Three Ex Three

Do you think that when Louis XIV of France built his palace at Versailles starting in 1661 that he thought to himself "this would make a great spot for the equestrian events in the Olympics in 363 years?"

He should have, since the setting is perfect for the Olympic horse events. TigerBlog was up early yesterday to watch some more horse dancing, which is among his favorite things to watch each time the Games roll around.

He was rooting for Belgian rider Larissa Pauluis after he read a story about her and how her husband passed away in 2020 at just 39 years of age, leaving her with two daughters. In his memory she runs a local equestrian club. 

He has no idea what he was watching, but he does love the artistry of it. 

Then there was Olympic women's rugby sevens yesterday. If you watched, you saw two incredible medal round games.

First, there was the United States team, who defeated Australia on the last play of the game to win bronze. Did you see how? You can now:

A FINISH YOU HAVE TO SEE TO BELIEVE! 😱

ALEX SEDRICK LEADS TEAM USA TO THE FIRST-EVER OLYMPIC RUGBY SEVENS MEDAL FOR THE UNITED STATES ON THE FINAL PLAY OF THE GAME! 🥉 #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/1FMu9SWxDo

— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 30, 2024

That's craziness. Even someone like TB, who knows little about the sport, can appreciate the magnitude.

Contrast that with the gold medal game, in which New Zealand rallied to defeat Canada. What really impressed TigerBlog was the way the two teams took a post-medal ceremony picture together, with all smiles between them. 

That's the difference between losing the gold medal game and the bronze medal game. In the gold medal game, every player has already earned a medal. 

As for #PrincetonInParis, the big story for yesterday was the first day of 3X3 basketball. 

TB learned a great deal about the sport, including that you pronounce the "X," making it "Three Ex Three." Also, the announcers on the Peacock broadcast were very entertaining and very energetic. 

Before watching any of the games, TB saw that former Princeton men's basketball player Sean Gregory had written a story about the event, specifically on the USA's Jimmer Fredette. You can read the whole story HERE.

This is from the article, which helps explain why the last four players cut from the 5x5 U.S. Olympic team aren't just tossed out there.

But you can’t just throw four NBA players together and send them on a summer trip to Paris – 3X3 players are specialists. They have to participate in international tournaments and acquire ranking points in order to be eligible for the Olympics. So Fredette’s had to roll with crazy travel itineraries—since October 2022 he has played in 3X3 tournaments in 15 countries outside the United States. During one stretch last summer, the team zigzagged from France to Macau to Kosovo and back to France, before bouncing back to Asia (Mongolia), then back to Europe (Switzerland, then Hungary) over a nine-week span. He wasn’t globetrotting with NBA-style amenities. “You’re not staying in five-star hotels,” says Maddox. “A lot of times you’re roughing it.” 

The "Maddox" in the story is Kareem Maddox, the 2011 Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year at Princeton and a 3X3 veteran. The U.S. team in Paris is made up of Maddox, Fredette, Canyon Barry (Rick Barry's son who played at the College of Charleston and then Florida) and Dylan Travis (who won a Division II national title at Florida Southern).

The Americans had their first game yesterday, falling 22-14 to Serbia. Maddox was impressive nonetheless, leading the U.S. team with six points (you get one for a two-point basket and two for a three-point basket) while shooting 5 for 7 from the field.

The games are 10 minutes long, unless one team reaches 21. This is the second Olympics to feature 3X3 (Latvia won the gold in Tokyo).

There are eight teams in the field. The top two will advance to the semifinals, while the teams that finish third through sixth will play in the quarterfinals. The bottom two will be eliminated.

Next up for the U.S. will be Poland, who lost to France in its opener yesterday. That game will be played at 4:35 this afternoon (Eastern).  

Today will be a big day for Princetonians at these Olympics, including a medal race for Hannah Scott in women's quadruple sculls.

Tom George (Great Britain) - Men’s Pair A/B Semifinals (4:34 a.m., 4:44 a.m.)
Jonas Juel (Norway) - Men’s Quadruple Sculls B Final (6:02 a.m.)
Hannah Scott (Great Britain) - Women’s Quadruple Sculls A Final (6:38 a.m.)
Beth Yeager (USA) - Field Hockey vs. Australia (7:15 a.m.)
Ashleigh Johnson & Jovana Sekulic (USA) - Women’s Water Polo vs. Italy (12:30 p.m.)
Adell Sabovic (Kosovo) - 100m Freestyle Swimming Final (4:15 p.m.)
Kareem Maddox (USA) - 3x3 Basketball vs. Poland (4:35 p.m.)