American swimmer Katie Ledecky uses *** truly dominating performance to win her first gold here at the Paris Olympics and to make history set an Olympic record with *** time of 1532 in the 1500 m race. She has now lost in 14 years. The decisive win also allows her to match the record for most Olympic medals ever won by *** woman with 12. She is also now tied with swimmer Jenny Thompson’s record for the most Olympic gold medals by an American woman with eight and we’re not done yet. Ledecky is the first female swimmer to win gold at four different Olympic Games named among that group. I mean, so many swimmers that I looked up to for so many years that have gotten me to this moment. So at the moment, I am trying to take it all in. So um definitely enjoying tonight and trying to soak in on every little bit of it. Um but once the once the week is over, I’ll really be to process it all and Ledecky still has *** chance at more goals in more history as she said to race in the 800 m at the Paris Olympics. I’m Fletcher Mackel.
With a silver in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay Thursday night, Ledecky collected the 13th medal of her stellar career to become the most decorated female in swimming history.She would’ve preferred it to be gold, but that went to an Australian squad led by gold medalists Mollie O’Callaghan and Ariarne Titmus.Still, in her next-to-last event of these games, Ledecky broke the mark she shared with fellow Americans Dara Torres, Natalie Coughlin and Jenny Thompson. The 27-year-old now has eight golds, four silvers and one bronze over four Olympics, with every intention of swimming on to Los Angeles in 2028.Ledecky has one more event, the 800 freestyle. She’s the favorite for her fourth straight gold at that distance.
With a silver in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay Thursday night, Ledecky collected the 13th medal of her stellar career to become the most decorated female in swimming history.
She would’ve preferred it to be gold, but that went to an Australian squad led by gold medalists Mollie O’Callaghan and Ariarne Titmus.
Still, in her next-to-last event of these games, Ledecky broke the mark she shared with fellow Americans Dara Torres, Natalie Coughlin and Jenny Thompson. The 27-year-old now has eight golds, four silvers and one bronze over four Olympics, with every intention of swimming on to Los Angeles in 2028.
Ledecky has one more event, the 800 freestyle. She’s the favorite for her fourth straight gold at that distance.
American Kate Douglass won the gold medal in the women’s 200-meter breaststroke at the Paris Olympics on Thursday, beating defending champion Tatjana Smith of South Africa.
Douglass, 22, finished the race in 2:19.24, just 0.36 seconds ahead of Smith, who took silver. Tes Schouten of the Netherlands won bronze.
It marked the fourth gold medal of the Games for American swimmers, to go along with 11 silver medals and six bronzes.
USA’s Kate Douglass celebrates after winning in the Women’s 200m Breaststroke final at the Paris La Defense Arena on the sixth day of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games in France on Thursday August 1, 2024.
Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty Images
Veteran U.S. star Lilly King, who is competing in her final Olympics, finished last, and according to the Associated Press, made her way over several lanes to give a hug to Douglas after the race.
Douglass, who hails from Pelham, New York, captured her first Olympic gold medal and her second of the Paris Games following her silver medal in the women’s 4×100 meters freestyle.
Her win comes a day after American star Katie Ledecky won gold in the 1,500-meter freestyle, claiming a record-tying 12th Olympic medal in women’s swimming.
Douglass, who previously won a bronze in the 200-meter individual medley at Tokyo, graduated from the University of Virginia, where she was an NCAA champion swimmer.
Stephen Smith is a managing editor for CBSNews.com based in New York. A Washington, D.C. native, Steve was previously an editorial producer for the Washington Post, and has also worked in Los Angeles, Boston and Tokyo.
One of the most exciting swimming nights of these Olympics is in the books after Wednesday night’s record-setting races.The evening saw a new world record, multiple new Olympic records set, an American legend put her stamp on these Games, a French hero turned into a legend and exciting editions of swimming’s most electric race.Here are four takeaways from a big night in the pool:Ledecky dominates once againAmerican legend Katie Ledecky once again created another iconic Olympic image of her just absolutely destroying her competition.It’s a sight that has now become familiar but is nevertheless awe-inspiring. The sight of Ledecky pulling away from her competition over the 15-minute race, gradually and then seemingly all at once, can’t help making one shake their head and chuckle. She is simply on a different planet than the rest of the competitors in this race.Ledecky broke her own Olympic record set three years ago in Tokyo by more than five seconds and finished 10 seconds ahead of France’s Anastasiia Kirpichnikova, whose finish had the home nation fans in full voice.After a disappointing start to the Games with a bronze medal in the 400-meter freestyle, Ledecky was clearly thrilled with her performance. She splashed the water in joy upon finishing, raised her fist in the air while still in the pool and put both arms above her head in exultation when she exited.The American swimming superstar now owns the 20 fastest times in history in the 1500m freestyle – an astounding feat which demonstrates her utter dominance of the distance.”I did have fun, I felt really good, I just tried to hold steady the whole time… just swim a time I could feel happy with. I’m really proud of that swim,” Ledecky said afterwards. “I’m excited for the rest of the week, I have the relay tomorrow and that’s next on the docket.”Ledecky competes next in the 4×200 freestyle relay on Thursday.Marchand, a new French legendLéon Marchand entered these Olympics with high expectations and the hopes of a nation on his shoulders whenever he got in the water.Suffice to say, he’s carrying that weight pretty well.In his first race of the night, the 200-meter butterfly, Marchand trailed for about three-quarters of the race. But, urged on by tens of thousands of boisterous French compatriots, he exploded out of the final turn and entered the last 50 meters of the race in first, bringing whatever portions of the crowd that weren’t already standing to their feet.Kristóf Milák had led the entire way to that point, but Marchand rode a wave of French cheers to take the lead and set a new Olympic record in the race.During the medal ceremony, the noise for Marchand was close to overwhelming and the sound of the French crowd singing “La Marseillaise” induced goosebumps.But he wasn’t done yet.He never looked bothered in the 200-meter breaststroke, setting yet another Olympic record as he cruised to victory. The atmosphere in La Défense Arena was again electric as shouts of “Allez!” came up from the crowd every time Marchand surfaced during the breaststroke.He also completed a feat that hadn’t been done in decades: winning two individual gold medals in one night. That feat had not been accomplished since the 1976 Games in Montreal.The final singing of “La Marseillaise” of the night came with massive smiles and chants of the new French legend’s name rang around the arena during his victory lap.First world record set in the Paris poolThe pool at La Défense Arena has been described as slow by some of the swimmers in Paris. It’s shallower than most Olympic pools, causing a bit more drag on the swimmers as they go through the water.Multiple Olympic records had been broken at these Games, but the world records had remained intact.Until China’s swimming superman Pan Zhanle took to the water.Pan had already set the world record earlier this year in Doha, Qatar. But his swim on Wednesday night in Paris shattered that mark, taking almost a half-second off that time.In the end, it was Pan’s race against himself that was most exciting. The distance between him and his nearest competitor was more than a second – an incredible distance in such a short race.Incredible women’s 100-meter freestyle race goes down to the wireThe first race of the night was one of the quickest races on the Olympic docket and it packed a lot of drama into less than a minute.American Torri Huske made the turn at the halfway point in the lead. Swimming in Lane 1, Huske looked set to pull off an unlikely gold medal win and was heading toward the wall with aplomb.But in the last 25 meters of the race, Sweden’s Sarah Sjöström made her charge. As the crowd roared – plenty of American fans were in La Défense Arena, even if it was mainly French – Sjöström simply could not be denied as the 30-year-old turned back the clock in spectacular fashion.Sjöström hit the wall .13 seconds ahead of Huske to take home the gold, with the American having to settle for silver. She beat out bronze medalist Hong Kong’s Siobhan Bernadette Haughey by .04 seconds.”I have no more words,” Sjöström said post-race. “This is unbelievable. My reaction said everything. I didn’t know where I was when I finished. It took a few seconds before I saw that I won.”I didn’t think I would swim the 100 free. After the freestyle relay the first day, I told my coach straight away, ‘I don’t think the 100 free is for me. No, I want to do the 50. I will rest until the 50.’ He was like, ‘No way. You need to go out there and see what you can do, no matter the outcome.’ The staff made my mind.”I didn’t know exactly what I could do, and I definitely didn’t know what everyone else could do. I am proud of myself that I tried this,” she added.
