Jamaica’s Alia Atkinson advanced to the final of the Women’s 100m Breaststroke at the FINA World Short Course Swimming Championships in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.

Atkinson was the third fastest qualifier into the semi-finals after Atkinson swimming 1:04.88 in Heat 6 to advance.

She then lined up in semi-final 2 where she swam 1:04.26 to finish second and advance as the fourth fastest qualifier to the final.

The final is scheduled for Monday.

Atkinson is seeking to add to her four previous medals at World Short Course Championships, including three gold and one silver.

Bahamian Joanna Evans and Mexican Jose Martinez were both finalists at the FINA World Short Course Swimming Championships in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

The 24-year-old Evans, who represented the Bahamas at the Olympics in 2016 and 2021, was seventh in the Women’s 200m Freestyle in 1:54.93 won by Hong Kong’s Siobhan Bernadette Haughey in a new world record 1:50.31.

Canada’s Rebecca Smith was second in 1:52.24 and the USA’s Paige Madden was third in 1:53.01.

Martinez, 24, placed seventh.

The former Texas A&M competitor represented Mexico at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships and the 2020 Olympics.

He swam 1:52.00 to finish seventh in the Men’s 200m butterfly won by Alberto Razetti of Italy in 1:49.06.

Noe Panti of Switzerland was second in 1:49.81 and Chad Le Clos, South Africa’s 2012 Olympic champion, was third in 1:49.84.

Thursday was the opening day of the championships that concludes on December 21.

The Amateur Swimming Association of Trinidad & Tobago and St. Lucia Aquatics Federation have both announced their respective teams for the FINA World Short-Course Swimming Championships to be held in Abu Dhabi from December 16-21.

Trinidad &Tobago will be represented Cherelle Thompson in the Women’s 50m Freestyle and 50m Butterfly; Dylan Carter in the Men’s 50m Freestyle, 50m Butterfly, 50m Backstroke, 100m Butterfly and 100m Freestyle while Nikoli Blackman will compete in the Men’s 400m Freestyle and 1500m Freestyle.

St. Lucia will have Jayhan Odlum-Smith in the Men’s 50m Butterfly and 100m Freestyle, Mikaili Charlemagne in the Women’s 50m Butterfly and 50m Freestyle, Naima Hazell in the Women’s 50 Breaststroke and 50m Backstroke and Terrel Monplaisir in the Men’s 50m Breaststroke and 50m Freestyle.

Cuba's Maikel Gonzalez won gold and Trinidad and Tobago's Kelsey Daniel, silver in the long jump at the Junior Pan Am Games in Cali, Colombia on Wednesday.

Gonzalez soared out to 7.97 metres to take top spot over the Trinidadian who leapt 7.90 metres for the runner-up spot.

Cuba won a second gold when Daily Gaspar ran 2:08.62 to win the Women’s 800m. In the field, Cuba's Juan Gomez took bronze in the shot put with 17.85 metres.

On Tuesday, Amya Clarke of St. Kitts and Nevis won silver in the Women’s 100m in 11.58 seconds.

Cuba secured a 1-2 finish in the Women’s discus with Silinda Zenea winning gold with a throw of 59.13 metres and Melany Morejan winning silver in 54.31m.

Meanwhile, Paola Sola of Puerto Rico struck gold in the women’s long jump with a distance of 6.33 metres.

Chantoba Bright of Guyana was fifth with 6.20 metres while Cuba’s Yanisley Cremadelly was eighth with 6.01 metres.

Tyriq Hosford of Trinidad & Tobago won a bronze medal in the Men’s javelin with a distance of 71.33 metres.

Carlos Brown Jr of The Bahamas was fifth in the Men’s 100m in 10.47 seconds.

Anson Moses of Trinidad & Tobago finished seventh in the Men’s Decathlon with 454 points.

In swimming action on Tuesday, Patrick Groters of Aruba won gold in the Men’s 200m Individual Medley in a time of 2:02.09, his second gold medal of the Games.

