U.S. hopes for a gold medal in surfing were kept alive by Caroline Marks, who beat Johanne Defay of France in a wave-for-wave women's semifinal battle that came down to a virtual tiebreaker.

The Surfline wave forecast of 4 to 6 feet and rising continued to disappoint as competitors spent time on "paddle battles" for wave choice priority and ended up with walls instead of Teahupo'o's trademark tubes.

Defay came out ahead early and posted the highest-scoring wave, shredding every last drop. But Marks responded with excellent wave choice, dropping into a rare barrel before using the rest of the walled-up wave as a canvas to rip.

The score of 7.0 put her in a virtual tie, but because it was the highest-scoring wave, Marks took the victory and heads to the gold medal final. Defay will get to battle for bronze in a heat against the loser of the second semifinal, which features Brazil's Tatiana Weston-Webb and Costa Rica's Brisa Hennessy.

France defeated Egypt 3-1, earning a spot in the gold medal final against Spain.

After a scoreless first half, Egypt scored in the 62nd minute with a goal from Mahmoud Saber.

But France was resilient, scoring the equalizer in the 83rd from Jean-Philippe Mateta. A few minutes later, Mateta helped France capitalize on Egypt's going down to 10 men because of a red card, scoring a powerful header for his second goal of the match. Michael Olise extended France's lead in the 108th minute for its third goal.

France led in shots on target and controlled possession.

Despite the loss, Egypt has a chance to win its first soccer medal in the bronze match against Morocco.

Brazil's Gabriel Medina, a three-time world champion and a favorite to take home a top prize, was beaten in the semifinal round today.

His foe, Australia's Jack Robinson, won basically on one wave, a beautiful overhead barrel that covered him like vital shelter before he emerged to tag the lip and land on his feet.

Perhaps a bigger foe was Mother Nature, as a rising swell failed to fill in for Medina, and he was left to watch the horizon for anything. Nothing emerged. The clock ran out. It sounds like a cruel fate, but the variable of wave conditions can be an overshadowing factor in the sport.

Robinson was wise to get the most out of that barrel. He'll face France's Kauli Vaast in the men's final. Medina, who also lost in the semifinals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, will face Peru's Alonso Correa in the bronze medal heat.

France has extended its lead 3-1 in the 108th minute, courtesy of Michael Olise.

His second goal of the Paris Olympics came when a deflection off Egypt defender Shehata Mohamed fell right to Olise, scoring a powerful left-footed kick.

France's Jean-Philippe Mateta scored a header, his second goal of the match, in the 99th minute. France now has a crucial 2-1 lead over Egypt in extra time.

France's Kauli Vaast advanced to the surfing final amid so-so surf at Teahupo'o in French Polynesia today.

The matchup with Peru's Alonso Correa, who qualified for the Games by performing well at the International Surfing Association World Surfing Games in Puerto Rico, was even, and both had a clear shot at victory among head-high waves.

The growing swell didn't fill in fast enough as the two paddled for waves at the notorious left-breaking spot, and the competitors had to use small-wave moves like lip-bashing and cutting back to get numbers on the scoreboard.

Correa was behind after Vaast, a virtual Teahupo'o local who caught his first wave at the reef when he was 8, pulled into a few improbable barrels, but he battled back by grabbing every wave he could.

The clock ended up beating Correa as Vaast's higher-scoring waves stood and he advanced to the final.

Correa still has a shot at bronze when he'll battle the loser of the semifinal heat pitting former world champion Gabriel Medina of Brazil against Jack Robinson of Australia.

The U.S. men's volleyball team won three sets against Brazil, advancing into the semifinals to fight for a chance at a medal.

These Games have been a redemption for the men's volleyball team, which failed to make it to the quarterfinals in Tokyo but won bronze in Rio eight years ago.

It was a hard-fought win as the Brazilian men knew they had to push to stay alive.

But in the end, the American men led in both sets and points, winning 104 — 92.

Egypt is down to 10 men in extra time after a sliding tackle from Omar Fayed. He received his second yellow, resulting in a red card.

The match remains 1-1 in the 96th minute.

With the game tied at 1-1 after 90 minutes, France and Egypt will play extra time in the men's semi.