CNN —
One of the most exciting swimming nights of these Olympics is in the books after Wednesday night’s record-setting races.
The evening saw a new world record, multiple new Olympic records set, an American legend put her stamp on these Games, a French hero turned into a legend and exciting editions of swimming’s most electric race.
Here are four takeaways from a big night in the pool:
Ledecky dominates once again
American legend Katie Ledecky once again created another iconic Olympic image of her just absolutely destroying her competition.
It’s a sight that has now become familiar but is nevertheless awe-inspiring. The sight of Ledecky pulling away from her competition over the 15-minute race, gradually and then seemingly all at once, can’t help making one shake their head and chuckle. She is simply on a different planet than the rest of the competitors in this race.
Ledecky broke her own Olympic record set three years ago in Tokyo by more than five seconds and finished 10 seconds ahead of France’s Anastasiia Kirpichnikova, whose finish had the home nation fans in full voice.
After a disappointing start to the Games with a bronze medal in the 400-meter freestyle, Ledecky was clearly thrilled with her performance. She splashed the water in joy upon finishing, raised her fist in the air while still in the pool and put both arms above her head in exultation when she exited.
The American swimming superstar now owns the 20 fastest times in history in the 1500m freestyle – an astounding feat which demonstrates her utter dominance of the distance.
“I did have fun, I felt really good, I just tried to hold steady the whole time… just swim a time I could feel happy with. I’m really proud of that swim,” Ledecky said afterwards. “I’m excited for the rest of the week, I have the relay tomorrow and that’s next on the docket.”
Ledecky competes next in the 4×200 freestyle relay on Thursday.
Marchand, a new French legend
Léon Marchand entered these Olympics with high expectations and the hopes of a nation on his shoulders whenever he got in the water.
Suffice to say, he’s carrying that weight pretty well.
In his first race of the night, the 200-meter butterfly, Marchand trailed for about three-quarters of the race. But, urged on by tens of thousands of boisterous French compatriots, he exploded out of the final turn and entered the last 50 meters of the race in first, bringing whatever portions of the crowd that weren’t already standing to their feet.
Kristóf Milák had led the entire way to that point, but Marchand rode a wave of French cheers to take the lead and set a new Olympic record in the race.
During the medal ceremony, the noise for Marchand was close to overwhelming and the sound of the French crowd singing “La Marseillaise” induced goosebumps.
But he wasn’t done yet.
He never looked bothered in the 200-meter breaststroke, setting yet another Olympic record as he cruised to victory. The atmosphere in La Défense Arena was again electric as shouts of “Allez!” came up from the crowd every time Marchand surfaced during the breaststroke.
He also completed a feat that hadn’t been done in decades: winning two individual gold medals in one night. That feat had not been accomplished since the 1976 Games in Montreal.
The final singing of “La Marseillaise” of the night came with massive smiles and chants of the new French legend’s name rang around the arena during his victory lap.
First world record set in the Paris pool
The pool at La Défense Arena has been described as slow by some of the swimmers in Paris. It’s shallower than most Olympic pools, causing a bit more drag on the swimmers as they go through the water.
Multiple Olympic records had been broken at these Games, but the world records had remained intact.
Until China’s swimming superman Pan Zhanle took to the water.
Pan had already set the world record earlier this year in Doha, Qatar. But his swim on Wednesday night in Paris shattered that mark, taking almost a half-second off that time.
In the end, it was Pan’s race against himself that was most exciting. The distance between him and his nearest competitor was more than a second – an incredible distance in such a short race.
Incredible women’s 100-meter freestyle race goes down to the wire
The first race of the night was one of the quickest races on the Olympic docket and it packed a lot of drama into less than a minute.
American Torri Huske made the turn at the halfway point in the lead. Swimming in Lane 1, Huske looked set to pull off an unlikely gold medal win and was heading toward the wall with aplomb.
But in the last 25 meters of the race, Sweden’s Sarah Sjöström made her charge.
As the crowd roared – plenty of American fans were in La Défense Arena, even if it was mainly French – Sjöström simply could not be denied as the 30-year-old turned back the clock in spectacular fashion.
Sjöström hit the wall .13 seconds ahead of Huske to take home the gold, with the American having to settle for silver. She beat out bronze medalist Hong Kong’s Siobhan Bernadette Haughey by .04 seconds.
“I have no more words,” Sjöström said post-race. “This is unbelievable. My reaction said everything. I didn’t know where I was when I finished. It took a few seconds before I saw that I won.
“I didn’t think I would swim the 100 free. After the freestyle relay the first day, I told my coach straight away, ‘I don’t think the 100 free is for me. No, I want to do the 50. I will rest until the 50.’ He was like, ‘No way. You need to go out there and see what you can do, no matter the outcome.’ The staff made my mind.
“I didn’t know exactly what I could do, and I definitely didn’t know what everyone else could do. I am proud of myself that I tried this,” she added.
Both the men’s and women’s Olympic triathlon events proceeded with swimming in the Seine River on Wednesday after the water’s pollution levels caused a delay. CBS Saturday Morning co-host and CBS News and sports correspondent Dana Jacobson has more from Paris.
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NANTERRE, France — NANTERRE, France (AP) — Kaylee McKeown still rules the women’s Olympic backstroke, but the Americans are right there, finishing with silver and bronze behind the Australian in the 100 back on Tuesday night.
World-record holder Regan Smith, who broke McKeown’s world mark with a time of 57.13 seconds at the U.S. trials last month, led at the turn but couldn’t hold off the hard-charging Aussie, who defended the title she won in Tokyo three years ago.
The U.S. also grabbed the bronze as Katharine Berkoff touched third in 57.98.
Berkoff, a 5-time NCAA champion at NC State, now has a medal to match the four her father earned. David Berkoff is a two-time Olympian. Like his daughter, he excelled in the 100-meter backstroke.
“It’s just a crazy experience. It’s incredible,” David Berkoff said of his daughter’s medal performance.
