Photographs and composite image by Jeremy White
At the Summer Olympics, the decisive moments that decide victory or defeat often pass in the blink of an eye. In the men’s table tennis gold medal match, China’s Fan Zhendong scores with a quick shot into the corner against Sweden’s Truls Moregardh. Below we take a look back at some of the most visually impressive scenes, captured frame by frame by journalists from the New York Times.
Men’s 10-meter synchronized diving
In their final round of the men’s synchronized diving event from the 10-meter platform, three-time world champions Lian Junjie and Yang Hao of China performed a jump of four and a half somersaults to score over 100 points, a rare feat in the sport, and secure the win and the gold medal.
Photographs and composite image by Weiyi Cai
Men’s basketball
LeBron James had a solid performance in the men’s basketball quarterfinals, scoring 12 points and adding nine assists. Here he is making his classic turnaround fadeaway jump shot from the post as the USA defeated Brazil 122-87 to advance to the semifinals against Serbia.
Photographs and composite image by Bedel Saget
Bouldering and lead climbing for women
Janja Garnbret of Slovenia, the gold medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, took first place in the semifinals of women’s bouldering and lead – the combined sport climbing discipline. For her lead section shown here, she climbed almost to the top of the 15-meter route and received 96.1 out of 100 possible points.
Photographs and composite image by Weiyi Cai
Balance beam, women
Alice D’Amato of Italy scored 14.366 to win a surprise gold medal in the women’s balance beam final. Her jumps during the routine, shown below, were about a meter above the beam. Four gymnasts fell during their routines, including Simone Biles and Sunisa Lee of the United States, both of whom were expected to medal in the event but ultimately failed to make the podium.
Photographs by Bedel Saget; composite image by Jeremy White
Jump to LA 2028
The show jumping discipline of the equestrian competition measures the time that riders and their horses achieve in jumping a series of obstacles. On the grounds of the Palace of Versailles, each obstacle is decorated with French cultural references, from the Eiffel Tower to the Little Prince. The last obstacle, however, is a little different: it is dedicated to the next Summer Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles in 2028. Here, silver medalist Steve Guerdat from Switzerland and his horse Dynamix de Belheme master the final jump.
Photographs and composite image by Weiyi Cai
A big stage
The magnificent Grand Palais hosted fencing at the start of the Games and has since been converted into a taekwondo venue. Athletes were introduced on one of the grand staircases and then descended to compete in the central nave with its majestic glass roof. In this match for the bronze medal in the women’s 49 kg category, Lena Stojkovic of Croatia defeated Merve Dincel Kavurat of Turkey 2-0.
Photographs and composite image by Joe Ward
Street Skateboarding for Women
Fourteen-year-old Japanese Coco Yoshizawa lands her final trick in the women’s street skateboarding final to cap off her gold medal performance. She followed her brother into the sport at age 7 and won bronze at the World Skateboarding Tour Dubai earlier this year.
Photographs and composite image by Jeremy White
3-on-3 basketball for women
Sonja Greinacher of Germany celebrates with her teammates after winning the gold medal in 3-on-3 basketball. Germany defeated Spain after Greinacher scored a 2-pointer with 30 seconds left to secure a 17-16 victory.
Photographs and composite image by Jeremy White
Hello, Paris
The beach volleyball athletes played in front of a steady stream of enthusiastic spectators in the shadow of Paris’ most famous landmark. In the women’s quarterfinals shown here, the Australian team with Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy defeated the Swiss Zoe Verge-Depre and Esmee Bobner 21-19, 16-21 and 15-12 on August 6.
Photographs and composite image by Joe Ward
