Vegas Golden Knights center Jonathan Marchessault hailed goaltender Jonathan Quick after recording his first shutout for his new side in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes.
Quick only joined VGK earlier this month via trade from the Columbus Blue Jackets, making 33 saves in the win where they scored in every period from Marchessault, Reilly Smith, Paul Cotter and Brett Howden goals.
The veteran goaltender is 3-0-0 since joining the Golden Knights, playing his part as the Hurricanes were shut out for the first time since November 23.
"Quick was unbelievable tonight," Marchessault told reporters. "We're able to get him the shutout. That's something the team should be really proud to do for him.
"It's easy to get a guy like that going in your locker room. He's such a good veteran. He's been around for a long time and we're lucky to have him."
The win was 40-20-6 Vegas' fifth from their past six games, while it snapped the Hurricanes' four-game winning streak, leaving them 43-13-8.
Marchessault added: "I thought we were pretty good. They had a strong first period but I thought we kept a lot of their chances to the outside. Definitely a lot of positives today."
The result sees VGK improve their record to 40-20-6 to remain top of the Pacific Division, clinching their second win in the third game of their five-game road trip.
The Golden Knights won 4-3 in overtime at the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, having lost 2-1 to the Florida Panthers on Tuesday, with games against the St Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers to come.
"That's a pretty tough road trip," Marchessault said. "To get two wins out of those three teams is really good for our group.
"We've got a few guys down so we need guys to step up which is what we're doing now.
"We've got to be ready to go back out there tomorrow and do the same thing."
Jonathan Quick was reported to be unhappy with the trade that took him away from the Los Angeles Kings this week, but he was soon back at the top of the Pacific Division.
Goaltender Quick was included in a trade deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets as the Kings moved for Joonas Korpisalo.
A two-time Stanley Cup champion in LA, Quick paid the price for a difficult season but was said to have remained in the city amid frustration at his departure.
Rather than heading to Columbus, he will instead make the shorter trip to Las Vegas after the Golden Knights agreed their own trade with the Blue Jackets.
Starting Golden Knights netminder Logan Thompson is out injured, potentially presenting the opportunity for Quick to come straight into the team.
The veteran's new Golden Knights team-mates are tied with the Kings at the top of the division.
Vegas will play the Kings once more this season, on April 6.
Patrick Kane described making his debut for the New York Rangers as "pretty cool" but saw considerable room for improvement after a 5-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators.
Kane's trade this week from the Blackhawks marked the end of an era, with his 16-season stint in Chicago having included three Stanley Cup triumphs.
The first overall pick in the 2007 draft has still been performing at a high level in this campaign, ranking second at Chicago this season in goals (16) and points (45).
He has left a team at the foot of the Central Division for the Rangers, who sit third in the Metropolitan Division, and Kane received a warm welcome at Madison Square Garden.
"It was awesome. The crowd and coming out for warm-ups and the pre-game introduction, just the first game as a Ranger, it was a pretty cool experience," Kane said.
"Obviously I would have liked to play a little bit better and come out with a win, but hopefully it will come.
"I haven't played in a little bit, so I'm maybe a little bit rusty, but excited to get feeling good with this team.
"I'm excited to be here and excited to get better and play better for my teammates."
It was his first game since February 22, with Kane unable to prevent the Rangers (35-18-9) sliding to a loss to the Senators (31-26-4).
Rangers coach Gerard Gallant, quoted on the NHL website, said: "There was some good and there was a lot of bad, but there was some real good stuff too.
"They were good five-on-five for the most part, but I thought the power play hurt us, just trying to be too pretty and too many passes. Bottom line is you have to put the puck in the net, and we didn't do that."
Kane is hoping for better against the Boston Bruins on Saturday and over coming games as he begins to find his way.
"It'll be nice to settle in, get a couple of practices and kind of understand the way they want to play systematically, with the puck, offensive zone, things like that," he said. "They haven't given me too much yet, just telling me to go out there and play."
Boston Bruins coach Jim Montgomery has learned to normalise the success of his team this season, even as they made NHL history on Thursday.