He said Katharine’s motivation to swim came from within.
“Both my kids got into swimming because we were coaching and just kind of fell in the pool because we were in the pool all the time,” he said. “We never put any pressure on them to do anything.”
With her medal, the father and daughter bond is strengthened further.
“He was my first inspiration,” Katharine Berkoff said. “When I found out what he did, I decided I wanted to do the same thing.”
Her family says Katharine’s work ethic, sense of humor and determination led her to the starting block in the women’s 100-meter backstroke final. From there, she broke out strong and gave her all against some of the world’s best swimmers.
“I’m just trying to soak it all in and stay positive,” she said. “It’s a crazy experience, but it’s really special.”
Berkoff has a few team events remaining, but, her father says, with her individual races complete, she may be able to relax a little more.
“I think to have a chance to go to the Olympics in a foreign country is a wonderful experience, and I hope she comes away from this experience just really living in the moment,” he said.
Damon Treitler regularly swims at Yorktown High School in Arlington, Virginia, and each time he does, he notices Torri Huske’s name on the board there.
It lists the record holders, and her name appears often. Behind the glass on display at the Yorktown Aquatics Center, many of the accolades bear her name, too.
“My son is 16, he’s in high school, and all his friends are abuzz about, ‘Hey, Yorktown, hometown girl made good,’” Treitler said. “It’s happening. It’s all over the place.”
Kathy Koczyk, who said she helped teach Huske the butterfly when she was a child, said Huske’s Olympic success isn’t a surprise. Even as a kid, she was a quick learner and great listener, Koczyk said.
“What it proves to me, which is what I love, is it’s the technique,” Koczyk said. “Because you don’t have to have brawn and heights in the water if you have the right technique. You can beat even big people.”
Meanwhile, Amy Potter said she used to swim the butterfly as a kid, “so I know how hard it is. And she was flying.”
Outside the Long Bridge and Aquatics and Fitness Center near Crystal City, Miki said Huske is “amazing. We’re really lucky for her to be representing us.”
NANTERRE, France — Canadian phenom Summer McIntosh claimed the first gold medal of her just-burgeoning career Monday night with a dominating victory in the 400-meter individual medley at the Paris Olympics.
The 17-year-old McIntosh collected her first medal of any color on the opening night of swimming, taking a silver in the 400 freestyle behind Ariarne Titmus — and ahead of Katie Ledecky.
Now, McIntosh has the most prized color of all.
“I try to take every event very individually and just do my work, but starting off for me — getting on the podium — is definitely a great way to start,” McIntosh said. “You try to continue to get better and better.”
She pushed the pace hard through the first half of the grueling race — the butterfly and backstroke legs — to leave everyone in her wake except American Katie Grimes.
McIntosh was under her own world-record pace, but couldn’t keep it going. She touched in 4 minutes, 27.71 seconds, more than three seconds off the mark of 4:24.38 she set at the Canadian trials in May.
But it was more than enough to blow away the field in the Olympic final.
McIntosh seemed to take it all in stride. Maybe it’s because she competed at the Tokyo Olympics at age 14, so she sort of feels like a veteran now.
“Every single time I get to race on the world stage, I learn more and more about handling mentally and physically and emotionally and trying not to get too high or too low,” McIntosh said.
She’s got a grueling schedule in Paris which includes two more individual races — the 200 butterfly and 200 IM.
There are no plans to celebrate just yet.
“I mean, obviously I’m super happy with this gold,” McIntosh said. “But now I’m all about the 200 fly on day five.”
Grimes, who is also swimming the open water event in Paris, held on to claim the silver in 4:33.40. The Americans also grabbed the bronze when Emma Weyant touched in 4:34.93.
David Popovici made the teenagers 2-for-2 on the night when he pulled off a thrilling victory in the men’s 200 freestyle.
The 19-year-old Romanian was among three swimmers who swapped the lead back and forth on the final lap. First, it was American Luke Hobson edging in front. Then Britain’s Matthew Richards, out in Lane 1, pushed to the lead.
Finally, it was Popovici mustering everything he had to get to the wall in 1:44.72 — a mere two-hundredths ahead of Richards, with Hobson just 0.07 back to earn the bronze.
Britain’s Duncan Scott, the silver medalist in Tokyo three years ago, finished in 1:44.87 to miss out on the podium this time. The top four were separated by a mere 0.15 seconds.
Thomas Ceccon gave Italy its second gold in as many nights at La Defense Arena, rallying to win the men’s 100 backstroke.
China’s Xu Jiayu led at the turn, just ahead of American Ryan Murphy — the 2016 gold medalist. Ceccon was third, but he switched to another gear on the return lap.
The Italian, who has held the world record since the 2022 world championships in Budapest, now has a gold medal to go with it after finishing in 52.00.
Xu claimed the silver (52.32), while the 29-year-old Murphy settled for the bronze for the second Olympics in a row at 52.39.
Ceccon followed Nicolo Martinenghi, who grabbed Italy’s first gold at the pool with a victory in the 100 breaststroke Sunday night.
In the only semifinals of the night, Australia’s Kaylee McKeown and Regan Smith of the U.S. set up a much-anticipated duel in the women’s 100 backstroke.
They each won their heats, with McKeown posting the fastest time (57.97) ad McKeown right on her heels (57.99).
McKeown is the reigning Olympic champion and former world-record holder — a mark that Smith snatched away with time of 57.13 at the U.S. trials last month.
NANTERRE, France — Bob Bowman teared up, just as he used to do watching Michael Phelps win Olympic gold medals.
This time it was Léon Marchand, Bowman’s latest pupil to shine on the world stage, who pulled off a dominant victory in the 400-meter individual medley in front of a raucous French home crowd Sunday.
The boisterous, flag-waving fans are counting on Marchand to be one of the premiere French athletes of the Paris Games, and the deafening cheers for their countryman have echoed off the walls of La Defense Arena every time he is in the pool.
“It was incredible. I’ve never really been at anything like that. So it was great, it was fantastic,” Bowman said in an interview with The Associated Press on Monday. “I actually did tear up a little bit right at the end, everyone was so happy.”
Marchand led from the moment he dove into the water and finished in an Olympic record of 4 minutes, 2.95 seconds, narrowly missing the world mark of 4:02.50 that he set last year, breaking Phelps’ 15-year-old standard.
“It was pretty much exactly what I had hoped for, that he would be able to rise to the moment, because we knew what that was going to be like,” Bowman said. “And my question was: Could I have him prepared enough, mentally, physically, so that, No. 1, he could perform and, No. 2, just handle the expectations? And he did amazing.”
Beforehand, Bowman said he told Marchand to “have fun out there, that’s it,” and offered one of their signature fist bumps. Afterward, Bowman shared with the 22-year-old former Arizona State star how proud he was of him for handling the pressure of the host nation on his shoulders.
“Very few people can go into that environment and perform at that level, I mean very few,” Bowman said. “I’ve been lucky to be around a couple of them. It takes something that you can’t coach. You can prepare ’em but they have to have something inside that gets them in the right mindset and be able to do that.”
