Sha’carri Richardson of the United States, celebrates after winning the women’s 4 x 100-meter relay final at the 2024 Summer Olympics on Friday in Saint-Denis, France. Petr David Josek/Associated Press

SAINT-DENIS, France — For Sha’Carri Richardson, this was a beautiful relay through the rain.

The only shame was that she couldn’t stay out there to help the men’s team win, too.

Richardson captured her first Olympic gold medal with a come-from-behind anchor leg for the United States in the Olympic 4×100 on Friday, then stepped aside to watch the U.S. men extend their streak to 20 years without a medal at the Games.

This year’s mishap happened quickly, on the first exchange, when Christian Coleman crashed into Kenny Bednarek, then actually passed him as they were awkwardly passing the baton. The U.S. was disqualified for an illegal pass.

It was a more-of-the-same result for a team that raced without 100-meter champion Noah Lyles, who pulled out of the Olympics with COVID. Even without Lyles, the speed of the Americans made it their race to lose.

They always find a way.

“It just didn’t happen,” Coleman said. “Maybe we could have put in some more work. I just think in the moment it didn’t happen.”

Andre De Grasse put a bright mark on an otherwise disappointing Olympics by anchoring Canada to gold in a time of 37.50 seconds. It was the first medal in Paris for De Grasse, but his seventh overall. South Africa finished second and Britain third.

The run by Richardson and her teammates was everything the men’s race was not — filled with smooth safe passes of a rain-slickened baton, then capped off by America’s fastest 100-meter runner.

The silver medalist from the 100 received the baton from Thomas in third place. By the halfway point of her leg, Richardson had overcome runners from Britain and Germany. She glanced to her right — and backwards — and gave a look of “you’re not catching me,” then took eight more steps. On the ninth one, Richardson slammed her left foot on the ground over the finish line and let out a yell.

The Americans won in 41.78 seconds, good for a .07-second win over Britain, which struggled with two baton changes in the rain.

“The moment that I would describe is realizing that when we won as USA ladies, it was a phenomenal feeling for all of us,” Richardson said.

Gabby Thomas ran the third leg and got her second gold of the Games, this one going with the 200-meter title. Twanisha Terry and 100 bronze medalist Melissa Jefferson rounded out the team. The exchange between Terry and Thomas that nearly wrecked the Americans in qualifying was better this time.

Also Friday, American sprinter Rai Benjamin convincingly beat world-record-holder Karsten Warholm and Brazil’s Alison dos Santos in the 400-meter hurdles final.

Benjamin clocked 46.46 seconds to win gold, finishing several strides ahead of Warholm (47.06) and Dos Santos (47.26). Benjamin was able to win despite landing awkwardly coming over the eighth hurdle in a race between the three fastest men in history.

Benjamin won silver behind Warholm when the Norwegian set the world record at the Tokyo Games three years ago.

WEIGHTLIFTING: Olivia Reeves won the United States’ first Olympic gold medal in weightlifting in 24 years.

Reeves lifted 117 kilograms (390 pounds) in the snatch and 145kg (320 pounds) in the clean and jerk for a total of 262kg to beat Mari Leivis Sanchez of Colombia by five kilograms in the women’s 71kg division. Angie Dajomes of Ecuador took the bronze.

The U.S. last won an Olympic gold medal in weightlifting in Sydney in 2000, when Tara Nott won the lightest women’s division. That was the first Olympic Games to include women’s weightlifting on the program.

MEN’S SOCCER: Sergio Camello struck twice in extra time as Spain took gold in the Olympic men’s soccer final after a 5-3 win against France.

The thrilling win at Parc des Princes completed a golden summer for Spanish soccer — following the senior team’s European Championship triumph last month.

Spain, which lost the final to Brazil at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, became the first European gold medalist in men’s soccer since it last won the tournament at the Barcelona Games in 1992.

WOMEN’S SOCCER: Ann-Katrin Berger saved a last-minute penalty and Germany won the bronze medal with a 1-0 victory over Women’s World Cup winner Spain.

WOMEN’S FIELD HOCKEY: The Netherlands defended its title, rallying from an early deficit to beat China 2-1 in a shootout in the final.

GOLF: Lydia Ko of New Zealand had a 4-under 68 to share the lead, leaving her 18 holes away from a chance to complete her Olympic medal collection with gold that would send her into the LPGA Hall of Fame.

Ko was poised to take a lead into the final day at Le Golf National until Morgane Metraux of Switzerland steadied herself from a rough patch by holing a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th to salvage a 71 and catch Ko.

They were at 9-under 207, and the stage was set for yet another dynamic Olympic conclusion.

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL: Four-time U.S. Olympians Matt Anderson and David Smith are medalists once more.

They came back for this chance.

The Americans are taking home men’s volleyball hardware from the Paris Olympics, outlasting Italy in a wild, back-and-forth battle for bronze.

It went 25-23, 30-28 – a sensational second set in which each country had multiple chances – and 26-24 at a rocking South Paris Arena.