Seeking a New Trial, Jerry Sandusky Denies Abusing Boys

The version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” being played at medal ceremonies in Rio is grating on some close listeners.

Gymnastics All-Around: Are Simone Biles and Aly Raisman Unstoppable?
What to look for as the competition begins Thursday with the American women heavily favored.

Long Swims Are Boring? Not When Katie Ledecky Is Racing the Clock
Ledecky will try to add to her gold medal haul when she swims the 800-meter freestyle, an event she has made “edge-of-your-seat, must-see TV,” an NBC producer said.

Golf Isn’t Big in Brazil. So Rio Organizers Took Lessons From the U.S.
Olympic officials and security experts made dozens of trips to tournaments in the United States to learn the etiquette and nuances of the game.

Olympics Briefing: Kohei Uchimura Repeats in the All-Around, by a Fraction of a Point
The Japanese gymnast, a six-time world champion, finished less than a tenth of a point ahead of Oleg Verniaiev of Ukraine.

U.S. Women Stay Perfect in Olympic Field Hockey, Routing Japan
Unfazed by rain, the Americans scored two early goals en route to a 6-1 victory that guaranteed a spot in the quarterfinals. They will play Britain on Saturday for first place in their group.

Sports Briefing: With Tears in His Eyes, Prince Fielder Says Goodbye to Rangers
Fielder, the Texas Rangers slugger, wept Wednesday as he said that health issues were forcing him to end his 12-season major league career.

Green and Gold
The changing color of the water in two pools drew attention at the Rio Olympics, but the color of the most treasured medal was more important in athletes’ minds.

Mets Call Up Infielder T. J. Rivera From Class AAA Las Vegas
The Bronx native was leading the Pacific Coast League with a .349 batting average this season.

Girardi Shows Strain of Handling Rodriguez’s Last Days as a Yankee
Manager Joe Girardi said he was “partially angry” with the continued questioning of his decisions on how much Alex Rodriguez should play before his imminent release.

Giants’ New Coach Ben McAdoo Sets a Practice Rhythm
McAdoo keeps the music booming during training camp, and even lets his players sleep in.

As Olympic Viewership Falls, NBC Thinks of the Bigger Picture
NBC has done better since the opening ceremony, when viewership fell 35 percent compared with four years ago.

Kristin Armstrong Registers Two Cycling Firsts by Winning a Third Straight Gold
The American Kristin Armstrong became the first person to win the same Olympic cycling event three times in a row and the oldest female cycling gold medalist.

Katie Ledecky Leads U.S. to Gold Medal in 4 x 200 Relay
It was the team’s fifth victory in the relay since that event became a part of the Olympic program in 1996.

Sports of The Times: In Brazil, Where Men’s Soccer Once Was King, the Women’s Game Rules
With the men’s team looking listless, the wheels of change are turning in Brazil’s macho society as fans express a respect for the women’s game, and chagrin that it took so long.

Another Pool Turns Green, and a Chemical Imbalance Is Blamed
Olympic officials said the water had turned green because alkalinity levels were thrown off by the number of people using the pool, not by, you know, something else.

Bernard Farrelly, Surfing’s First World Champion, Dies at 71
As one of the top surfers of the 1960s, Farrelly was a pop-culture figure in his native Australia, but he could be an outsider in the surfing world.

During Diving Event, Pool Transforms From Crystal Blue to Garishly Green
The water inexplicably turned green at the Olympic diving pool, just in time for the women’s synchronized 10-meter platform diving competition.

Sailing at the Rio Games? It’s Complicated, Tacticians Say
Forget the pollution. The winds and currents of the Rio Games’ unfamiliar courses — three of them in the open ocean — will test the complete sailor.

Wealthy Donors Dangle a Huge Payday in Front of U.S. Wrestlers
A fraternity of well-heeled former wrestlers has endowed the sport with rich payouts for American medalists, like $250,000 for an Olympic gold.

Seena Hamilton, a Pioneer in Youth Tennis, Is Dead at 92
A relentless publicist and marketer for junior tennis, she started the Easter Bowl, which became perhaps the nation’s pre-eminent tennis event for junior players.

John Saunders, Longtime ESPN Broadcaster, Dies at 61
Mr. Saunders, who was with ESPN since 1986, was a familiar presence on fall Saturdays as the host of ABC’s studio coverage of college football and ESPN’s “College Football Live.”

Rio 2016: Rio Olympics Today: A Third Straight Gold … at 42 Years Old
Here’s our daily roundup of what happened, and what is going to happen, at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Essay: Many Soldiers, Few Signs, Long Lines: The Rio Games Beyond the TV Screen
What does it actually feel like to be in Rio de Janeiro? The answer is that it is odd, sometimes maddening, possibly dangerous and frequently a hoot.

Op-Ed Columnist: The Olympics Make a Grown Man Cry
Behold Simone Biles. Marvel at Michael Phelps. Try not to tear up.

Many Soldiers, Few Signs, Long Lines: The Rio Games Beyond the TV Screen
What does it actually feel like to be here? The answer is that it is odd, sometimes maddening, possibly dangerous and frequently a hoot.

Sports Briefing: Report Says Big-Money College Sports Draw Most Major Infractions
Football and men’s basketball, the biggest generators of revenue, accounted for 83 percent of the total from 1953 to 2014, a new study has determined.

United States 2, Colombia 2: Hope Solo Struggles in Goal, but U.S. Women’s Soccer Advances
Solo, the longtime U.S. women’s soccer goalie, allowed two uncharacteristic goals that left Colombia celebrating. But it’s the Americans who are through to the next round.

Diamondbacks 5, Mets 3: Mets Waste Solid Effort by Steven Matz in Loss to Diamondbacks
Neil Walker hit his 20th home run, helping the Mets rally from an early deficit, but they fell to Arizona at Citi Field.

Red Sox 5, Yankees 3: Alex Rodriguez Stays on Bench, Disappointing Some Fans
A plan to let him play in the next four games is reversed and he won’t be in the starting lineup against Boston until Thursday.

On Baseball: Alex Rodriguez Finds a Place in the Game, if Not the Lineup
Rodriguez the player, who won’t start until Thursday in Boston, will soon be a Yankees adviser and instructor.

Katinka Hosszu Wins Third Gold at Rio Olympics
The Hungarian also took gold in the 100-meter backstroke and 400-meter individual medley.

Katie Ledecky’s Gold Medal Haul Continues
Ledecky won the 200-meter freestyle, her third Olympic gold medal.

Message Sent: 21 and Counting for Michael Phelps