Bowman and Marchand captured the Sun Devils’ first NCAA championship together earlier this year. Bowman then left Arizona State in April to take the Texas coaching job, and Marchand turned pro and relocated to keep training with him.
Marchand enjoyed his first Olympic title for one night, then immediately refocused and got back to work. He returned to the training pool Monday morning for a lighter day, swimming 2,500 meters ahead of his 200-meter butterfly preliminary heat Tuesday morning.
“He got a good sleep and we had a plan for what was going to happen today and he’s going through that, and then we’ll start with tomorrow and see how that goes,” a beaming Bowman said.
Marchand’s poise and calm even blew away Bowman, someone who has seen just about everything in the sport. This is the longtime coach of Phelps who witnessed the decorated American star walk away with 23 Olympic golds and 28 total medals.
“It was actually far beyond my expectations of what he would do in that. He was just completely relaxed and normal all week before, the whole time,” Bowman said. “I think it says he kind of knows who he is and what he’s about. He’s very secure, and he’s quite humble and down to earth, and I think you just see that coming through.”
Former Cal swimmer Ryan Murphy has added another medal to his Olympics collection.
The three-time Olympian captured his seventh medal Monday with a third place finish in the men’s 100m backstroke in Paris.
Murphy tapped the wall with a time of 52.39 seconds, .07 seconds behind silver medalist Jiayu Xu of China and .39 seconds behind gold medal winner Thomas Ceccon of Italy.
Murphy took home three gold medals in Rio and a gold, silver and bronze in Tokyo.
NANTERRE, France — Nicolo Martinenghi won gold in the 100-meter breaststroke on Sunday at the Paris Olympics, thrilling Italian fans and canceling several of the main story lines going into the race.
Martinenghi was the bronze medalist in this event in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, and won at the world championships earlier this year in Doha.
But he was not the expected winner.
That was to be Great Britain’s Adam Peaty — the two-time defending Olympic champion in the event in Lane 4. Another potential gold medalist was thought to be China’s Qin Haiyang in Lane 5, who swept the 50, 100 and 200 breaststroke last year in the world championships.
Qin is the world record holder in the 200, and Peaty holds the 100 mark.
Martinenghi won from Lane 7 in 59.03 seconds, just ahead of Peaty and American Nic Fink, who tied for silver at 59.05. Qin finished in seventh in 59.50.
“I was in my favorite lane, in seven,” Martinenghi said. “Nobody saw me. I was like in the shadows. I love to race that way and that was my favorite lane. I have a chain with No. 7 on it. When I was younger I trained in that lane.”
Martinenghi called the atmosphere at the La Defense Arena “insane,” created by Frenchman Leon Marchand’s runaway victory earlier in the 400-meter individual medley.
“To become Olympic champion today, next to Adam — one of my idols when I grew up. Amazing,” he said.
Peaty sat out of competitive swimming for about a year after winning in Tokyo, focusing on his mental health and what he has called his “personal demons.”
His return was good enough, even if it wasn’t gold.
“I’m not sad at all,” Peaty said. “I think anyone that’s done sport — you’re willing to put yourself on the line every single time, so there’s no such thing as a loss.”
He referenced is mental health journey as more important that the Olympic result.
“I’m not defining myself — this whole journey back, 14 months — by a medal,” he added. “I define myself by, you know, my heart and what it’s made me feel, what it’s made me produce.”
Qin is one of 11 Chinese swimmers in Paris who tested positive for a banned heart medication before the Tokyo Games but were not sanctioned.
Peaty has been outspoken about doping and on Saturday called for a “fair game” going into Sunday’s final. Qin had also responded, suggesting unfounded claims against China and complaining about stepped-up testing of Chinese swimmers.
French Olympic sprinter Sounkamba Sylla took to social media days before the 2024 Olympic Games began, saying she would not be allowed to participate in the opening ceremony because of her hijab.
“You are selected for the Olympics, organized in your country, but you can’t participate in the opening ceremony because you wear a headscarf,” Sylla wrote on her private Instagram, according to The Associated Press.
The criticism was the latest in an ongoing controversy over France’s rule prohibiting female Muslim athletes from wearing the hijab, or headscarves, during the Olympics. The athletes, while competing for France, are considering civil servants and must adhere to principles of secularism, according to the country’s rules.
French Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra later said she’d be allowed to participate in the opening ceremony and the Games by covering her hair in a way that did not appear religious.
An overview of the Trocadero venue with the Eiffel Tower in the background, in Paris, during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 26, 2024.
Francois-Xavier Marit/Pool Photo via AP
Bans on hijab in French sports
Bans on wearing hijab in French sports have applied at all levels, including amateur and youth levels, even outside the Olympics, according to Amnesty International.
There isn’t a national law or policy banning hijabs in sports, but individual sports federations have their own regulations prohibiting the headscarf. Football (soccer), basketball and volleyball are some of the team sports banning them, Anna Blus, a women’s rights and gender justice researcher at Amnesty International, told ABC News.
A ban against wearing the hijab in football was instituted in 2006. In basketball, it began in 2022 and in volleyball in 2023.
“We have documented over the years — (for) around 20 years — measures are being introduced constantly to limit Muslim women’s rights,” Blus said of France.
“There’s definitely been an increase in these types of measures in different areas of life over the past 20 years,” Blus said.
Ibtihaj Muhammad, from United States, waits for match against Olena Kravatska from Ukraine, in the women’s saber individual fencing event at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
AP Photo/Vincent Thian, File
In 2023, France’s highest administrative court sided with the French Football Federation allowing its hijab ban in the sport.
“The reasoning it gave was very, very problematic, because it said that these types of bans like the one in the Football Federation, were legitimate — the justification could be to avoid clashes or confrontation,” Blus said.
“It’s suggesting that clashes or confrontations might occur if someone wears a hijab, and that in order to protect that athlete, she can be banned, and she should be banned from wearing it. It’s extremely problematic,” Blus said.
Basket Pour Toutes, a collective that says it is fighting against discrimination in basketball, said the argument the ban seeks to maintain public order “tends to stigmatize a part of the population which is already the subject of numerous prejudices,” the group said on its website.
Basket Pour Toutes, which translate to “Basketball for all” in English, also said “secularism is not above fundamental freedoms.”
“The (French Federation of Basketball) maintains that the ban on equipment with religious connotations is based on the principle of neutrality which itself derives from the principle of secularism. But this duty of neutrality only applies to public service agents and not to its users,” Basket Pour Toutes wrote.
Since the court decision came out, the Hijabeuses — a collective of female athletes who wear the hijab and had brought the complaint against the Football Federation — have made an application to the European Court of Human rights, which has jurisdiction over France.
Egypt’s Dina Meshref in action at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 24, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
AP Photo/Kyusung Gong
Their application is still pending and could likely take a couple of years, Blus said.
“Litigation is only one kind of tool that can be used and it takes many years sometimes,” Blus said. “I think there is much more that we can do as human rights organizations and as campaigners to stand against these types of discriminatory measures.”
Human rights groups criticize bans
Human rights groups have called on the International Olympic Committee to publicly ask sporting authorities in France to overturn bans on wearing the hijab in the Olympic Games and at all levels of sport, saying prohibitions are in place across at least six sports.