In beating the Buffalo Sabres 7-1, the Bruins improved to 48-8-5 and 101 points for the year.
The Bruins passed 100 points in their 61st game, beating the previous record set by the 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens, who reached that mark in 62 games.
But Montgomery was relatively unmoved by the achievement, having grown used to his brilliant team setting the benchmark over the course of the campaign.
"For me personally, it doesn't mean that much," the Boston coach said. "We try to stay in the moment, and we've been doing that.
"We started off 11-1, and I was like, 'man, that's unreal,' and then you catch yourself and you go back into the moment, and we've probably gone 11-1 every 12 games to have the record we have.
"It's been really amazing to watch them want to be great, because with the schedule and everything, it's really impressive."
The latest win came on an eventful day for the Bruins, who tied David Pastrnak to an eight-year, $90million extension earlier on Thursday.
Pastrnak then had a goal and two assists against the Sabres just hours later.
The Bruins also traded for forward Tyler Bertuzzi from the Detroit Red Wings ahead of Friday's deadline.
It is the end of an era in Chicago with the Blackhawks sending superstar Patrick Kane to the New York Rangers.
The trade, which had been expected for days, was reported by several media outlets on Tuesday.
In return for the three-time Stanley Cup winner, the Rangers are sending the Blackhawks a 2023 second-round draft pick and a fourth-round pick. The second-round selection will become a first-rounder in either 2024 or 2025 if the Rangers reach this year's Eastern Conference Finals.
Kane leaves the Blackhawks as one of the greatest players in franchise history.
He was instrumental to their dynasty in the 2010s, helping the club to Stanley Cup titles in 2010, 2013 and 2015. He scored the championship-clinching goal against the Philadelphia Flyers in overtime of Game 6 of the 2010 Finals, while winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs in 2013.
The 34-year-old Kane had spent his entire 16-season NHL career with the Blackhawks after being selected first overall in the 2007 draft.
The nine-time All-Star ranks second all-time in franchise history with 1,225 points, while his 446 goals are third-most by a Blackhawk. He also ranks third in franchise history in games played (1,161) and fourth in power-play goals (122).
As a 19-year-old rookie in 2007-08, Kane made an immediate impact in the NHL, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's top first-year player.
Eight years later in 2015-16, Kane won the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP as well as the Art Ross Trophy as scoring champion.
He is still performing at a high level, ranking second on Chicago this season in goals (16) and points (45), but the Blackhawks have the second-fewest points in the Western Conference and are in full rebuild mode.
Kane is in the final year of an eight-year, $84million contract he signed in 2014 and had a no-trade clause, so he had a choice in where he could be traded.
With the Rangers, who are in third place in the Metropolitan Division, he will be reunited with Artemi Panarin, who leads New York with 67 points.
Kane and Panarin were team-mates in Chicago for two seasons – including Kane's MVP and scoring champion season of 2015-16.
The Jamaica Men’s National Field Hockey Team secured automatic qualification to the 2023 Central American & Caribbean (CAC) Games by placing 1st at the recently concluded CAC qualifiers in Bermuda from April 14th – 17th.
Jamaica’s Richard Harris was voted Most Valuable Player with Brandon Clark getting an award for leading Goal Scorer in the tournament.
The Female team played extremely well but were unfortunate to end the tournament in 3rd position on four (4) points, with Bermuda and Puerto Rico, first and second respectively on seven (7) and five (5) points respectively. Jamaica’s Shakira Elliot copped the award for the leading goal scorer for the tournament.
The Women’s team still have the possibility of qualification, based on the fact that the Games have now been moved from El Salvador to Dominican Republic, whose women team have already qualified. This creates another qualifying position that would have been reserved for the host country. Therefore, according to Alberto "Coco" Budeisky the President of the Pan American Hockey Federation that qualifying spot will/should be awarded to the 3rd place (Jamaica) from the Bermuda Qualifiers.
