They seemed untouchable, but they weren’t. It seemed like the most predictable gold, but it was full of suspense and excitement. The United States beat France by one point (66-67) in the women’s basketball final and thanks to that minimal difference the North American country equalled China’s 40 gold medals in the medal table and surpassed the Asian nation in first place by the number of silvers (44-27). The last second of the Games, the first time that the event was held with a women’s event, was a perfect symbol of Olympism due to the uncertainty of the result and the struggle between the athletes (and the countries) until they crossed the finish line. Paris said goodbye in style on the track.
They remain the unbeatable team, albeit by a very small margin. The US team tied up with that extreme suffering the eighth consecutive Olympic gold in its history, all since Atlanta 96, and extended at least for four more years, until playing at home in Los Angeles 2028, a streak from another planet: 61 consecutive victories in the Games, all the games played since losing the semifinals of Barcelona 92 against the Unified Team by 73-79. After that slip, they beat Brazil in the match for the bronze and since then the American basketball players have done nothing but go to the locker room with the victory in their pocket and leave the Games biting gold. It is the longest winning streak of any team in Olympic history, after already tying in Tokyo the one that their male colleagues in the basket signed between 1936 and 1968.
Rarely will defeat be so close as it was this Sunday at a fiery Arena Bercy, in a rerun of the men’s final from the previous day. The United States started in command (9-15), although without the hammer of other nights. A backpack full of turnovers and a weakness in closing out defensive rebounds opened a gap through which France quickly and voraciously slipped in. A triple from almost the center of the court by Marine Fauthoux sent the match to halftime at 25-25. It was the fourth worst scorer for the United States in the Games (only 10 points) and the first time that they did not lead at halftime (they finished with 67 points when their offensive average was 90).
Ten straight points from France after the break caused an earthquake (35-25). The United States continued to miss baskets under the rim and became entangled in individual plays, until they tightened their defense and in a fit of fury turned the tables (43-45). The outcome was a fight that could have gone either way. Gabby Williams scored in the last second, three down France, but she just missed the three-point line. That was the difference, a few centimeters, just one point, that saved the United States and prolonged their reign.
They have played eight Olympic Games and four World Cups in a row, and they have not lost on a big stage for 18 years, in the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup against Russia (75-68). Supported by an inexhaustible pool of players that draws on college basketball, a gold mine for women’s sports in the United States, the team that Cheryl Reeve now coaches is jumping from gold to gold while feeding the generational change. The legendary Sue Bird is not in Paris, who makes a kind of honorary kick-off of the final by hitting a stick in the center circle. And the legendary shooting guard Diana Taurasi, at 42 years old the only basketball player to compete in six Games (like Rudy Fernandez) and the only one with six golds, is saying goodbye with honors. The center Brittney Griner is crowned after her 10-month hell in a Russian prison accused of drug trafficking.
The future is called Caitlin Clark, the upcoming star, the 22-year-old point guard who surprises with her lethal outside shot, the leading scorer in the history of women’s college basketball and number one in the WNBA draft with the Indiana Fever. Clark was not selected in June among the 12 best players to represent the United States in Paris. In the French capital, the Dream Team won gold again. They remain an unbeatable team, although this time it was just by a hair.
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