“The country’s discrimination against women and girls wearing the hijab is particularly concerning given the IOC’s celebration of Paris 2024 as the first ‘Gender Equal Olympics,’” the groups — including Human Rights Watch, Basket Pour Toutes and the World Players Association — wrote in a joint letter to the IOC.
“Women and girls in France who wear the hijab have been and are being prevented from playing multiple sports including football, basketball, judo, boxing, volleyball and badminton — even at youth and amateur levels. The hijab bans in sports have resulted in many Muslim athletes being discriminated against, invisibilised, excluded and humiliated, causing trauma and social isolation — some have left or are considering leaving the country to seek playing opportunities elsewhere,” the letter said.
Gold medalist Feryal Abdelaziz of Egypt poses during the medal ceremony for women’s kumite +61kg karate at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
AP Photo/Vincent Thian
Other athletes, including Diaba Konate, a French basketball player who played for Idaho State and University of California, Irvine up until this past April, have also criticized the ban. Konate said she was kept from being able to play for the French National Team again. She’s not on the French team playing in the Olympics.
“I love basketball, my family, and my faith,” Konate said in an open letter. “It would break my heart to give up any one of those, and yet that is what the current French Federation of Basketball guidelines are forcing me to do.”
Blus said activism among Muslim athletes and activists in France is growing in a very difficult environment.
“It’s really important that big international organizations, such as ours, express their solidarity with Muslim women, because they have very often — really particularly in France, but also in other countries — (been) subject to negative stereotypes, demonization, homogenization of what it might mean to them to wear hijab,” Blus said.
“It’s really a matter of feminist solidarity and of women’s rights and human rights,” Blus said.
Gold medalist Caeleb Dressel of Team United States poses with the gold medal for the Men’s 50m Freestyle on day nine of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on August 01, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Al Bello/Getty Images
Olympic swimming is back and seven-time gold medalist Caeleb Dressel returns for this third Olympic Games. The 27-year-old Florida native is one of the most decorated American swimmers, and hopes to add to his collection of medals at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Keep reading below to find out how to watch Caeleb Dressel go for gold today at the Paris Summer Olympics.
How and when to watch men’s swimming events at the 2024 Summer Olympics
Men’s swimming events at the Summer Olympics are scheduled to take place from July 27, 2024 and conclude on August 4, 2024. There are two open water events scheduled for August 8 and August 9 during which swimmers will race in the Seine River, the first point-to-point open water races held at the Olympics since the first Games in 1900, also held in Paris.
NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. USA Network will air all Olympic events, including swimming. Peacockwill livestream every event of the Paris 2024 Olympics, including the opening and closing ceremonies.
Caeleb Dressel of Team United States reacts after winning the gold medal and breaking the world record in the Men’s 4 x 100m Medley Relay Final on day nine of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on August 01, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Al Bello/Getty Images)
Dressel’s competition schedule begins on Saturday, July 27 and concludes on Friday, August 2. Dressel will likely compete in the following events and days:
Men’s 4x100m freestyle relay: Saturday, July 27
Men’s 50m freestyle: Thursday, August 1 to Friday, August 2
Men’s 100m butterfly: Friday, August 2 to Saturday, August 3
How to watch Caeleb Dressel swim at the Summer Olympic Games without cable
While many cable packages include NBC and the other channels broadcasting the 2024 Summer Olympics, it’s easy to watch the 2024 Summer Olympics if those channels aren’t included in your cable TV subscription, or if you don’t have cable at all. Your best options for watching are below. (Streaming options will require an internet provider.)
In addition to major sporting events like the 2024 Paris Olympics, Peacock offers its subscribers live-streaming access to NFL games that air on NBC and sports airing on USA Network. The streaming service has plenty more live sports to offer, including Big Ten basketball, Premier League soccer and WWE wrestling (including formerly PPV-only events such as WrestleMania). There are 80,000 hours worth of recorded content to watch as well, including hit movies and TV series such as “The Office” and “Parks and Recreation.”
A Peacock subscription costs $8 per month. An annual plan is available for $80 per year (best value). You can cancel anytime.
Top features of Peacock:
Peacock’s Olympic coverage will include “multi-view” options in which fans can curate their viewing journey, choosing the Olympic events they are most interested in watching.
Peacock will air exclusive coverage of PGA Tour events, Olympic trials and Paris Olympics 2024 events.
Peacock features plenty of current and classic NBC and Bravo TV shows, plus original programming such as the award-winning reality show “The Traitors.”
For streaming the Paris Olympics — and for streaming all the must-watch college football and NFL games to follow this fall — we like Sling TV. The cable TV replacement option offers packages that include your local NBC station starting at $45 per month, or $70 for two months (special prepay offer). You also get access to E! and USA Network (including 400 hours of Olympics programming on USA in 4K resolution). We like that there’s a $11 per month sports add-on plan called Sports Extra and the option to add on Paramount+ if you want to catch even more sporting events this fall.
Tap the button below to sign up for Sling TV.
Top features of Sling TV Orange + Blue plan:
Sling TV is our top choice for streaming major sporting events like NASCAR.
There are 46 channels to watch in total, including local NBC, Fox and ABC affiliates (where available).
You get access to most local NFL games and nationally broadcast games at the lowest price.
All subscription tiers include 50 hours of cloud-based DVR storage.
You can add Golf Channel, NBA TV, NHL Network, NFL RedZone, MLB Network, Tennis Channel and more sports-oriented channels (19 in total) via Sling TV’s Sports Extras add-on.
You can also catch the 2024 Summer Olympics airing on network TV on Fubo. Fubo is a sports-centric streaming service that offers access to network-aired sports like the Tour de France, and almost every NFL game next season. Packages include the live feed of sports and programming airing on CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN, NFL Network and more, so you’ll be able to watch more than just the Summer Olympics- all without a cable subscription.
To watch the 2024 Summer Olympic Games without cable, start a seven-day free trial of Fubo. You can begin watching immediately on your TV, phone, tablet or computer. In addition to Olympic events, you’ll have access to NFL football, Fubo offers NCAA college sports, MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS and international soccer games. Fubo’s Pro Tier is priced at $80 per month after your free seven-day trial.
Sports fans will want to consider adding on the $7.99 per month Fubo Extra package, which includes MLB Network, NBA TV, NHL Network, Tennis Channel, SEC Network and more channels. Or upgrade to the Fubo Elite tier and get all the Fubo Extra channels, plus the ability to stream in 4K, for an extra $10 per month.
Top features of Fubo Pro Tier:
There are no contracts with Fubo — you can cancel at any time.
You can watch sporting events up to 72 hours after they air live with Fubo’s lookback feature.
The Pro tier includes over 180 channels, including NFL Network and Golf Channel.
Fubo includes all the channels you’ll need to watch college and pro sports, including CBS (not available through Sling TV).
All tiers come with 1,000 hours of cloud-based DVR recording.