“This was possible only through the tremendous partnership with the Jamaica Olympics Association (JOA) based on assistance with the delivery of our continued coaching development programs, provision of strategic guidance and the contribution of critical resources for tournament participation. Thanks to the stewardship of JOA’s President Christopher Samuda, and Managing Director, Ryan Foster and the entire JOA staff, Jamaica Hockey Federation (JHF) will now be represented in the CAC Games in the Dominican Republic in June 2023,” said the JHF in a statement.
The NHL has postponed another three games this week as cases of COVID-19 continues to hit the league.
Games between the Chicago Blackhawks and Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday and a home-and-home set between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday and Friday will not be played.
That takes the number of games the NHL has now postponed up to 67 this season; a situation that led to the decision not to take part in the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
The league had planned to pause the season in February to allow players to take part in the Games, but that period will now be used to play some of the postponed games.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said last week: "We obviously will work very close with the (NHL) Players' Association. I do think we'll have to build in some off time during that three-week period for the players as they had anticipated previously.
"There are a lot of boxes to check there, but I expect that we'll be able to portion some portion of that break period to various clubs to get their players rested, and I hope to make full utilisation of the period so that we can make up the games that we've missed."
The National Hockey League will begin its Christmas break early due to coronavirus-related postponements.
The league announced Monday that it will pause games for five days beginning Wednesday, with the schedule set to resume December 27.
With that move, the final games before the break are set for Tuesday, with the Washington Capitals visiting the Philadelphia Flyers and the Vegas Golden Knights hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The other eight games set to be played Tuesday already had been postponed due to COVID-19.
Four of the five games scheduled for Monday also were postponed, with only the Dallas Stars-Minnesota Wild game taking place.
The early break will officially wipe out all 19 games scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, all but five of which already had been called off.
Players are now set to report back to their teams on December 26 for testing, practice and travel. All members of a team's travelling party must have a negative COVID-19 test before entering a team facility upon return.
Monday's decision came a day after the league said it would pause all games that involved cross-border travel between the United States and Canada, in addition to multiple individual teams being shut down due to positive COVID-19 tests.
"With the number one priority of maintaining the health and safety of our NHL community, and amid changing and unpredictable conditions, we are determined to remain flexible and adaptable both in terms of scheduling and in adjusting protocols as necessary," the league said in a statement Sunday.
Elaine Thompson-Herah completed a stunning sprint hat-trick at the Tokyo Olympics as Italy enjoyed further success on the track on Friday.
Having won both the 100m and 200m individual finals, Thompson-Herah was part of the impressive Jamaica team, alongside Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson and Briana Williams, that won the women’s 4x100m relay, finishing ahead of the United States.
No female athlete had been victorious in all three sprint events at a Games since American Florence Griffith Joyner back in 1988.
Thompson-Herah now has five Olympic golds in total, one behind Allyson Felix, who added to her collection with a bronze medal in a 400m race won convincingly by Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas.
After success in the 100m, Marcell Jacobs doubled his tally of golds from the Games as part of Italy’s 4x100m relay squad that pipped Great Britain on the line.
However, it was Filippo Tortu who ran an outstanding final leg for the Italians, seeing him edge out Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake on the line.
ITALIAN JOB SECURES MORE GOLD
Italy's relay triumph takes them up to five golds in athletics – they had never previously won more than three at a single Olympics. It is the first time they have made the podium in the 4x100m relay since a bronze in 1948.
"This is the year of Italy, this is our year," said a delighted Jacobs. "We won the Eurovision, we won the football European championships, we won five gold medals (in athletics)."
Also in Friday's action on the track, Joshua Cheptegei triumphed in the men's 5000m final while Faith Kipyegon claimed gold in the women's 1500m, with Sifan Hassan – who had won the 5000m – finishing third. She has a chance to claim another medal when running in the 10,000m on Saturday.
"I am very happy with my race. I tried my best, but I couldn't do more than this," Hassan said after her bid to complete an Olympic treble came to an end.
"I think, for me, the third place is good. There was a lot of wind at the stadium today and that is what made it difficult for me. I can't do anything about that, I just didn't have any more strength.
