taylor Ward and Gene Norman
Tokyo is experiencing a hot and humid first week of the Olympics, but the high temperatures are not unusual for Japan's capital in mid-summer.
The average high temperature for late July in Tokyo is 31 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit). Over the past five days, highs have ranged from 29.8 to 34.4 degrees Celsius (86 to 94 F) — an average of roughly 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 F) above usual high temperatures.
Compounding the heat is the usual high humidity. Humidity values have ranged from 66% to 84%, making it feel much hotter, and limiting the body’s ability to cool down through sweat and evaporation.
Though Tokyo is not officially in a heat wave, the hot weather is having an impact on Olympic athletes, particularly in the tennis. Organizers said Wednesday they are pushing back matches so they will begin later in the day.
It came after Spain’s Paula Badosa was forced to retire from her women’s singles quarterfinal match and left the court in a wheelchair due to heatstroke on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Russian Olympic Committee player Daniil Medvedev told the chair umpire that he could finish his men’s singles third-round match — but wanted to know whether the International Tennis Federation would take responsibility if he died.
What athletes can expect in the next week: The forecast in Tokyo is for more of the same — temperatures will continue to be in the low 30s in degrees Celsius (86 to 92 F) over the next seven days, potentially reaching 33 to 34 degrees Celsius (92 to 93 F) over the weekend. There are not currently any heat advisories in effect for the Greater Tokyo region, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
American swimmer Robert Finke won gold in the men's 800-meter freestyle event on Thursday morning in Japan with a time of 7:41.87.
This is the first time the event has been held at the Olympics.
Finke, who goes by Bobby, beat Italy's Gregorio Paltrinieri, who took silver with a time of 7:42.11. Ukraine's Mykhailo Romanchuk won bronze in 7:42.33.
From CNN’s Seamus Fagan
Italians Valentina Rodini and Federica Cesarini have won gold in the lightweight women’s double sculls rowing event.
The 2021 European champions in the event edged out the field by 14-hundredths of second with a time of 6:47.54.
The triumph gives Italy its second gold medal and 17th total medal at the Tokyo Games.
From CNN's Jacob Lev and Jill Martin
Ireland's Fintan McCarthy and Paul O'Donovan have won the country's first ever Olympic gold medal in rowing during the men's lightweight double sculls event, finishing with a time of 6:06.43.
Germany claimed silver with a time of 6:07:29 and Italy took bronze in 6:14:30.
It's Ireland's first gold medal of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and second medal overall of this Games.
Prior to the Tokyo 2020 Games, Ireland had won nine Olympic gold medals, all in individual events in athletics, boxing and swimming.
O’Donovan, alongside his brother Gary O’Donovan, won silver in this event in Rio in 2016, which was Ireland’s first medal in Olympic rowing. Other athletes representing Ireland to have collected multiple Olympic medals are swimmer Michelle Smith (four), hammer thrower Pat O'Callaghan (two) and boxer Paddy Barnes (two).
Congratulatory tweets have already started to roll in for the Irish team, including this one from Skibbereen Rowing:
From CNN's Seamus Fagan
New Zealand won its first gold medal of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics with victory in the women’s pair rowing.
Duo Grace Prendergast and Kerri Gowler took gold with a time of 6:50.19 on Thursday morning in Japan. It's also New Zealand’s first ever Olympic gold medal in the event.
The Russian Olympic Committee took silver with a time of 6:51.45, and Canada earned bronze with a time of 6:52.10.
American former skating star Apolo Ohno has lent his support to gymnast Simone Biles, saying the world should support athletes "when they need it most."
Biles decided to bow out of the women's individual all-around competition to focus on herself, prompting waves of support from fellow Olympians like eight-time medalist Ohno.
"The mind is the greatest asset or sometimes it's the world's strongest prison. At first glance, you see someone who is the ultimate performer when we often like to portray them as invincible and all of the ideas we want to see from a superhero figure," Ohno told CNN tonight.
"When we forget they're human we forget they have bad days and we always support athletes when they win and they are champions. When we see them on the stage, we always wish we can or they would like to be. We should also support them when they need it most."