You can watch the 2024 Summer Olympics and more top-tier sports coverage, including NFL Network, with Hulu + Live TV. The bundle features access to 90 channels, including Golf Channel. Unlimited DVR storage is also included. Watch the 2024 Summer Olympic Games and every NFL game on every network next season with Hulu + Live TV, plus exclusive live regular season NFL games, popular studio shows (including NFL Total Access and the Emmy-nominated show Good Morning Football) and lots more.
Hulu + Live TV comes bundled with ESPN+ and Disney+ for $77 per month.
Watch the 2024 Summer Olympic Games live with a digital HDTV antenna
Amazon
You can also watch the 2024 Summer Olympic Games airing on network TV with an affordable indoor antenna, which pulls in local over-the-air HDTV channels such as CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, PBS, Univision and more. Here’s the kicker: There’s no monthly charge.
For anyone living in a partially blocked-off area (those near mountains or first-floor apartments), a digital TV antenna may not pick up a good signal — or any signal at all. But for many homes, a digital TV antenna provides a seriously inexpensive way to watch sports without paying a cable company. Indoor TV antennas can also provide some much-needed TV backup if a storm knocks out your cable.
This ultra-thin, multi-directional Mohu Leaf Supreme Pro digital antenna with a 65-mile range can receive hundreds of HD TV channels, including ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, Fox and Univision, and can filter out cellular and FM signals. It delivers a high-quality picture in 1080p HDTV, top-tier sound and comes with a 12-foot digital coax cable.
This antenna is currently $56 at Amazon, reduced from $70 with coupon.
A woman who was swept 50 miles out into the Pacific Ocean while swimming with an inflatable swim ring was rescued after 37 hours, with authorities reporting she was likely taken by a current and pushed by strong winds in her inner tube. What do you think?
“That’s pretty far to go before asking for help.”
Elizabeth Roper, Sauce Chef
Eli Lilly Unveils Insulin That Doesn’t Work On Poor People
“Sounds like she managed to have a pretty relaxing getaway.”
Diego Migues, Printer Repairman
“The hubris of some people to think mankind was ever meant to float on water.”
One D.C.-area swim instructor shares how swimmers young and old can go from scared to confident in pools, beaches and lakes.
This is part of WTOP’s continuing coverage of people making a difference in our community, reported by Stephanie Gaines-Bryant. Read more of that coverage.
CLICK PHOTO TO ENLARGE: Peter Lord is among the swim instructors at Alexandria, Virginia’s YMCA location. (Courtesy Peter Lord)
Imagine your family is all ready to head to the pool, the beach or the lake for vacation or a day trip, but you have a child who is afraid of water. He or she cries, screams or runs every time they get near water.
How do you help that child overcome their fears?
Before canceling your plans, consider giving your child swimming lessons.
“Having a safe and a fun environment is usually one of the better ways to help kids get over the fear and enjoy the water instead of being terrified of it,” said Peter Lord, the aquatic director at the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington in Alexandria, Virginia.
Lord said part of the way you can improve a kid’s relationship with water is by making learning at the pool or beach a more exciting process.
“We really work on making swimming lessons fun and engaging so that the kids feel comfortable and that they know they are safe,” he told WTOP.
Lord said he’s been swimming since he was 5 years old and teaches kids to respect the water.
CLICK PHOTO TO ENLARGE: Peter Lord is among the swim instructors at Alexandria, Virginia’s YMCA, teaching swimmers of all ages. (Courtesy Peter Lord)
“If you treat water with the respect it’s due, you can be safe in it,” Lord said. “You can have a great time, you can play sports, you can exercise in it.”
But you should do so safely, Lord said, by making sure your kids are not getting in the water without an adult.
“The main thing is always swimming around a lifeguard. Always having a buddy with you, especially if you’re talking about swimming in a lake or ocean that’s not as regulated as a pool,” he said.
The instructor also discouraged buying blue swimsuits for your child, since blue blends into the water, making it very difficult to see where you are. Instead, purchase a red, yellow or orange swimsuit for kids.
Also, on Lord’s list of tips for young swimmers:
Do not run on a pool deck
Do not dive in water that’s too shallow
If you need to help someone, throw in a lifesaving buoy to prevent drowning. Don’t go in after the person, if you can help it
Know your confidence and ability level in the water
Lord said now is the best time to start swimming lessons. The YMCA starts swim lessons for children 6 months old or older, but swim lessons are not just for kids.
“We have students in their 80s,” Lord told WTOP.
More information on the YMCA’s swim lessons and other opportunities is available on the organization’s website.
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BERKELEY, Calif. — As a boy in Milwaukee, Ziyad Saleem would walk through the house pretending to swim backstroke — arm circling backward along the right ear and over his shoulder, then the other arm doing the same on the left side.
Some days he would also propel both arms forward as if doing butterfly. His father saw some real potential then, even out of the water.
“I was always, ‘Hey, what are you doing?’” Mohamed Saleem recalled. “It was range of motion or trying to master how he pulls under water. I knew he was attached to it.”
The swimming bug had hit hard, and Saleem began dreaming big.
Little did Dad know this might actually lead to something that would mean so much to the family: The University of California swimmer is headed to the Paris Olympics to compete for Sudan, his parents’ home country and a place most of his relatives have now fled because of war and a massive humanitarian crisis.
“It’s hard to describe the feeling,” Mohamed Saleem said of his son representing Sudan.
Not many think about swimming and Sudan in the same breath — but it is athletes such as Saleem who are helping put the sport on the map for the country in northern Africa that has a long coastline on the Red Sea.
When Saleem won a medal five years ago in Tunisia for one of his country’s big successes in an international meet, he received royal treatment afterward.
So imagine the triumph in May when Saleem captured Sudan’s first swimming gold medal at an African Championships with victory in the 200-meter backstroke. Saleem treasured his moment atop the podium as the national anthem played — then he got to do it again after winning the 100 back.
“It’s super cool being one of the first ones to medal and really be at the top of the sport in Sudan,” Saleem said. “For me, it’s more about teaching the stuff I’ve learned in the U.S. and all the training and high-level swimming I’m able to do here and kind of take it back to Sudan. I try helping out coaches at these world championships, giving them some of the tips I learned here in the U.S., and I think that’s just the biggest thing, extending what I’ve learned in the U.S. over to Sudan and hopefully those kids can learn and become better swimmers.”
A world away from Sudan’s turmoil, Saleem relishes his new life in the diverse Bay Area swimming next to decorated U.S. Olympian Ryan Murphy in the Cal pool day after day, hour after hour, set after set.
Once in a while, Saleem can surprise Murphy and beat him during their backstroke warmups. And that’s always fun to give the gold medalist a run for his money, even if it’s just in practice and not under competition pressure.
“Sometimes, when he’s going easy in warmups, he’ll wait for the new set and really destroy me,” Saleem said with a smile.
It’s hard for Saleem to believe he’s in the water alongside a former world-record holder like Murphy. This isn’t how it was supposed to go for Saleem. He committed to Iowa only to have the Hawkeyes program get cut because of COVID-19, suddenly leaving his college career path uncertain.
“So I was left without anything, nowhere to go,” he recalled.
But when Saleem started dropping a couple of seconds in each of his events early on as a high school senior, Cal took notice. He committed without a visit or even talking to anybody on the team.