"For now, it is all about taking enough rest in order to be able to race again tomorrow."
KENNY KEEPS ADDING TO COLLECTION
Laura Kenny now has five Olympic gold medals after teaming up with Katie Archibald to win the madison for Great Britain.
The pair were dominant in the inaugural women's event, finishing up with 78 points. Denmark were a distant second on 35, with the Russian Olympic Committee taking bronze.
Kenny had already managed a silver in Tokyo in the women's pursuit, with this latest Olympic medal taking her to six. Only dressage rider Charlotte Dujardin can match that tally for a British woman.
"When I fell pregnant, there was a moment two months into the pregnancy where I woke up and said to Jason (Kenny, husband and fellow Olympian), 'I can't do this, I'm not going to be able to carry on (with cycling), there's just no way'. And here we are," said Kenny.
There was a one-two result for the Netherlands in the men's sprint, Harrie Lavreysen seeing off compatriot Jeffrey Hoogland in a tense final. Britain's Jack Carlin claimed the final spot on the podium.
GROSSO HITS THE SPOT
Canada held their nerve in a penalty shoot-out to become Olympic champions for the first time in women's football, overcoming Sweden in a dramatic final.
Julia Grosso slotted in the winning kick to secure a 3-2 triumph after Canada goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe had twice made crucial saves. Sweden had the chance to win it with their fifth attempt, only for captain Caroline Seger to fire over the crossbar.
In the men's tournament, Mexico defeated Japan 3-1 in the bronze medal game.
"We wanted to win a medal at these Olympic Games, so I feel very thankful," said Mexico coach Jaime Lozano. "In football, this is the most important day in my life. What we have experienced today will be with us for the rest of our lives."
ANNAN ACHIEVES A FIRST
In the women's hockey final, the Netherlands claimed a record fourth title as they defeated Argentina 3-1.
The result sees Alyson Annan become the first woman to get a gold as both a player and a head coach.
"It's nice but it's not why I do this," Annan said of that achievement. "My goal as a coach is to hopefully be a part of someone's career and have them look back and say 'That was a great time and I learned a lot and I became a better player and a better person'.
"For me it's not about the gold medal. That's for them."
Great Britain took bronze with a 4-3 win over India.
April Ross completed her set of Olympic medals as she teamed with Alix Klineman to defeat Australia's Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho to win another beach volleyball gold for the USA.
The American duo, dubbed the "A-Team", rolled to a 21-15 21-16 victory at sweltering Shiokaze Park for the USA's fourth gold in the event. Brazil, Australia and Germany are the only other countries to win, claiming one gold each.
Ross, 39, became the oldest woman to medal in beach volleyball as she added to the silver medal she won with partner Jennifer Kessy at London 2012 and her bronze with Kerri Walsh Jennings at Rio 2016.
She is the first person to win a beach volleyball medal with three different partners. Klineman, 31, moved from indoor volleyball to the beach in 2017 and began playing with Ross late that year, a partnership that culminated in gold in Tokyo.
"I'm still trying to process it but I'm so in the present moment here with this team and this medal," Ross said. "I'm so proud of my other ones but just how this worked out, and the risks that Alix took to come out onto the beach and all her hard work … it doesn't happen without that.
"I can't fathom that it worked out the way it did. It's kind of a fairytale story like, 'Oh, I'm going at 39 to try and get my gold medal', and the fact that it actually happened feels so special and surreal. I'm just so proud of our team and so grateful for everyone who helps us get here.”
Switzerland's Joana Heidrich and Anouk Verge-Depre won bronze earlier Friday by defeating Latvia's Tina Graudina and Anastasija Kravcenoka 21-19 21-15.
ANOTHER HOCKEY MEDAL FOR TEAM GB
While they were disappointed not to be able to defend their hockey gold from Rio, Great Britain's women will leave Tokyo with bronze after a second-half comeback to defeat India 4-3.
