If you were looking for nail-biting finishes,
you only had to look to Tokyo,
where the 2020 Olympic Games delivered enough photo finishes
and last-second stunners to leave hearts racing
for years to come.
Let's look back at a few of these awe-inspiring moments.
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JAPANESE OST
LOOKING BACK / MOVING FORWARD
NAIL BITER FINISHES
Australian phenom Ariarne Titmus
cemented her place in history
with her 400-meter freestyle victory
over USA's Katie Ledecky.
The American legend turned in her second-fastest time ever,
but the 20-year-old Titmus was even faster,
edging out Ledecky by less than a second
to bring home gold for Australia.
All in all, Titmus racked up four medals,
including another gold in the women's 200-meter freestyle.
And while we're in the pool, how about another barn burner?
The Games had never featured
an 800-meter freestyle event before,
but boy, was it worth the wait.
After trailing for most of the race,
USA's Bobby Finke surged ahead on the last lap
to complete an incredible comeback victory
that made him an Olympic champion forever.
Gold to Finke!
Wanna know how to make a splash?
Ask Bobby Finke.
Back on land, the men's 200-meter was stacked
with speed demons, but no one was speedier
than Andre De Grasse, who set the track on fire
to claim top honors for his native Canada.
De Grasse's run made him an all-timer,
bringing 200-meter gold to Canada for the first time
since 1928 and setting a national record in the process.
Things were no less exciting over on the badminton court.
Gutting out a marathon final set
that lasted 27 points,
Korean duo of Kim So-Yeong and Kong Hee-Yong
knocked off two-time reigning champ Japan
to move on to the semifinals.
Even after this exhausting match,
the Korean team went on to win bronze,
setting a new bar for perseverance.
Whew! Getting tired just thinking about it.
Speaking of dynamic duos and incredible perseverance,
the lightweight men's double sculls treated us
to yet another close, hard-fought match.
With everything on the line,
Irish rowers Paul O'Donovan and Fintan McCarthy
dug deep and beat out their German opponents
by just half a boat length.
McCarthy and O'Donovan have showed
why they were the big favorites.
Big bushy beards might not be aerodynamic,
but the muscle-bound Irishmen took home the gold anyway,
proving the only thing better than winning
is winning in style.
WOW MOMENTS
Now, it's back to the track, where Allyson Felix
continued adding to her hardware collection
in her 5th Olympic appearance.
After winning bronze in the 400-meter
and gold in the 4 x 400 meter relay,
Felix is now USA's
most-decorated track and field athlete.
For most of us, five Olympics worth of competition
would call for some well-earned rest,
but the machine they call Allyson Felix
only has one setting, forward.
TOKYO
Meanwhile, it was a summer of celebration
for French handball fans.
Just one day after the men upset Denmark in the finals,
the French women's team also came out on top,
breaking a mid-match tie to defeat Russia, 30 to 25.
It was an especially sweet day for the women's squad,
whose gold medal campaign represents the first
in French women's handball history.
If the narrowest victories are the most satisfying,
this Olympics delivered the goods and then some.
As these competitors push on toward even bigger goals,
and as wintertime hopefuls dream of Beijing,
how will these moments inspire you to look ahead,
gather strength, and move forward?
Check out more awesome highlights on the next episode
of Looking Back, Moving Forward.
LOOKING BACK / MOVING FORWARD
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