Another Golden Day for USA… and Fiji, too! + What to Watch Day 7

It was a good day to be a Simone

You’ve definitely heard by now (your phone was probably blowing up again with the alerts): Not only did Simone Biles win the all-around gold — she also completely dominated, winning by an insane margin. Plus, an awesome performance by teammate Aly Raisman gave her the silver. A one-two punch for Team USA gymnastics.

Meanwhile, back in the pool: Another Simone — Simone Manuel — became the first African American woman to win an individual gold medal, tying for first with 16-year-old Canadian phenom Penny Oleksiak in the 100-meter freestyle. And this Simone knew winning the race was bigger than just her individual achievement:

“I’m super glad with the fact that I can be an inspiration to others and hopefully diversify the sport,” she told TeamUSA. “But at the same time, I would like there to be a day where there are more of us, and it’s not ‘Simone, the black swimmer.’ The title black swimmer makes it seem like I’m not supposed to be able to win a gold medal, or I’m not supposed to be able to break records. That’s not true because I work just as hard as anybody else, and I love the sport. I want to win just like everybody else.”

Michael Phelps continued to break records and do crazy things that other humans have never done (or at least have not done in 2,168 years ). Thursday night he earned his fourth consecutive gold of these Olympics, winning the 200m Individual Medley by nearly two seconds (an eternity in the swimming world.)

(Dear Canadian Readers: Sorry that your announcer led you to believe that Ryan Lochte won the race. He really came in fourth. But Lochte’s still one of our faves.)

(Dear Baltimore Ravens Fans: Glad you all took a timeout during the pre-season game vs. the Panthers to watch hometown hero Phelps win his latest gold medal.)

Back to the Pool: Aussie swimmer Kyle Chalmers just might be the world’s biggest Kevin Durant fan— so when KD came to the pool the other night to support Team USA, Chalmers said he “almost vomited” when he saw him before the semis. In a good way.

More American Gold: This time in Judo. Kayla Harrison became the first American (man or woman) to win back-to-back gold medals in judo. She’s a legend — and appears to be done with judo. “Two-time Olympic Champion. That’s it,” she said. But could UFC be next?

Other Olympic Headlines:

> Team USA Women’s basketball is dominating, yet we’re still talking about the dudes.

> America’s “Call Me Maybe” Sweetheart from 2012, Missy Franklin, is really struggling this year.

> More Doping Scandals: A second official from Kenya has been sent home for trying to stand in for an athlete in a drug test. And Chinese swimmer Chen Xiyi tested positive for doping Thursday.

> Rafa Nadal and Andy Murray advance in semifinals.

> Belgian sailor got sick after racing on polluted Rio bay.

> Saftey Nate Ebner returns to the Pats without a rugby medal, but with valuable lessons:

“The biggest thing I take from rugby is that it’s so relatable to life, as in so many things can go wrong quickly, but you can’t dwell on it, and the quicker you put it behind you and get on to the next task, you have a better chance of succeeding,” Ebner told ESPN.

And who did win the Gold in Rugby? FIJI! Their Men’s Rugby Sevens Team defeated Great Britain for their first gold in 60 years competing in the Olympic Games. And what did they want to do to celebrate? Go to McDonald’s. Which makes us want to cry, for many reasons.

Here’s what to watch for Friday, all times ET:

8:30 a.m.: Track and field debuts, including the women’s 10,000m final, NBCSN

10:40 a.m.: Men’s water polo, USA vs. Montenegro, USA Network

Noon: Women’s swimming, Aussie sisters Cate and Bronte Campbell featured in the prelims of the 50m freestyle, NBC

Noon: Women’s soccer, USA vs. Sweden quarterfinal, Soccer Channel

2 p.m.: Women’s basketball, USA vs. Canada, NBCSN

2 p.m.: Women’s volleyball, Jordan Larson and the USA vs. Italy in the prelims, NBC

4 p.m.: Men’s archery, Brady Ellison and Zach Garrett hope to medal in the individual event, NBCSN

6 p.m.: Men’s basketball, USA vs. Serbia, NBCSN

8 p.m.: Track and field, NBC

9 p.m.: Women’s swimming, Katie Ledecky (800m freestyle) and Missy Franklin (200m backstroke) hope to lower their own world records, NBC

And we’ll just leave you with this:

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