Grace Balsdon's goal off a penalty corner in the 48th minute was the difference for Team GB, who took a 2-0 lead before falling behind 3-2 at the half.
Hollie Pearne-Webb equalised five minutes into the third quarter, just the fourth goal of her career.
"It probably sums up our whole cycle, that match," said Laura Unsworth. "We start well, and then we have a bit of a dip, then we come back well. That game was probably our cycle.
"But I think the resilience and the fight in our team came out, and we weren't going to walk off this pitch without giving our all and that's certainly what we did."
Unsworth, 33, was part of Britain's Rio team and the London 2012 squad that won bronze.
"When I first started as a little girl I don't think I could have dreamed of that," Unsworth said. "I've got to thank all of my team-mates, every single one of them who has been a part of these medals.
"But wow, I think I can retire a very, very, very happy person."
POLAND'S TOMALA TAKES GOLD IN 'BORING' 50K WALK
Dawid Tomala revived Poland's 50km race walk tradition, taking the gold medal Friday by 36 seconds over Jonathan Hilbert of Germany while Evan Dunfee of Canada was 51 seconds back for the bronze.
Tomala finished in three hours, 50 minutes, eight seconds to become his nation's second champion in the event after Robert Korzeniowski won gold in 1996, 2000 and 2004.
"The first 30km was so easy for me," Tomala said. "It was easy like [a] slow training [session]. Everything was amazing, Too perfect. So I was thinking maybe we can do something. The 50km is so boring, I have to do something [and move ahead of the field]."
The 31-year-old Tomala usually competes in the 20km race walk and had finished only one other 50km race prior to Friday, placing fifth at Dudince, Slovakia in March.
"This was only the second 50km in my life and I win it," he said. "It is crazy, right?"
The United States cut China's lead at the top of the medal table to five as they collected four golds on day 13 of the Games.
Coming into Thursday's events, China boasted a seven-gold buffer as leaders but that was reduced by the USA's Katie Nageotte in the women's pole vault and Ryan Crouser in the men's shot put – the latter of which became a back-to-back Olympic champion.
More golds followed for the USA, with Nevin Harrison winning the women's single canoe 200m sprint – her country's first medal in either canoe or kayak sprint since 1992 – and David Taylor succeeding in the men's 86kg freestyle wrestling in the last second.
After shooting a blank the previous day, China ensured a five-gold gap going into Friday as the women's table tennis team continued their dominance, overcoming Japan to secure their fourth gold in four consecutive Games.
The table-toppers have now won all four of the women's diving events in Tokyo, too, as 14-year-old Quan Hongchan set a world record in the 10m platform, making it a China one-two with fellow teenager Chen Yuxi.
Defending Olympic champion Risako Kawai, who is also a three-time world champion, triumphed once more in the women's 57kg wrestling freestyle, meaning early leaders Japan remain in third with a gold count of 22.
Australia suffered shoot-out heartbreak in the men's hockey final but climbed up to fourth with men's kayak double 1000m sprint success and their first-ever Olympic gold medal in skateboarding, courtesy of Keegan Palmer's park win.
Their 17 gold medals at the Games with three days to go equalled Australia's best-ever haul, matching the total they collected at Athens in 2004.
The Russian Olympic Committee leaped up a spot to fifth as Zaur Uguev was crowned champion in the men's 57kg wrestling freestyle and Albert Batyrgaziev fought to gold in the men's featherweight boxing.
Great Britain, who now boast 16 medals after winning just the one event on Thursday, slipped back down to sixth position with Matthew Walls' omnium gold ending Team GB's frustrating unsuccessful spell in the cycling track events.
Nine-time Olympic gold medallist Carl Lewis did not hold back in his criticism of the United States' performance in the men's 4x100 metres relay at Tokyo 2020.
Team USA have not won the event in 21 years and though they entered Thursday's heat as one of the favourites, they failed to qualify for the final.
It is the first time Team USA have failed to reach the Olympic final since 2008, though they have hardly had much fortune in the event since their success in Sydney.
