Screen Shots: Thursday, August 8th, 2024

Welcome to Screen Shots! This is where I tell you what you should watch on TV. It’s going to be a very sports-centric list since that’s really the only thing we have left that you simply must watch live. Speaking of watching things, you should watch me on YouTube! Have your own suggestions? Shoot me an email at [email protected]!

Cuban wrestler Mijain Lopez became the only athlete to win 5 consecutive Olympic gold medals in an individual event yesterday. Lopez’s predecessor as the standard bearer in wrestling’s 130kg (~287lbs) weight class was Russia’s Aleksandr Karelin. He won 3 Olympic gold medals in a row before being upset by American Rulon Gardner at the 2000 Games in Sydney. Legend has it that Karelin once bear-hugged his 500-lb refrigerator and carried it 8 stories to get it into his apartment. Legend also has it that I would have hired movers. To the events!

Women's Track & Field: Shot Put Qualification at 4:25 a.m. ET on Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: Coach Herbert Johnson discovered and developed the reigning silver medalist in this event, Raven Saunders. He will be up watching Raven compete so we will be up watching Raven compete.

Men's Basketball: France vs. Germany Semifinal at 11:30 a.m. ET on USA, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: You’re never going to believe this, but Rudy Gobert is pissing off people within his own organization again. Gobert was removed from the starting lineup and ended up playing just 3 minutes in France’s quarterfinal victory over Canada. French coach Vincent Collet’s reasoning for this move was matchup-related, but our friend Rudy had a slightly different explanation. He claimed that he had been “on the operating table” the night before the game due to a finger injury. There’s no dispute that he does have a hurt finger, but Rudy is the only one pointing to it as the reason for his lack of playing time. Even more bizarre, he’s also the only one with any knowledge of this late-night surgery to fix it. I never thought I’d be more interested in seeing stitches than Victor Wembanyama, but here we are.

Women's Marathon Swimming 10km (Medal event) at 1:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: If I knew this was a thing, I would have saved all of my Seine jokes. Swimming 6.2 miles sounds bad enough without the E.coli. I’m not sure I’ve even ridden a boat that long.

Women's Track & Field: Long Jump Final (Medal event) at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: Tara Davis-Woodhall is a star inside and out of the pit. The only thing missing from her resume is Olympic gold. With 4 of the 5 longest jumps this year, she seems poised to change that. Standing in her way is the gold medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, Malaika Mihambo of Germany. She followed up her Olympic title with a World Championship in 2022 before a down year in 2023. However, she joined Davis-Woodhall as the only other woman to clear 7 meters (~23 feet) this year, including a world-leading mark of 7.22m (23’8.25”). The timing of her resurgence also coincides with some uncharacteristically shaky performances from Tara. Get ready for a showdown! 

Men's Track & Field: Javelin Throw Final (Medal event) at 2:25 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: One of those events that you just know took place during the ancient Olympic Games without needing to look it up. They only throw for distance now, but there used to be an accuracy event too. The javelin itself has undergone a lot of redesigns, including making it not travel as far. In the 1980s, throwers were getting so good that there was a real concern about whether or not they’d be able to continue to compete at meets. People didn’t see the entertainment value in track athletes dodging a giant spear rocketing at them mid-race I guess. 

Men's Track & Field: 200m Final (Medal event) at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: The gut reaction is to assume Noah Lyles has this one in the bag. He’s got to be brimming with confidence after his stunning 100m victory and he’s even better at the 200m. However, this field of competitors is every bit as talented as the one we saw in the 100m. People forget that fellow American Kenny Bednarek finished just ahead of Lyles at the Tokyo Games to claim silver. While Lyles has improved immensely, Kung Fu Kenny was right on his heels at the US trials. And then there’s the young Botswanan Letsile Tebogo. His top speed during the 100m final was faster than Usain Bolt’s top speed when he set the world record. Like Lyles, he’s better in the 200m. Noah is certainly the favorite but be prepared for more fireworks.

Men's Basketball: United States vs. Serbia Semifinal at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: I should be writing about the Aussie-US rivalry from my younger years. Patty Mills did Olympic Patty Mills things as the Aussies built up a 24-point lead. Unfortunately, everything boomeranged back around in embarrassing fashion and now we have a Serbia-US matchup. As sad as I am about not getting to write about Andrew Gaze, it doesn’t change anything about who wins this one. As great as Jokic is, he doesn’t have nearly enough firepower around him to take down Team USA. We saw it earlier in the tournament when the Americans absolutely crushed the non-Jokic minutes. Even if he plays all 40 this time around, the result will be the same.

Women's Track & Field: 400m Hurdles Final (Medal event) at 3:25 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: With all due respect to the other competitors, this one is about American Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone vs. Femke Bol of the Netherlands. These are the only women ever to run sub-51. There’s speculation that going head-to-head here could push one or both of them to break the 50-second barrier. In case you think there’s a bunch of other women chilling with sub-52 times, there’s only one, Dalilah Muhammad, who did it exactly once. Bol has already had her 2024 Olympic moment during her blazing anchor leg in the 4x400m mixed relay where she ran down Team USA to win the gold medal. Is it time for another or will Sydney remind us all why she’s the greatest?

Men's Track & Field: 110m Hurdles Final (Medal event) at 3:45 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com

Why you should watch: Will Grant Holloway finally take down Aries Merritt’s world record? He’s been close, coming within .01 and .06 seconds. Holloway was a former four-star wide receiver who almost went to Georgia to play football. He would have been catching passes from Jake Fromm. Safe to say, he made the right choice.

Happy Watching!