Graham Chatoor of Trinidad & Tobago was sixth in the Men’s 1500m Freestyle in 16:20.48 while his teammate Nikolai Blackman was 13^th in 17:02.08.

The Bahamas finished fifth in the Men’s 4x100m relay medley in 2:49.92 while Trinidad and Tobago finished eighth in 4:02.66.

Patrick Groters of Aruba won gold in the Men’s 200m backstroke at the Junior Pan Am Games in Colombia on Saturday in a championship record 2:01.78.

Groters was eighth in the A final at the 2019 Pan Am Senior Games in Lima, Peru with a time of 2:03.65.

Mexico’s Diego Salgado took silver with a personal best 2:02.29 and Erick Guzman took home Guatemala’s first Junior Pan Am Games backstroke medal with 2:03.00 for third, a new national record.

At the 2019 Senior Games, Guzman finished third in the B final in 2:04.88.

Meanwhile, several Caribbean athletes advanced as swimming action continued earlier today.

In the Men’s 50m freestyle, Jordan Crooks from The Cayman Islands, Lamar Taylor from The Bahamas and Trinidad’s Nikolai Blackman and Zarek Wilson all advanced to the B final.

In the Women’s 50m freestyle, St. Lucians Mikali Charlemagne and Naima Hazell both advanced to the A final.

Kyra Rabess from The Cayman Islands, Aleka Persaud from Guyana, Gabrialle Hysin from Greneda and Myeisha Sharrieff from Bermuda all advanced to the B final.

Rising Jamaican swimming star Emily McDonald says she is having a grand time in her first few months in college at Columbia University, which has been bolstered by the fact that a week ago, she won her very first race at the NCAA Division 1 level.

At the Lions Home opener at the University of Pennsylvania, McDonald, who turned 18 in July, won the 50-yard freestyle in 23.77, which at the time was the fourth-fastest in the Ivy League conference. She also picked up a third-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle in 52.45.

She had more success in the 200-yard freestyle relay, leading her team with a 23.88 split to give them the edge in a close battle with Penn - 1:34.79 to 1:34.84. She also swam a 23.35 split as her team finished second in the 200-yard medley relay that was won by the University of Pennsylvania in 1:44.35. Columbia was a .10 behind in 1:44.45.

Reflecting on her debut outing for Columbia, the recent Bolles graduate, revealed that she had a great time competing.

“It was a really great experience. I love my new team, I love their vibes, I love their spirit,” she told Sportsmax.TV while heaping praise on her teammates and coaches for their support in helping her get her collegiate career off to a great start.

“Winning the 50-free in my first collegiate meet was really special. It was not just hard work, but the spirit of my team and coaches helped me in that race. They are always so supportive no matter what and I cannot wait to see how the rest of the season plays out!”

McDonald has had a solid career swimming in high school, first at Campion College and then at Bolles where she capped off her high school years with a few podium finishes in the 200-yard freestyle and medley relays.

She has also represented Jamaica at the 2018 CAC Games in Colombia and at the 2019 Pan Am Games in Lima, Peru.

The Amateur Swimming Association of Jamaica (ASAJ) is brimming with pride over the advances made in the discipline of artistic swimming.

Swimmer Caeleb Dressel led the way with five golds as the United States finished top of the medal table at the Olympic Games for a third successive time.

Team USA's haul of 113 medals at the Tokyo Games – comprising 39 gold, 41 silver and 33 bronze – was 25 more than second-placed China, while Japan finished third.

The 58 medals won by the hosts set a record for the most they have ever won at a single Olympics, including 27 golds – 11 more than their previous record from 1964 and 2004.

Italy (40 medals), the Netherlands (36), Brazil (21), New Zealand (20), Turkey (13) and Chinese Taipei (12) also enjoyed their best ever Games showings.

In all, 93 different competing nations claimed a medal in Tokyo, which is more than any other edition of the global showpiece, surpassing the previous record of 87 set in 2008.

That includes first ever Olympic medals for Turkmenistan, San Marino and Burkina Faso in weightlifting, shooting and athletics events respectively.

Indeed, with a population of around 34,000 people, San Marino are now the smallest nation to win an Olympic medal.