Indeed, they have only once made it to the finish line cleanly, without any mistakes, when they claimed silver at London 2012. That medal, however, was conceded in the wake of Tyson Gay's doping ban.
This time around, a team including three of the fastest men in the world over 100m in 2021, fared little better.
Trayvon Bromell, Fred Kerley, Ronnie Baker and Cravon Gillespie finished sixth in the heat with a time of 38.10 seconds.
"We just didn't get the job done today," Kerley said. "That's all."
Sprinting great Lewis, who won two golds in the 4x100m relay, hit out at what he labelled a "clown show".
"The USA team did everything wrong in the men’s relay," Lewis wrote on Twitter. "The passing system is wrong, athletes running the wrong legs, and it was clear that there was no leadership. It was a total embarrassment, and completely unacceptable for a USA team to look worse than the AAU kids I saw."
He then expanded on his criticism in an interview with USA Today.
"This was a football coach taking a team to the Super Bowl and losing 99-0 because they were completely ill-prepared," Lewis said.
"It's unacceptable. It's so disheartening to see this because it’s people's lives. We're just playing games with people's lives. That's why I’m so upset. It's totally avoidable.
"America is sitting there rooting for the United States and then they have this clown show. I can't take it anymore. It's just unacceptable. It is not hard to do the relay."
HISTORY MADE BY SPAIN
Sport climbing and karate were two of the sports introduced for the Tokyo Games, and the first medals in each were won by Spanish athletes.
At the age of 39 years and 323 days, Sandra Sanchez became Spain's oldest Olympic champion as she triumphed in the women's kata, breaking the record set by Joan Llaneras in the velodrome in 2008.
Sanchez also became the first Spanish woman to clinch gold in martial arts since judoka Isabel Fernandez did so in 2000.
Her triumph was followed up by golds for France's Steven da Costa and Bulgaria's Ivet Goranova in the men's and women's kumite respectively.
At the opposite end of the spectrum to Sanchez, 18-year-old Alberto Gines Lopez became the youngest male Spanish athlete to strike gold at the Games as he pipped Nathaniel Coleman and Jakob Schubert in the sport climbing men's combined final.
"I think it will help the sport to grow, and for it to get more support. We need good installations in order to help the sport, and I think this will bring more support to the sport," the teenager said, before revealing his plans of celebration: "I'm going to break my diet. And then call my family and friends."
FOURNIER PREPPED FOR 'THE MOST COMPLICATED MATCH'
Team USA and France will meet in the final of the men's basketball competition, as the two favourites go head-to-head for gold.
Luka Doncic's shooting was off as Slovenia fell to an agonising 90-89 defeat to France, who beat the USA in the pool stage.
The European Champions, who also defeated the USA in the 2019 FIBA World Cup, now face a rematch against a side that has scored over 90 points in the last four games.
Evan Fournier, whose 23 points was second behind only team-mate Nando de Colo, knows what is in store.
"It represents a real step towards a dream, and the dream is to win the Olympics against the United States," said Fournier, who has just swapped the Boston Celtics for the New York Knicks.
"We have to rest and not let our minds wander, and prepare as much as possible, because there's a team waiting for us. They've prepared for us for two years, apparently, and because we beat them in the pool it will be worse, so it will be the most complicated match of the competition for us without any doubt."
SHOOT-OUT GLORY FOR BELGIUM
Beaten finalists in 2016, Belgium claimed their first hockey gold, and only their second in an Olympic team sport, after their men beat Australia 3-2 in a shoot-out.
Goalkeeper Vincent Vanasch was the hero in dramatic circumstances.
He made two saves before then denying Jacob Whetton, only for Belgium's celebrations to be cut short by a referral. However, Vanasch stood firm for a second time.
The shoot-out drama followed a 1-1 draw, with Tom Wickham having cancelled out Florent van Aubel's opener.
"What a feeling. You become Olympic champion, but twice [because of the referral] It's unusual," Vanasch said. "We had to calm down and go again. We knew that.
"I'm like a musician, it's a rehearsal and then you come to the concert and it comes naturally. That's how I come on the pitch. I'm composed, but also I trust myself, I trust my reflexes."
