Summer Olympics 2016: Things to Watch for on Day 8 in Rio
Speed is the theme for Day 8 of the Olympics, on land and on water.
Michael Phelps' farewell swim in his attempt to win another gold medal and a wide-open race to determine the world's fastest woman highlight the second Saturday of the 2016 Olympic Games. The likely coronation of an American rowing dynasty is also on tap for the day.
The gold-medal match in women's tennis is scheduled for Saturday as well.
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However, the focus on Day 8 will be on the speed of Phelps in what is likely to be his last Olympic race, the speed of a half-dozen gold-medal contenders in the women's 100-meter dash and the speed of the United States' women's eight crew as it bids to continue a 10-year winning streak.
Phelps' Grand Finale...Probably
The final swimming event of the 2016 Olympics appropriately will be the final Olympic event of Michael Phelps' career. Phelps is scheduled to swim the butterfly leg for the U.S. men's 4x100-meter medley relay team.
While Phelps has a long time to make a final decision on Tokyo 2020, he didn't mince words on Friday, telling Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan, "I'm ready to retire, and I'm happy about it. I'm in a better state of mind this time than I was four years ago."
Phelps has already been a part of three gold-medal-winning 4x100 medley relay teams, claiming victory in the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympics, although he only swam in the preliminary heats in 2004, according to USA Today's list of Phelps' Olympic medals through Tuesday.
The Americans have won the 4x100 medley relay in each of the 13 Olympic Games in which the race was held and the U.S. competed. The 4x100-meter medley relay became an Olympic event at the 1960 Games in Rome, and Australia won it in 1980, when the United States boycotted the Moscow Olympic Games.
The Americans are favored to win it again in this Olympics, with SI.com, Deadspin and the Associated Press all projecting victory for the U.S. in this event. Australia, Great Britain and China appear to be the main challengers.
Despite finishing in a tie for second in the 100-meter butterfly on Friday, Phelps has already claimed 22 Olympic gold medals in his career, by far the most of any person in history. He is expected to add his fifth gold medal of these Olympic Games on Saturday.
Other swimming finals on Day 8 include the women's 50-meter freestyle, men's 1,500-meter freestyle and the women's 4x100-meter medley. The U.S., led by 100-meter breaststroke gold medalist Lilly King, will be among the favorites in the women's medley relay, which will be run immediately before the men's medley relay final.
Wild Dash to Determine World's Fastest Woman
The women's 100-meter finals may be the most exciting track and field event of these Olympics.
Any one of five or six women could claim the gold, including all three American sprinters: Tori Bowie, English Gardner and Tianna Bartoletta. Jamaica will counter with two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson, who posted the best time of the year (10.70 seconds) while winning the 100 in convincing fashion at the Jamaican Olympic trials. Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands, who finished third at the World Championship, also figures prominently in the scramble for medals.
The field is so strong, Fraser-Pryce, who won the gold medal in the 100 at both the 2008 and 2012 Olympics as well as at the 2015 World Championships, is projected to miss the medals podium altogether by SI.com and the Associated Press.
The semifinals, which will be held earlier Saturday, may be nearly as riveting, because some very good sprinters won't make it to the final.
Usain Bolt will make his 2016 Olympic debut on Saturday, running preliminary heats in the men's 100 meters. His times relative to the times of Americans Justin Gatlin and Trayvon Bromell will be scrutinized.
The other track and field final of note Saturday is the men's long jump, with American Jarrion Lawson expected to challenge Great Britain's Greg Rutherford, who captured the gold medal at both the 2012 Olympics and the 2015 World Championships.
Women's Tennis Gold-Medal Match...but No Serena
Some of the appeal of the Olympic tennis final in women's singles was lost when 21-year-old Elina Svitolina of the Ukraine defeated Serena Williams of the United States in the third round.
Saturday's gold-medal match will be between Angelique Kerber of Germany, the world's No. 2-ranked player, and Monica Puig of Puerto Rico, who is ranked No. 34.
Most were expecting the final to include Williams, the 2012 Olympic champion in singles and doubles who failed to medal in either this time.
Williams has been ranked No. 1 since February 2013 and has won five of the past eight Grand Slam singles titles. She will be a mere spectator Saturday.
America's Great Eight Rowing Dynasty Goes for Gold
The U.S. women's eight is one of the most dominant groups in sports, not just rowing.
Since 2006, this American crew has won every major world event in which it competed, which consists of eight victories in the World Rowing Championships and gold medals at the Olympics in 2008 and 2012, as noted by WorldRowing.com. Not many athletes or teams can claim a 10-year winning streak, and the American eight seems destined to roll to a third straight Olympic gold medal in Saturday's finals.
The Americans won their qualifying heat by eight seconds, an enormous margin in rowing, per NBCOlympics.com, and they were three seconds ahead of the fastest boat in the second heat.
Eleanor Logan is in line to collect her third Olympic gold medal, having been part of the victorious American eight squads in Beijing and London.
Also, American Gevvie Stone will row in the women's single sculls gold-medal race Saturday.
Shooting for a Third Gold
Vincent Hancock has dominated men's skeet in recent years, and he will be the favorite to capture his third consecutive Olympic gold medal Saturday. Besides his two Olympic victories, Hancock captured his third World Championship crown in 2015, according to USAshooting.org.
Six of the top 10 finishers in skeet in the 2012 Olympics, as well as all four finalists from the 2015 skeet World Championships, were entered in this Olympics.
But Hancock, who lives in Eatonton, Georgia, noted on TeamUSA.org that he has a simple formula when it comes to winning: "My motto has always been, 'If you don't miss, then you can't be beat.'"
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