MCKEON IN SEVENTH HEAVEN

Twenty of Australia's 46 medals came in the pool, with swimmer Emma McKeon responsible for seven of those – at least two more medals than any other athlete in Tokyo.

In doing so, the 27-year-old became the second female athlete to claim seven or more medals at a single Olympics after Maria Gorokhovskaya in 1952.

Dressel swept up five golds in the men's swimming events, meanwhile, to become the 10th athlete to reach that tally at a single Games.

Away from the Aquatics Centre, it was an Olympics to remember for Elaine Thompson-Herah as the Jamaican became the first woman to win both the 100 metre and 200m sprint at two Games.

Further success came for Thompson-Herah in the 4x100m relay, making her only the second woman to win five athletics golds after Allyson Felix (seven).

The Netherlands' Sifan Hassan also wrote his name in the record books by becoming the first athlete to win a medal in the 1500m (bronze), 5000m (gold) and 10,000m (gold) at the same Games.

Indeed, Hassan is the first track and field athlete to claim a medal in three individual disciplines since Carl Lewis and Heike Drechsler in 1988.

AGE IS JUST A NUMBER

Japanese skateboarder Momiji Nishiya became the youngest Olympic gold medal winner since 1960 – and third-youngest of all time – with victory in the women's street event at the age of 13 years and 330 days.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, 62-year-old Andrew Hoy of Australia became the oldest medallist at the Olympics since 1968 with a silver and bronze in the equestrian competitions.

Judokas Hifumi Abe and Uta Abe kept it in the family by becoming the first brother and sister combo to claim gold medals at the same Olympics when winning the men's -66 kilograms and women's -52kg events respectively.

July 28 proved to be a day to remember in more ways than one for Olga Frolkina and Evgeniia Frolkina, meanwhile, as the twin sisters took silver in the 3x3 basketball on their 24th birthday.

Favourite Grant Holloway said nerves got the better of him after finishing second to Jamaica's Hansle Parchment in the men's 110 metres hurdles Olympic final.

The American led at the halfway mark but faded over the final 20 metres as he was beaten by his 31-year-old rival.

Parchment triumphed with a season-best time of 13.04 seconds, ahead of Holloway in 13.09, lucky to scrape ahead of Jamaican Ronald Levy who took bronze with 13.10.

Holloway and Parchment had run in the same heat and semi-final prior to the final, with the American winning both, before falling short in the all-important race.

"I think the anxiousness and the nerves got the better of me towards the end and I got sloppy with my form," Holloway said. "He got me this time but I'll make sure I get him in the next."

He added: "Hats off to Hansle for an amazing race. I was watching him when I was in high school. He's a hell of a competitor. He has an amazing race plan, he executed to the best of his ability."

Parchment admitted he learned from losing to Holloway in the previous two runs.

"I made some changes to my start, because I knew if I was going to catch up, I had to be closer in the first half," Parchment said. "I think I ran through pretty well. I maintained composure. It was a great race."

Portugal's Pedro Pichardo earned gold medal glory with a national record 17.98m in the men's triple jump.

Pichardo's triumphant effort came with his third attempt, while China's Zhu Yaming claimed silver with a personal best of 17.57m. Burkina Faso's Hugues Fabrice Zango took the bronze with 17.47m.

USA's defending champion Ryan Crouser threw an Olympic record 23.30m to win the men's shot put gold.

Crouser bettered the Olympic mark he set five years ago in Rio de Janeiro to win from countryman Joe Kovacs (22.65m), while New Zealand's Tomas Walsh (22.47m) claimed bronze.

EARLY SCARE AS USA REACH FINAL

The United States trailed by 15 points in the second quarter against Australia but rallied to qualify for the men's basketball gold medal match.

USA won 97-78 over Australia, who have never won an Olympic medal in men's basketball having finished fourth four times.

The Boomers had raced to a commanding position early on as Team USA struggled from beyond the arc.

Yet the reigning Olympic champions reduced the margin to three points by half-time and went up several gears with a 32-10 third quarter.

Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant top-scored again with 23 points and nine rebounds, while Devin Booker had 20 points.

USA will face either France or Slovenia in the final as they chase a fourth straight gold medal.

CARRINGTON MAKES NEW ZEALAND HISTORY

New Zealand's Lisa Carrington added a third Tokyo 2020 gold medal to her haul, landing the title in the women's kayak single 500m final.

Carrington claimed her fifth-ever Olympic gold with a strong victory in 1:51.216, from Hungary's Tamara Csipes and Denmark's Emma Jorgensen.

She becomes the first athlete from New Zealand to win five Olympic gold medals, surpassing the four of Ian Ferguson, also in canoe sprint between 1984 and 1988.

Carrington is the fourth woman at Tokyo 2020 to win three gold medals, after Australian swimmers Emma McKeon (four) and Kaylee McKeown (three) and South Korean archer An San (three).

GERMAN ADDS GOLD IN OPEN WATER

After winning bronze in the 1,500m in the pool, Germany's Florian Wellbrock won the men's marathon swimming in open water.

Wellbrock won in one hour, 48 minutes and 33.7 seconds across 10 kilometres, finishing 25.3 seconds ahead of Hungary's Kristof Rasovszky for silver, with Italy's Gregorio Paltrinieri earning bronze.

The size of the German's victory was the biggest margin in Olympic marathon swimming history.

“It’s a little bit unreal," Wellbrock said. "The first seven (kilometres) of this race felt really easy."

AUSSIE SKATEBOARDING WINNER

Keegan Palmer won Australia's first-ever skateboarding gold medal with two amazing runs in the men's park final.

The 18-year-old's first run scored 94.04 before a throwaway second round. Palmer backed it up on his final run with a staggering top score of 95.83.

Brazilian Pedro Barros was next best with 86.14 for silver, while Cory Juneau claimed bronze with 84.13.

The event was the final skateboarding medal opportunity from the sport in its debut Olympics.

Tokyo Olympic organisers have apologised after Ukraine's artistic swimming medallists were misidentified as being Russian by a venue announcer.

The Ukraine pair of Marta Fiedina and Anastasiya Savchuk won bronze in their duet free routine event on Wednesday, finishing behind pairs from the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) and China.

However, Fiedina and Savchuk were named as ROC competitors by a French-language announcer, causing embarrassment for Tokyo 2020 chiefs.

It was a particularly unfortunate mistake given the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Tokyo 2020 organising committee spokesperson Masa Takaya said: "I would like to apologise to the team Ukraine.

"During the victory ceremony yesterday for the artistic swimming duet, there was mistakenly announced a different country and region's name for the team Ukraine who claimed the bronze medal.

"It was purely an operational mistake, so we would like to apologise for that."

Takaya did not immediately clarify that the mistake was to confuse the Ukrainians as belonging to the Russian team.

Asked for more detail, Takaya said: "French, English and Japanese, these three languages are used. The French language [should] have said team Ukraine; however, it said the ROC instead.

"Of course, people noticed that and the person in charge of the announcement apologised and there was an announcement of apology at the same time, so this was a purely operational mistake."

Tokyo Olympic organisers have apologised after Ukraine's artistic swimming medallists were misidentified as being Russian by a venue announcer.

The Ukraine pair of Marta Fiedina and Anastasiya Savchuk won bronze in their duet free routine event on Wednesday, finishing behind pairs from the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) and China.

However, Fiedina and Savchuk were named as ROC competitors by a French-language announcer, causing embarrassment for Tokyo 2020 chiefs.

It was a particularly unfortunate mistake given the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Tokyo 2020 organising committee spokesperson Masa Takaya said: "I would like to apologise to the team Ukraine.

"During the victory ceremony yesterday for the artistic swimming duet, there was mistakenly announced a different country and region's name for the team Ukraine who claimed the bronze medal.

"It was purely an operational mistake, so we would like to apologise for that."

Takaya did not immediately clarify that the mistake was to confuse the Ukrainians as belonging to the Russian team.