Australia have now won seven men's hockey medals across the last eight Games, while Belgium won their first gold in a team event since the 1920 Antwerp Olympics, when their men's football team triumphed.
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."
Norway's Karsten Warholm smashed the world record in the men's Olympic 400 metres hurdles final, breaking the 46-second barrier on the way to gold medal glory.
Warholm finished in 45.94 seconds, well ahead of his own previous record mark of 46.70. USA's Rai Benjamin claimed silver in 46.17, also beating the old world record, with Alison dos Santos taking bronze in 46.72.
"It's by far the biggest moment of my life," Warholm said. "It defines everything, all the hours I put in, everything that my coach has been working for.
"With all the respect for all the athletes, there are athletes that were not good that will get an Olympic gold. Rai running 46.17 would deserve a gold medal. It is crazy, it is just an honour to be a part of it. I never thought in my wildest imagination that this would be possible."
Asked about his dash to the line in the closing metres, Warholm added: "I couldn't even feel my legs. I knew I had a crazy American trying to catch me, so I ran for my life."
Germany's Malaika Mihambo admitted she could not watch the finale to the women's long jump as she won gold.
Mihambo took the lead with a jump of 7.00m with her final attempt before USA's Brittney Reese and Nigeria's Ese Brume had their last jumps.
Neither could better the leading mark, with Reese settling for silver with 6.97 metres on countback ahead of Brume.
"It was really hard to watch, so I tried to just have a sneak peek on the display and see how far it was," Mihambo said.
"I really don't like this position where you cannot do anything about it, and you just have to let the girls do what they're able to do. You have to wait, so it was a horrible moment, but at least it was short.
“I feel overwhelmed. It was, I think, the most exciting women’s long jump competition in history."
DURANT DOMINATES AS USA SURVIVE SCARE
The United States did not have it all their way but triumphed 95-81 over Spain to seal a spot in the men's basketball semi-finals.
Spain led by as much as 10 points in the second quarter before USA drew level by half-time and accelerated in the second half. Spain again closed within four points of the gold medal favourites in the final quarter, inspired by Ricky Rubio's 38 points.
Kevin Durant excelled for Team USA, with 29 points and four assists, while Jrue Holiday contributed 12 points and five assists as they capitalised on a 17-9 turnover differential.
USA lost to Australia and Nigeria in exhibition games prior to Tokyo 2020 before losing their Olympics opener to France but have since steadied.
The winner of Australia-Argentina will play USA in the semi-finals on Thursday.
NBA duo Zoran Dragic (27 points, six rebounds and four assists) and Luka Doncic (20 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists) starred as Slovenia also progressed to the semi-finals with a 94-70 win over Germany.
CARRINGTON'S GOLD KAYAKING DOUBLE
New Zealand's Lisa Carrington had a golden day in the kayaking, remarkably winning two gold medals within an hour.
Carrington won her third straight gold in the women's kayak single 200m with an Olympic best time of 38.12 seconds, ahead of Spain's Teresa Portela and Denmark's Emma Jorgensen.
The New Zealander backed up alongside Caitlin Regal to win the women's kayak double 500m final with a world best time of 1:35.785.
Carrington joined fellow kayakers Ian Ferguson and Paul MacDonald and equestrian great Sir Mark Todd as the only New Zealanders to have won five medals at the Olympic Games.
The 32-year-old may win more medals too, competing in the K1 500 event which starts on Wednesday.
“Today was about taking just one race at a time," Carrington said. "There's a plan, and it was just about executing it. For me, it was just trying to stay in the moment and doing the best I can. We've worked really hard and knew today was going to be a big day.”
HENDRICKX POWERS BELGIUM INTO HOCKEY FINAL
World champions Belgium qualified for the gold medal match of the men's hockey after a commanding final quarter sealed a 5-2 win over India.
Belgium piled on three fourth-quarter goals to guarantee a medal in the decider where they will face either Australia or Germany.