The program’s reputation and coaching told him all he needed to know. Not to mention the chance to share a pool with Murphy and so many other international greats.
“I knew it would be a place I’d really enjoy just having the world-class athletes here, a person like Murph,” Saleem said. “I learn from him so much in and out of the water, what to do, his pointers. He’s a great person to have help you. When I first got here it was really surreal just seeing him in the water. But now since I’ve grown a relationship with him it’s not faded but I still admire him a lot. He’s a big reason why I chose to come to Cal just to have a world-record holder to train with every day.”
Murphy loves swimming with Saleem, too.
“Ziyad is awesome, one of the nicest guys I’ve trained with at Cal,” Murphy said. “He’s a happy person and hard worker.”
Saleem was born in Milwaukee but holds dual citizenship, allowing him to compete for his parents’ homeland in the Olympics. Mohamed Saleem cherishes every chance to see his son compete for Sudan.
“We have a decent community here in Milwaukee. They’re very proud of him, so multiply that by 50,000 times being the father,” Mohamed Saleem said. “When you say you don’t think of Sudan when it comes to swimming, they didn’t think of it either, that’s why it was a big surprise when he actually went the first time and won medals for the country. … It brought a lot of attention to swimming and the potential.”
Saleem will be a first-time Olympian, having gained experience on the big stage at multiple world championships.
He has secured Olympic berths in the 100 and 200 back — his best event — through each country’s one free entry, exempting him from qualifying minimums.
“I’m just trying to get faster and (reach) semifinals, that’s the goal,” he said in the lead up to the Paris Games.
Saleem has been to Sudan several times and met some of his Sudanese teammates just through attending meets with them. They keep in touch despite training in various parts of the world, but it’s the Americans at Cal he knows best.
Most of his family is gone from Sudan.
“With the war, they’ve all emigrated toward Egypt. They were all in Sudan in like (last) June and now they all went to Egypt with what’s going on there (in Sudan),” he said. “There’s some in the Middle East. There’s maybe one or two still in Sudan but everybody else left.”
His father immigrated to the United States in the 1990s and his mother in the early 2000s.
They can’t wait to see him compete in Paris alongside Murphy and all of the other stars.
Might Saleem have taught Murphy a thing or two during all their training battles and hours together in the pool?
“I don’t know if much,” Saleem said, “but I try to push my (backstroke) as much as I can and try to be a good person in and out of the water with him.”
GENEVA — The international swimming federation says its top administrator has been ordered to testify as a witness in a U.S. criminal investigation into the case of 23 Chinese swimmers who failed doping tests in 2021 yet were allowed to continue competing.
The news comes just three weeks before the Paris Olympics, where 11 of the Chinese swimmers who tested positive for the banned heart medication three years ago are set to compete.
The swimmers won three gold medals for China at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, just weeks after the World Anti-Doping Agency declined to challenge Chinese authorities’ explanation of food contamination at a hotel to justify not suspending them.
Those decisions, which World Aquatics separately reached also, were not revealed until reporting in April by the New York Times and German broadcaster ARD.
A House Committee on China asked the Justice Department and the FBI on May 21 to investigate the case under a federal law that allows probes into suspected doping conspiracies even if they occurred outside the U.S.
World Aquatics confirmed to The Associated Press on Thursday that executive director Brent Nowicki was subpoenaed to testify in the investigation.
“World Aquatics can confirm that its executive director, Brent Nowicki, was served with a witness subpoena by the United States government,” the federation said in a statement to AP. “He is working to schedule a meeting with the government, which, in all likelihood will obviate the need for testimony before a Grand Jury.”
World Aquatics declined to answer questions about where and when Nowicki was served his subpoena and didn’t say which office was handling the investigation.
“Per our standard practice, the FBI does not confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation,” the bureau said Thursday in an email reply.
The Chinese swimmers case could become the highest-profile use so far of a U.S. federal law passed in 2020 in fallout from the long-running scandal of Russian state-backed doping in sports.
The 23 swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine in January 2021 and those were filed weeks later in the global anti-doping database. They included Zhang Yufei, who went on take Olympic gold in the women’s 200-meter butterfly and 4×200 freestyle relay, and Wang Shun, the men’s 200 medley champion.
A later investigation by Chinese state authorities said traces of the substance were found in the kitchen of a hotel where the team stayed. No explanation has been given about how and why the drug prescribed in pill form got there.
WADA accepted the theory which allowed the Chinese swimmers to continue to compete, and has since described it as “a relatively straightforward case of mass contamination.”
The agency has since defended its handling of the case that was kept secret in 2021, saying it had no way to independently disprove the theory during the COVID-19 pandemic when travel to China was not possible.
Lawyers for WADA said in April this year they did not have evidence to win separate appeals against the 23 swimmers before the Tokyo Olympics. Any appeals seeking suspensions for the swimmers would have been heard at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, where Nowicki was a long-time senior counsel before joining World Aquatics in 2021.
“This scandal raises serious legal, ethical, and competitive concerns and may constitute a broader state-sponsored strategy by the People’s Republic of China to unfairly compete at the Olympic Games in ways Russia has previously done,” the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party said in the letter to the Justice Department and FBI.
The case was also raised at a congressional hearing last month in which swimming great Michael Phelps said athletes have lost faith in WADA as the global watchdog trying to keep cheaters out of sports.
Officials from the Montreal-based agency declined an invitation to come to the hearing, saying it would be “inappropriate to be pulled into a political debate before a U.S. congressional committee regarding a case from a different country, especially while an independent review into WADA’s handling of the case is ongoing.”
That review report is pending from a WADA-appointed former public prosecutor in the Swiss canton of Vaud that is home to the International Olympic Committee and governing bodies of many Olympic sports.
U.S. Anti-Doping Agency chief executive Travis Tygart suggested to The Associated Press an ongoing federal investigation could make sport officials traveling to the U.S. “fearful that they may have to answer questions about their activities from the FBI.”
The U.S. will host the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles, and in Paris on July 24 the IOC should confirm Salt Lake City as host for the 2034 Winter Games.
The Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act, named for a whistleblower who exposed Russian state-backed doping, passed with bipartisan backing. It received broad support from the global sports world for its aims to criminalize doping.
However, WADA lobbied against what it saw as a risk of overreach from the “extraterritorial” jurisdiction it could give to U.S. federal agencies, and the IOC also voiced concerns.
The Rodchenkov Act, Tygart said, “was enacted in 2021 with broad athlete, sport and multinational governmental support because WADA could not be trusted to be a strong, fair global watchdog to protect clean athletes and fair sport.”
When it comes to fitness, we all want to get the most bang for our buck. In an effort to get fitter and stronger, many people combine strength and cardio exercises into one gym session. However, it turns out that this popular training style might not be bringing you any closer to your goals.
Are you thinking about bringing the family to Greenville Rec’s Discovery Island Water Park for some summer fun? The park, located inside Southside Park in Simpsonville, SC, has a little something for everyone. Find out about each of the park’s attractions and all the details you need to know for a fun day at Discover Island.
Thank you to Greenville Rec for providing passes so we could bring this information to our readers.
