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The Paris 2024 Olympic Games ended with a epic match. Forty-eight hours after their epic victory in the semi-finals, at the end of overtime against Belgium (81-75), the French basketball players lost by one point (67-66), Sunday August 11, against the Americans. This is the third medal in the Olympic history of the French basketball team after the silver in London in 2012 and the bronze in Tokyo in 2021.
Very few were missed. The final was decided by one point and even by a few centimetres. In a breathless end to the match, Gabby Williams’ shot at the buzzer could have been the equaliser and the extra time, but the Frenchwoman had her foot on the line and her shot was therefore worth only two points, not enough to get back on level terms, while the Blues were trailing by three points.
An invincible Team USA since 1992. The statistic is relentless: the American women’s basketball players are now eight-time reigning Olympic champions. They have not lost a single match at the Olympic Games in thirty-two years, winning 61 games in a row. A streak that came very close to ending.
Gabby Williams, still as impressive as ever. After her 18 points, four assists and three rebounds in the semi-final, the Franco-American did it again in the final, scoring 19 points and making seven rebounds and three steals. The number 15 player gave Les Bleues hope at the end of the game with a three-pointer, then another one that was one foot away from equalizing. The Sparks native guided her teammates throughout the tournament to win this silver medal.