Alexander Hendrickx scored a hat-trick including two of the Red Lions' goals in the final quarter after India had fought back from an early deficit to lead 2-1 at quarter-time.
Drag flick expert Hendrickx has scored an unrivalled 14 goals during Belgium's Tokyo 2020 campaign, eight clear of the next best, Australia's Blake Govers.
Hendrickx said: "It's really a team job that comes together. It's my name on the scoresheet, but it's a team job."
World number one Australia and sixth-ranked Germany meet later on Tuesday to determine the other gold medal match finalist.
Soufiane El Bakkali ended Kenya's dominance in the men's 3000m steeplechase by claiming a first Olympic gold medal for Morocco in any sport since 2004.
The Kenyans have set the standard in this event in recent times, winning gold at each of the previous nine Games.
But El Bakkali put paid to that streak, claiming victory ahead of Ethiopia's Lamecha Girma as Benjamin Kigen collected a bronze for Kenya.
The last Moroccan to claim prevail sport was Hicham El Guerrouj, who won the men's 1500m and 5000m in Athens 17 years ago.
"I am so used to seeing Kenyans win, it's a big accomplishment for me," El Bakkali said.
"I have been aiming for this for years and this was my opportunity to show that Morocco is capable of winning this prize in front of the Kenyans.
"I have tried so many times to compare myself with the Kenyans and Ethiopians to see whether I could reach this gold, and I did."
HASSAN HAT-TRICK BID ON TRACK
Sifan Hassan is aiming to become the first athlete to win a 1500m, 5000m and 10,000m treble at a single Olympic Games.
The Ethiopian-born Dutchwoman, who recovered from a fall to get through her 1500m heat earlier in the day, got her bid off to an outstanding start with victory in the 5000m on Monday.
"After I fell down, it cost me a lot of energy, I went home and I wanted to sleep," said Hassan, who claimed the Netherlands' first Olympic gold in athletics since 1992.
"Many people think I am crazy. I think also I am crazy. Many people think this is crazy and I am not even going to get one medal.
"Life is not about the gold, the winner; it's also about following your heart."
CANADA END TEAM USA HOODOO TO REACH FINAL
Canada sensationally ended a 36-game winless run against the United States, Jessie Fleming's penalty securing a place in the women's football final.
The Canadians had not beaten Team USA – four-time Olympic gold medallists – since March 11, 2001.
However, their luck changed with Fleming's 74th-minute penalty settling the semi-final after VAR ruled that Tierna Davidson had fouled Deanne Rose.
Canada's reward is a gold-medal showdown with Sweden, who beat Australia 1-0 thanks to Fridolina Rolfo's second-half strike.
On a brighter note for the United States away from football, it was announced Simone Biles will take part in Tuesday's balance beam final.
FOUR-MIDABLE LOPEZ
Mijain Lopez became the first male Greco-Roman wrestler to win four gold medals at the Olympics after defeating Georgia's Iakobi Kajaia in the 130kg final.
His success saw him receive a congratulatory call from Cuba president Miguel Diaz-Canel, while he did not rule out carrying on through to Paris 2024 either.
"I feel happy, proud to be the best in the world and make history," Lopez said.
"I've had a long career, working hard to make these goals and break this record.
"I've been working so hard to get to this point. Being able to break this record today for me is a great achievement, because I've faced the best and I can be proud."
DEJA VU IN THE WOMEN’S HOCKEY
Having contested the 2016 final in Rio, Great Britain and the Netherlands will face off again at the Games - this time in a mouth-watering last-four showdown.
Team GB required a shoot-out to see off Spain following a 2-2 draw, with Hannah Martin and Sarah Jones scoring their efforts while goalkeeper Maddie Hinch produced heroics to seal a 2-0 success.
Martin said: "It's a huge moment for us to get to those medal matches. We're just over the moon.
"Maddie was absolutely exceptional in there. We knew she had it and the feeling was utter elation. I couldn't get to her quick enough."
As for the Netherlands, they enjoyed a comfortable 3-0 win over New Zealand.
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