LEILA FADEL, HOST:
OK, let's go to Paris, where Simone Biles competes for gold today and where there's trouble for the U.S. in the water.
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Americans have always been dominant at the Summer Olympics. Think about Michael Phelps in swimming. But so far in these summer games, the swimmers are struggling.
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RYAN MURPHY: You know, and really, the parity internationally, it's really competitive right now. There's so many talented athletes across the world now.
INSKEEP: Veteran American swimmer Ryan Murphy settled for bronze last night in the 100-meter backstroke.
FADEL: With me now is NPR's Brian Mann in Paris. Hi, Brian.
BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: Hey, good morning, Leila. Beautiful summer day here in Paris. Big crowds. It's going to be really hot, though, today.
FADEL: So - but there are a few gold medals for American swimmers? What's happening?
MANN: Yeah. You heard Ryan Murphy there talking about parity. The rest of the world, especially Australia, is getting better and better. The U.S. has seen stars retire, like Michael Phelps, and others are nearing the end of their careers, like Katie Ledecky. And, Leila, one other big trend that we're seeing here is that international swimmers are living and training in the U.S. Some of the big new stars in the swimming world, the future of the sport - folks like 17-year-old Canadian Summer McIntosh, who won gold last night, Leon Marchand, the Frenchman who won his first gold - these athletes have come up through the U.S. swimming system. But their gold medals are going to their home countries.
FADEL: So one more bit of trouble in the water, Brian. The men's triathlon delayed today because of poor water quality in the Seine River. Is this fixable?
MANN: Yeah, the French took a big risk trying to clean up the Seine enough that world-class athletes could swim and compete there. Organizers say it was in good shape, but then all that rain hit Paris and it flushed gunk into the river. So it's testing unsafe right now. They're going to try again tomorrow.
FADEL: Now, Simone Biles competes today in the gymnastics team finals. There have been questions about Biles' left leg possibly being injured. What do we know?
MANN: In preliminary competition, Biles had heavily taped calf and ankle. She was clearly limping. Her coaches downplayed this, Leila, describing it as a muscle issue in her calf. She is scheduled to compete in all these events, and she's looked strong, confident, really poised. The U.S. is going to face some real competition from Brazil and Italy. But if Biles shows up healthy, if she performs as brilliantly as we've seen so far, the U.S. women are heavy favorites.
FADEL: Now, a sports doping scandal involving Chinese athletes has continued to escalate in Paris. Today, U.S. lawmakers are getting involved back in Washington. What's happening there?
MANN: Boy, this just keeps getting messier. Eleven Chinese swimmers competing at these Olympics tested positive back in 2021 for banned performance-enhancing drugs. The World Anti-Doping Agency - known as WADA - is supposed to keep drugs out of international sport. But when WADA learned about those positive tests, they kept it secret. That's led to a lot of calls for reform of the anti-doping system, but it sparked this intense diplomatic fight.
Here in Paris, the International Olympic Committee is siding with WADA. And the IOC actually demanded that American officials back off, the IOC threatening to revoke Salt Lake City's award to host the Winter Games in 2034. Now, U.S. lawmakers not backing down. At a press conference today, this bipartisan group of senators and House members are expected to announce legislation pushing for big changes to WADA. And athletes are also angry over this, Leila. They want reforms to this system.
FADEL: NPR's Brian Mann is with our team in Paris covering the Olympics. Thank you, Brian.
MANN: All right, thanks, Leila.
(SOUNDBITE OF JAMMA-DEE, MNDSGN AND SWARVY'S "JAMMA'S JAM") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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