The U.S. women take center stage Friday at the Tokyo Olympics .
Americans April Ross and Alix Klineman have yet to lose a set in their …
The U.S. women take center stage Friday at the Tokyo Olympics. Americans April Ross and Alix Klineman have yet to lose a set in their three elimination matches in women’s beach volleyball and have only lost one set total in Tokyo. Now, they play for gold against Australia’s Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy. Meanwhile, the U.S. women’s basketball team puts its 53-game Olympic winning streak on the line when it takes on Serbia for a spot in the gold-medal game. The Americans haven’t lost in women’s hoops since the semifinals at the 1992 Games in Barcelona. In indoor volleyball, the women of Team USA also have to go through Serbia in the semifinals to earn a shot a gold. Finally, the University of Minnesota’s Gable Steveson will wrestle for gold in the men’s freestyle 125kg division. If he wins, Steveson could be in for a huge payday, even if he decides to return to school. U.S. wrestler Gable Steveson will participate in the men’s freestyle 125kg final Friday at the Tokyo Olympics, where he will compete with pride and honor in representing his country. He’ll be competing for 250,000 other reasons, too. Steveson, also a wrestler for the University of Minnesota, stands to cash in big with a gold medal, thanks to award programs in place that pay out stipends to athletes who make it to the podium. It starts with the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC). Through its program Operation Gold, any U.S. athlete who wins a medal in any sport will also receive a financial reward: $37,500 for gold, $22,500 for silver, $15,000 for bronze. But that’s just the beginning.
