Tokyo Olympics 2020 (deferred to 2021)

Just watching the bbc coverage and they are making a thing of Micheal Johnson tapping Gabby Logan and it being against the rules to touch or whatever and Gabby Logan had to say they are in a "bubble", plus they are all sitting 2 metres apart as well...have they not got the memo that social distancing has ended and there can be as much physical contact and mixing as they like?  Very confused.

I love Michael Johnson, so I'm not complaining, but does anyone know why he commentates for the BBC and not an American broadcaster? I'd have assumed he'd be in high demand and have his pick of where to go, with the US ones offering more money, and presumably some other benefits of proximity to home.

Perhaps he just likes spending time with Denise Lewis (I would too), but is there more to it that I've missed?

Though it's great to see Simone Biles back I'm also glad she dropped out in such a public way. It's going to be good for the sport in the long run.

For the benefit of those who haven't been keeping up with things, gymnastics used to be in a pretty unpleasant place. Some of the coaches were appallingly abusive. A "winning is all that matters" approach made no allowance for human frailties and human feelings, and gymnasts were treated like machines. Several gymnasts suffered permanent injuries as a result of being pushed too far. A small number died.

The sport has cleaned up its act in recent years; there's a kinder, gentler style of coaching now and some dangerous elements are banned and if performed result in an automatic score of zero. But some want a return to the old days. In the United States the poor performance of the men's team in particular has led to some people calling for the return of coaches like the Karolyis because they got results. Never mind the cost of those results.

So I think it's probably one of the most important events in recent gymnastics history that a leading gymnast at an Olympic final can declare that she feels it would be unsafe to continue and have the complete backing of the other participants in the event, with coaches and retired gymnasts from around the world joining in to say that it was exactly the right call. It's not the first time someone has dropped out of a competition but this time it was at a time and a place where it can be particularly influential and people are talking about it in a way they haven't before. The Tokyo 2020 gymnasts have set a precedent that would have been unthinkable a few years ago: no event is more important than the people in it.

It’s a shame so many of the general public - who haven’t been near a gym in years, let alone gymnastics - feel they are entitled to judge Biles as lacking because she put her physical safety and mental well-being first.

I’ve seen people who literally can’t get up and down stairs without a rest in the middle suddenly turn into armchair experts about elite sporting performance. Drives me barmy!

What I’m interested in is whether previous gymnasts who have suffered this problem have kept it quiet by claiming they had other injuries stopping them competing. It’s clearly a common problem - is this the first time a gymnast has been unlucky enough to have it happen at the Olympics, or just the first time someone has been truthful about it?

On the Michael Johnson point it's worth noting that athletics isn't a particularly big sport in the US despite their success. Outside of the Olympics it struggles for coverage on TV and will rarely be on a main channel the way it is here.

Europe is where athletics is strongest, the majority of the biggest meets are held here and athletes are bigger stars. I remember a few American athletes being shocked about how big a star Jess Ennis was during the London Olympics.

Well done Simone

It was a great beam final! The Chinese athletes were fantastic and a huge well done to Simone Biles for getting out there.

Also enjoyed the diving today and was so pleased to see Jack Laugher come away with a bronze medal, very well deserved.

The cycling - gosh that crash with the Danish team was pretty nasty, that athlete had a stinking attitude and should have been disqualified - they’re very lucky he wasn’t.

Yes - a few wobbles but they managed to stay on!

That was a nasty fall in the high bar - they got fingertips on briefly then slid right off.

Just watching the Skateboarding and I feel like I have fallen into an alien universe...

I don't understand a word they are saying

#feelingold

I’m loving the speed climbing, they’re better than Spider-Man.

Anyway delighted that the 2 British women made it through to the 10m diving semi final, and the Irish woman did too.

I was watching and just shouted out nooooo when I realised what had happened. Heartbreaking for her because she was going pretty good up to that point.

Absolutely thrilled to see Ben Maher & Explosion W get the individual showjumping gold. That makes it 2 Olympics in a row for Britain, having never had individual gold prior to Nick Skelton in Rio. Also medals in 5/5 equestrian events so far at these Olympics with just the team showjumping to go.

Earlier this morning tuned in to the men's team pursuit in the track cycling after seeing Italy were in contention for the gold. I was very pleased they won so Filippo Ganna has got his gold after missing out in the time trial last week.

The rider whose horse refused twice at the first fence in the first round of the showjumping yesterday, & was therefore eliminated without getting over a single jump, also has to be in contention!