Asked for more detail, Takaya said: "French, English and Japanese, these three languages are used. The French language [should] have said team Ukraine; however, it said the ROC instead.

"Of course, people noticed that and the person in charge of the announcement apologised and there was an announcement of apology at the same time, so this was a purely operational mistake."

Adam Peaty hailed the achievement of 13-year-old Sky Brown, who claimed bronze for Team GB in the women's park skateboarding event at Tokyo 2020 on Wednesday.

Peaty enjoyed a stellar time in the pool in Japan, winning two gold medals and a silver, becoming the first British swimmer to defend an Olympic title in the process thanks to his victory in the men's 100m breaststroke.

The 26-year-old has now returned home to Britain, having confirmed he will take a break from the pool ahead of a gruelling schedule in 2022.

He is still keeping close tabs on Team GB's progress in Tokyo, however, and was thrilled to see youngster Brown clinch bronze in the debut Olympic sport.

Brown became Britain's youngest ever medallist as she nailed a final run at the Ariake Urban Sports Park to finish third behind Japanese duo Sakura Yosozumi and Kokona Hiraki.

Thirteen years Brown's senior, Peaty put her feat into perspective by admitting when he was her age his main focus was gaming.

"When I was 13 I was in my room all day playing RuneScape (with a bit of swimming)," Peaty tweeted.

"This is a crazy achievement, well done @skyandocean_".

Remarkably, Brown, who suffered a skull fracture in a crash in California last year, was not the youngest on the podium, with silver medallist Hiraki becoming the first athlete to win an Olympic medal prior to her 13th birthday.

Brown hopes her efforts havd inspired other prospective athletes to believe in themselves from a young age.

"I really hope I inspire some girls. I feel like people think I'm too young and I can't do it but, if you believe in yourself, you can do anything," she said.

"I believed in myself and I'm here.

"I honestly feel that accident made me stronger. That accident was pretty bad. It was a hard time for my parents and a hard time for a lot of people and coming back and getting the bronze is really cool.

"I'm really happy. It's really made me stronger."

Sydney McLaughlin admitted after watching Karsten Warholm's record-breaking men's 400m hurdles run she felt Wednesday's women's final could see records fall.

McLaughlin smashed her own world record in her gold medal-winning time of 51.46, eclipsing her previous mark of 51.90.

The American's run means both gold medal winners ran a world record in the women's 400m hurdles and men's 400m hurdles finals at Tokyo 2020.

McLaughlin said she watched Warholm win the men's equivalent in 45.94, breaking his previous mark of 46.7, with amazement.

"When I saw the time yesterday I was amazed but not surprised," she said. "I knew it was going to be a really fast race for them. It definitely shocked me and I thought tomorrow [Wednesday] is going to be something fast."

In both 400m hurdles events, the silver medal winners ran faster than the old world record. All six medal winners ran faster than the previous Olympic records in these events.

"I'd definitely say it's a fast track," McLaughlin said about Tokyo Olympic Stadium. "You can feel the difference. It's one of those tracks which gives you the energy."

Silver medalist Dalilah Muhammad also broke the previous world record with 51.58, while Femke Bol from the Netherlands claimed bronze in 52.03 – a European record.

"Anything is possible," McLaughlin said about future world records. "You have such an amazing field of women.

"The more we race each other, anything is possible. Technically there's always more to improve upon. in terms of what's possible, it's completely limitless."

McLaughlin's gold was the 1000th won in athletics in Olympic Games history (since 1896).

CUNHA TRIUMPHS IN SWIMMING MARATHON

Five-time world champion Ana Marcela Cunha claimed the gold medal in the women's 10km marathon swim.

The Brazilian touched first in 1.59.30.8, only 0.9 seconds ahead of reigning Olympic champion Sharon van Rouwendaal from the Netherlands. Australia's Kareena Lee claimed the bronze.

Cunha finished 10th in her home games in Rio but the open water swimmer dominated in warm yet good conditions with minimal wind or current at Odaiba Marine Park.

