Pool Turns Green; Phelps Goes On To Win His 20th and 21st Gold Medal At Olympics, Williams Bows Out, Syrian Athlete Gets Standing Ovation

Rio Olympics doesn’t seem to see an end to the controversies. With most of the water-related sports ongoing on, or over, the situation with the polluted waterways appeared to have been relegated into the background, or so the organizers thought.

The water in one of the pools at Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre turned a bright shade of green overnight. The diving pool at the venue was a shade of glimmering blue when the men’s 10m synchronized diving final took place, but things changed before the women’s event.

The sudden change of color baffled the athletes, spectators, and the commentators. The change in the color of the Olympic pool didn’t stop the media from speculating about it. Reports suggest that the color of the pool in Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre was changed to match the color of the Brazilian flag.

This doesn’t seem like much of a feasible option. With images of the green pool spreading on social media, the whole world has started speculating on the reason for the color change, and have come out with a myriad of possibilities ranging from algae formation to oxidized copper.

The Telegraph reported that the organizers of the 2016 Rio Olympics are investigating the cause of the sudden change in the color of the diving pool. The organizing committee released a statement that they upheld the quality of the field of play and are looking into the matter.

Samples of the green pool in the Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre have been tested, and the results have made it clear that there is no danger to the athletes from stepping into the pool. The Women’s 10m synchronized diving event continued and the athletes participating in it have come out to state that the water didn’t affect their skin, nor did it smell.

The US athletes have been having a great streak at the Olympics with Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps going for the gold. The USA has extended its lead with 26 medals after the fourth day at the Rio Olympics. Michael Phelps was one of the top contenders for the country, and he delivered on the high expectations.

Phelps had the 200m butterfly event. He was competing with South Africa’s Chad le Clos, who was the reigning gold medalist in the event. Phelps and Le Clos have a bit of rivalry going on, and they have been trashing each other on the media as well. Le Clos decided to reveal his aggressive warmup routine.

Phelps refused to let any of the external goings-on outside the pool get to him when it mattered most. He continued his calm composure to defeat le Clos. Le Clos hadn’t even reached the podium when Hungary’s Tamas Kenderesi claimed the bronze in the Olympic event. Phelps got up to show the finger to the media to establish who the king of the pool was.

With the gold in the 200m butterfly event under his belt, Michael Phelps went on to participate in the 4X200m freestyle within one hour. According to CBS Sports, Phelps seemed to have encountered a small issue before the start of the event.

He ripped his swimming cap while putting it on before the Olympic event and had to don fellow country mate Conor Dwyer’s spare cap.

Tennis matches at the Olympics have seen some of the most unexpected upsets. First world number one Novak Djokovic saw his Olympic dreams shattered, and now Serena Williams has lost to Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina in the Round of 16.

The world was shocked at the way Serena Williams played the match. It lasted for only 72 minutes and was full of errors and double faults, which are uncharacteristic of a player of Serena William’s caliber.