"So it was going to be whoever had it in that last five, 10 metres."

McKeown and Smith shared a heartfelt hug across their lanes following the race.

“She is an absolutely incredible racer and she knows what to do when it matters,” Smith said of her Aussie rival. “But I’m really proud of myself.”

2. Coco Gauff's Olympic dream ends in tears after a controversial call

Gauff made a controversial third-round exit from the tennis at Roland Garros, going down 7-6 (7), 6-2 to Croatia's Donna Vekic after a massive blow-up with the umpires following a controversial call in the second set. 

During a break point, Vekic's return landed close to the baseline and a line judge initially called the shot as out. Gauff's ensuing shot hit the net and chair umpire Jaume Campistol awarded the point to the Croat, ruling the ball was in and the call of out did not impact the American's swing. 

As Vekic took a 4-2 lead, a dispute ensued, which eventually required a referee on-court.

"He called it out before I hit it so I went up on the ball," Gauff said on the broadcast. 

"This isn't fair. He called it out before I hit the ball. If he called it out before I hit it, it affects the swing."

Gauff was eventually brought to tears saying, "I have to always advocate for myself on this court all the time."

"I feel like I’m getting cheated on constantly in this game. And then you guys apologise afterwards, you guys say, 'I'm sorry,' but what does that do for me in the match?

"You guys are not fair to me. I hope that one day the game becomes fair, but it's not."

The 20-year-old was a flag-bearer for the USA, and as second seed was expected to contend for a medal. She's still scheduled to play in the women's and mixed doubles. 

3. Egyptian star's incredible Olympic pregnancy reveal

Egypt's Nada Hafez put in a strong effort in the women's individual sabre, making it to the last 16 of the competition. 

But afterwards, Hafez made the stunning announcement that she was seven months pregnant. 

"What appears to you as two players on the podium, they were actually three! It was me, my competitor and my yet-to-come to our little world, little baby!" Hafez said in an Instagram post. 

"My baby and I had our fair share of challenges, be it both physical and emotional.

"The rollercoaster of pregnancy is tough on its own, but having to fight to keep the balance of life and sports was nothing short of strenuous, however worth it."

Hafez defeated the USA's Elizabeth Tartakovsky in the first round before going down to Jeon Hayoung of South Korea at at the Grand Palais. 

The 26-year old is competing at her third Olympics. 

4. Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray stay alive in the doubles

Tennis legends Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray both refuse to go quietly into the night in Paris. 

A day after his singles campaign was ended at the hands of Novak Djokovic, Nadal and Spanish teammate Carlos Alcaraz advanced into the doubles quarterfinals after prevailing in a thriller against Netherlands' Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof.

"A dream come true for me, playing on the same side of the net with Rafa, learning from him," Alcaraz said. "It is unbelievable … I'm trying to enjoy my time with him."

"We are trying to enjoy [ourselves] as much as possible. We are not doubles players, so we are not used to playing doubles. The only way to make that work well is to play with happiness, with energy and with high energy," Nadal said.

"We have a good relationship outside the court, so that helps."

Meanwhile, Murray sat crying on his chair after he and British partner Dan Evans saved two match points to advance, extending his career for at least another match.

Murray, who has announced he will retire after the Olympics, and Evans beat the Belgian pair of Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen 6-3, 6-7 (8), 11-9.

Murray and Evans saved five match points in their opening match. Against the Belgians, they trailed 9-7 in the match tiebreaker before winning four straight points.

Murray is a three-time grand slam singles champion and the only tennis player with two Olympic singles golds — from London in 2012 and Rio de Janeiro in 2016. His first Wimbledon championship, in 2013, made Murray the first man from Britain to win that trophy in 77 years.

Murray has dealt with a series of injuries in the latter stages of his career, including a hip replacement in 2019. Most recently, he needed surgery to remove a cyst from his spine last month.

5. Boomers neither boom nor bust

Australian men's basketball exists in an endless push-pull — the gritty underdog happily exceeding expectations and the legitimate force that demands to be taken seriously. 

The Boomers could be proud of their efforts against a seriously talented Canada side, spearheaded by the dynamism of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the defensive grunt of Dillon Brooks and Luguentz Dort. A 93-83 point loss against such quality brings no shame. 

And yet, there was a telling response from Jock Landale when asked post-match if there was consolation to be drawn from playing a tight game against one of the benchmark teams of this Olympics. 

"No, mate," Landale said bluntly.

"We're one of those teams as well. We just didn't get the job done tonight." 

Boomers coach Brian Goorjian could be seen contorting in frustration toward the end of the match, as missed shorts and turnovers increasingly hampered any chance of a late comeback. 

"I just made sure that the guys understood when they leave the dressing room, it's not a game, it's a tournament and our future in Paris lies in this next game coming up," Goorjian said after the match.

That the Boomers could be disappointed in such a result says a lot about how far Australia's men's team has come in the global basketball landscape.

How they back up against Greece in two days time might say more about how far they still have to go, before they are classified as a legitimate force. 

6. Chinese table tennis star fumes as photographers ruin equipment

China's 24-year-old table tennis player Wang Chuqin was overjoyed after securing his first Olympic gold medal alongside teammate Sun Yingsha.

But his elation soon turned to disbelief, anger and frustration when he discovered that his paddle — crucial for his singles and team events — had been damaged by excited photographers rushing to capture the moment.

Visibly upset, Wang tried to ask for an explanation. His coach tried to hug him in an effort to console him and ask him to stay calm.

Wang soon regained his composure despite the setback.

"At that moment, I lost control of my emotions a little. I couldn't understand why the photographers would do that," Wang said, still visibly affected by the incident.