Japan's Hina Hayata outplayed South Korea's Yubin Shin to win the Olympic women's table tennis singles bronze medal on Saturday, August 3.
Hayata triumphed 4-2 (9-11, 13-11, 12-10, 11-7, 10-12, 11-7) in the 1-hour, 12-minute match in Paris.
Games 2 and 3 lasted 12 and 13 minutes, respectively, and they were the longest games of the bronze-medal match.
Hayata capitalized on her scoring opportunities to secure the victory. In Game 3, she recorded seven points while serving, then did the same thing in in Games 4 and 5.
A highly successful player on the International Table Tennis Federation World Tour, Hayata relied on her powerful forehand to amass a plethora of points at South Paris Arena 4.
Coming into this match, Hayata was dealing with arm pain sustained in her round of 16 win over France's Jia Nan Yuan, a 39-year-old Chinese-born player, on Thursday.
"I hurt my arm during the match the day before yesterday," Hayata was quoted as saying by NHK. "And until five minutes before the start of today's match, I felt that I could only give 20 percent to 30 percent of my strength. But I got an injection just before the match and thought, 'Maybe I can go.'
"During the match, I fought one game at a time with a determination to keep going until the end, no matter what the outcome, so that I would not regret it."
The 24-year-old Kitakyushu native was a reserve for the Japan women's squad for the team event at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Chen Wins the Women's Singles Gold
In the all-Chinese women's singles title match, Meng Chen prevailed in a six-game showdown with Yingsha Sun, winning 4-11, 11-7, 11-4, 9-11, 11-9, 11-6. Chen repeated as Olympic gold medalist in the event, which China has won in 10 straight Olympiads since its debut at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Badminton
Matsuyama, Shida Triumph in Women's Doubles Bronze-Medal Match
Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida made quick work of Malaysia's Pearly Tan and Muralitharan Thinaah in the women's doubles third-place match on Saturday, August 3 at Porte de La Chapelle Arena.
The Japanese duo triumphed 21-11, 21-11, winning the Olympic match in 44 minutes.
"I knew that win or lose, it would be my last [match], so I was thinking, 'I'm not going to give up on a single ball, I'm going to chase the shuttle,' " Shida, an Akita native, told reporters, according to NHK.
She added, "I was disappointed to lose in the semifinals, but I am glad that we both won something to take home."
Kumamoto native Matsuyama was also pleased by the outcome of Saturday's match.
"I just wanted to win, so I was relieved to bring home a medal," Matsuyama commented, according to NHK.
She then said, "I received many messages from Japan, so I am happy to have delivered the victory."
Soccer
US Women Edge Japan in Quarterfinals
In the Olympic women's football quarterfinals, the United States defeated Japan 1-0 on Saturday, August 3 at Parc des Princes.
Striker Trinity Rodman, daughter of five-time NBA champion Dennis Rodman, scored the lone goal in the first half of extra time after one minute of additional time had elapsed. Crystal Dunn was credited with the assist.
Rodman's shot found its target at the top of the far post.
Team USA had 15 shots to Japan's 12. Japan finished with only one shot on target (taken by Mina Tanaka), with the US having four.
The Americans will face the the winner of Saturday's Canada-Germany match in the semifinals on Tuesday, August 6.
Basketball
Japan Captain Togashi Reacts to Team's Play at Paris Games
After the Japan men's national team's three consecutive defeats at the Paris Olympics, including a 102-84 loss to Brazil on Friday, August 2, team captain Yuki Togashi spoke about the experience.
"I finished the [Paris Olympics] with a slightly different feeling than I did at the Tokyo Olympics ([in 2021]," Togashi said, according to The Asahi Shimbun. "But it's a world where results are everything, so I've accepted it.
"I think this experience will be useful for the next generation. Everyone worked hard. The opponents played great. I'm proud of the team for its perseverance."
Swimming
Suzuki Places 4th in Women's 200 Breaststroke
At Paris La Defense Arena, American Kate Douglass won the women's 200-meter breaststroke final on Friday night (shortly after 4 AM JST on Saturday). Douglass was clocked in 2 minutes, 19.24 seconds, a record for the Americas.
Japan's Satomi Suzuki, who made her Olympic swimming debut in 2012, finished fourth in 2:22.54. The Netherlands' Tes Schouten claimed the bronze in 2:21.05.
Olympic Medal Table
As of 12:30 AM JST on Sunday, August 4, Japan's Olympic athletes and teams had earned a total of 20 medals (eight gold, four silver and eight bronze).
Check out the latest medal standings and additional details on the Paris Games official website.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
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