Greenville Rec’s Discovery Island
Discovery Island is a few minutes off 385 in Simpsonville at Southside Park. There are playgrounds, soccer fields, and volleyball courts there, as well, but to relieve the heat, head to the water park.
The water park features two large water slides, a zero-entry pool with a play structure featuring a small water slide, a climbing area, lots of sprayers, buckets, and water cannons, a lazy river, and the FlowRider.
Things to Know When Visiting Discovery Island
When you arrive you’ll likely need to wait in line to enter the park. The line for admission moves pretty quickly, but do keep in mind that once the park reaches capacity you will not be able to enter until others leave. Of course, weekends will fill up more quickly. We visited the park on Monday at about 10:45 am and there was plenty of room in the park.
Once inside, there are tons of chairs where you can drop your things, some of them are located under a large shade canopy. These, of course, go first. So get there right at opening if the shade is your goal. There are also lockers that you can rent to store valuables if you would like.
Life jackets and puddle jumpers are provided for kids. They are required for kids under 42 inches tall and are available for all.
The water park hosts birthday party rentals in huts and cabana rentals. Season passes are available to either one particular park or all of the Greenville Rec parks.
No outside food or drink is allowed in Discovery Island. We did bring in our water bottles without any problem, but they cannot be glass bottles. Clyde’s Cafe offers pizza and snacks or you can exit the park to enjoy a picnic and then re-enter. NOTE: If you leave the park when it is at capacity, someone else will take your spot and you will have to wait in line again before re-entering.
We visited the park for about two hours, which gave us ample time to do everything multiple times. On a more crowded day, we might have needed more time to play. The kids really could have stayed longer, but, I’m a fan of ending things on a high note before the kids get cranky.
Attractions at Discovery Island
While Discovery Island is not a huge park, there is a little something for everyone to enjoy. It’s perfect for a few hours of family water park fun without the long drive and expensive ticket price of the water parks at large amusement parks. Here are the attractions you’ll find at Discovery Island.
Lazy River
Grab a tube and float down the lazy river. It’s slow. It’s floating around in a vaugley oval shape. We’re not talking high adventure here. But, it’s perfect for grown-ups kicking back and relaxing or young kiddos who want to use the tubes.
And, if your older kids are on the slides, you can keep an eye on them from here. Whoever planned that out was smart. So smart.
We thought the clear tubes were pretty fun, too!
Water Playground at Discovery Island
Water Playground and Pool
In the center of a zero-depth entry pool is a playground structure with a small slide, sprayers, places to climb and mounted water cannons and splayers kids can use. Note that one sprayer can actually reach a few of the lounge chairs, so, if you pick that as your spot, plan on some wet towels.
This area is definitely designed for younger kids, and they will most definitely have a blast here.
Just want to swim? There’s a pool area behind the water playground, between it and the water slides. You cannot bring the tubes here, but if you just want to practice a little swimming this is the place. The pool area is 3 feet deep.
Discovery Island Water Slides
Water Slides
There are two larger water slides at Discovery Island. One is a tube slide which allows both single tube riders and double tube riders. The tube slide is pitch black for about half the ride and it’s really fun. A life guard will give you your tube at the bottom and then you’ll need to climb up three flights of stairs to get to the top of the slide.
Or, you can choose the yellow body slide, which of course does not require a tube. For part of the ride the slide is enclosed but not dark because of the lighter color of the slide. It’s a bit slower than the tube slide, but with most twists and turns.
Riders must be 48″ to ride the slides. People 47″ and under can ride the tube slide with someone who is 48″+ and at least 16-years-old.
FlowRider
The Flow Rider is a surfing and boogie boarding wave simulator. Kids have to be 4′ tall to ride the FlowRider and a waiver must be signed. New riders will get a little instruction from the life guard on duty at the bottom of the Flow RIder and then their off riding the waves.
FlowRider at Discovery Island
My teens/preteens really enjoyed this attraction. My 13 year-old said he enjoyed it because it required some skill, not just a ride. There were decisions to make about steering as he tried to stay on the board. There were experienced riders at the park on the day we visited who were able to to do all kinds of twists and barrel rolls and stay on the FlowRider. It was pretty impressive. NOTE: As of publication, the FlowRider is currently closed until further notice – stay updated on the Discovery Island website.
Food
While we didn’t enjoy lunch at Discovery Island, we did check out the concessions offered. Clyde’s Cafe offers pizza, Uncrustables, candy, chips and other pre-packaged snacks. The pizza comes from Papa Johns.
Tips
For guests 42″ and under, they are required to wear life jackets, which are available for free at the park.
Riders must be 48″ to ride the slides. People 47″ and under can ride the tube slide with someone who is 48″+ and at least 16-years-old.
To ride the FlowRider, guests must be 42″. On Sundays, guests 48″ and taller can do stand-up surfing on it.
You cannot bring in any outside food or drink but may exit the park to eat and then come back inside. However, you may have to wait depending on the line to get in.
No outside water toys or floats may be brought into the park. No pets are allowed in the park.
You can rent a locker for your valuables for $6.50 at the park.
You can enjoy Discovery Island, too!
Rates $14- 48”+ $10 under 48” and seniors 2-years-old and under are free All tickets bought online are $14.50, no matter the height since they cannot verify virtually.
2024 Summer Hours: Monday – Saturday: 10:30 am – 5:30 pm Sunday: 1:00 pm – 5:30 pm Opens daily on May 25, 2024 through August 2, 2024 and then on weekends through Labor Day
CHANHASSEN, Minn. — Before you hit the lake or the pool this summer, don’t forget to brush up on water safety.
The sun is shinning and the pool is waiting. Three-year-old Blair Bykowski is ready for swimming lessons.
“She’s come so far and she just loves being in the water,” mom Adrianna Bykowski said.
For Adrianna Bykowski, it’s all about safety.
“Living in Minnesota there’s lakes everywhere and I just think it’s really important that your kid knows how to save themselves in worst-case scenario,” she said.
“We’re really excited to welcome everybody back to the pool, but it does get pretty busy,” Life Time Aquatics lead supervisor Erika Girard said. “Swim lessons help parents be proactive with water safety.”
Blair Bykowski is learning the basics, from floating to breathing and bubbles — skills that may have taken the wayside in recent years.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, roughly 4,000 Americans drown every year. But after the pandemic, that surged to 4,500.
“With the pandemic and everybody being at home swim lessons did kind of stop,” Girard said.
While lessons are picking up at Life Time, Girard says its important to keep water safety top of mind.
She tells parents to always keep visual contact with children, keep a 10-foot distance with non-swimmers and have no more than a one swimmer to three non-swimmer ratio.
“Now that it’s starting to click I really think that their confidence is through the roof. They know that if they need to they can use their little arms and legs to get to the side,” Adrianna Bykowski said.
One more tip: experts say to use a Coast Guard-certified life vest, instead of an inflatable one.
Beret Leone is a native Minnesotan who joined the WCCO team as a reporter in September 2022 – and she’s thrilled be back home in the Twin Cities! Beret grew up in Chaska and graduated from Bethel University.
