How Is The Commonwealth Faring In The Olympics?

We introduced you to the 21 athletes from Massachusetts who are competing in this year’s Olympic Games. We'll keep you updated on their progress. Twelve have had at least their first face-offs and, so far, it’s a mixed bag.

Fencing

Eli Dershwitz and Andrew Mackiewicz were knocked out of the individual sabre competitions in fencing, but both will get the chance to medal when the team competitions start this week. Dershwitz and Mackiewicz are ranked first and sixth, respectively, in the United States for senior sabre.

Rowing

A whopping eight Massachusetts natives are rowing in Tokyo. GBH News reporter Craig LeMoult interviewed the rowers — and their coaches and families — as their Olympians prepared for this year’s Games.

So far...

The women’s eight team beat out Romania and Australia in their first heat — in part thanks to powerhouse Bay State rowers Gia Doonan and Regina Salmons — to advance to the finals next week. The American women's eight boat has taken gold in the last three Olympic Games.

The men’s eight team, featuring Conor Harrity and Alexander Richards, placed second behind Germany in the Saturday heat. The team isn’t out yet: they’re set to race in the repechage, where a high placement would earn them a spot in the final, medal-determining race.

The women’s quadruple sculls, which has Cicely Madden in the bow, placed last in its first heat and the repechage. They’ve lost the chance to medal, but they’ll still row in the Final B competition for rankings.

Gevvie Stone and Kristi Wagner will row in the Final A with a chance to medal in women’s double sculls after finishing third in the semifinals. Stone is a three-time Olympian, and this is Wagner’s first Games.

The men’s four, with Wayland’s Andrew Reed, placed second behind Great Britain in its heat to qualify for the Final A competition, giving them an opportunity to compete for gold.

Soccer

Hanson natives (and sisters) Kristie and Sam Mewis are playing midfield. The U.S. women’s soccer team fell to Sweden 3-0 on Wednesday, losing for the first time in 45 games. But the squad came back to defeat New Zealand Saturday 6-1 and will face off with Australia next.

Sam Mewis played for the women’s team to win the World Cup in 2019, while her older sister, Kristie, is the only member of the 22-person squad to not have competed in the 2019 tournament. Both play for the National Women’s Soccer League when they’re not on the pitch in Tokyo.