YOUNGSTERS DOMINATE SKATEBOARDING

Japanese teenager Sakura Yosozumi won the first-ever women's park skateboarding gold medal with a best score of 60.09 in her first of three runs.

Yosozumi beat out 12-year-old compatriot Kokona Hiraki who scored 59.04 in her second run.

Sky Brown scored a 56.47 in her final run to claim bronze and become Team GB's youngest ever Olympic medallist, at the age of 13 years and 28 days.

DUTCH DELIGHT IN RIO RE-MATCH

Felice Albers scored a double as the Netherlands secured their spot in the women's hockey gold medal match after a 5-1 win over reigning champions Great Britain.

In a re-match of the 2016 Rio gold medal showdown, the world number one Dutch side proved too strong, scoring twice within a minute in the second quarter to open up a 2-0 half-time lead.

The Netherlands will be the favourites in the final, when they play either India or Argentina on Friday.

Dutch coach Alison Annan said: "This was a really solid performance and when you win 5-1 in a semi-final you can only be very happy and proud of the players and the team with the performance they put together."

Olympic champion Adam Peaty was left disappointed by some of the reaction to his plans to take an extended break from swimming.

It has been another fruitful Games in Tokyo for Team GB swimmer Peaty, who claimed gold in the 100 metres breaststroke and 4x100m mixed medley, as well as a silver in the men's 4x100m medley.

After taking his overall Olympic medal tally to five, Peaty announced on Sunday that he would be taking a break from the pool to recharge the batteries ahead of a hectic 2022 schedule.

While set to miss the International Swimming League, which starts in September, he will set his sights on the World and European Championships next year, as well as the Commonwealth Games.

Peaty cited the need to protect his mental health, becoming the latest high-profile athlete to do so in recent days after Simone Biles and Ben Stokes.

He said the reaction to his announcement to over 116,000 followers on Twitter showed why there remains "such a stigma around mental health", insisting the pressures of competition make taking time out essential.

"Reading some of the comments in response to this is why we have such a stigma around mental wellbeing in sport," tweeted Peaty, who has now won a combined 31 gold medals in major competitions.

"It isn't a normal job. There is a huge amount of pressure. Money does not buy happiness.

"I'm taking a break because I've been going extremely hard for as long as I can remember. I've averaged two weeks off a year for the last seven years.

"Unfortunately, there are people out there who think they know you more than you know yourself."

Australian pool queen Emma McKeon said it felt "very surreal" as she clinched a place in the Olympic history books by becoming just the second woman to win seven medals in a single Games.

The 27-year-old finished her Tokyo 2020 campaign with a flourish by winning the 50 metres freestyle in an Olympic record of 23.81 seconds, then playing a key role in Australia's 4x100m medley squad also topping the podium.

She will head home with four golds and three bronzes, and now has the most medals by an Australian in the history of the Olympic Games.

Maria Gorokhovskaya won seven medals for the Soviet Union at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki, claiming two gold medals and five silver, and now McKeon belongs in such company in the record books.

"I never thought I'd win two gold medals in one session. I’m very happy. It is very surreal," McKeon said.

"I'm very happy with how the meet went. I've been at these kind of meets before where I've been up and down, so I knew what to expect.

"I feel like it has been a bit of a roller coaster getting a gold medal and trying to keep the emotions at bay. It will take a while to sink in because I've been focusing on myself to keep my cool. I'm very proud of myself. I wouldn't be able to do it without all the support around me."

McKeon's parents Ronald and Susie were both international swimmers, as was brother David until his recent retirement.

Setting new Australian medal records was the icing on the cake for the Wollongong native. In a single Olympics, no Australian had previously won as many as seven medals or four golds.

McKeon now has 11 Olympic medals in her career, having won a gold, two silvers and a bronze in Rio five years ago.

The Tokyo haul moves McKeon past Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones, fellow swimming greats who each won nine medals and were previously top of Australia's all-time list.

"That's also very surreal," McKeon said of the record.

"I look at the athletes who have come before me and been so impressed with what they have done and been inspired by what they have done, but I've never really looked at the stats of medal counts. It is an honour because I know I've worked so hard for it."