10 things you need to know today: August 8, 2016

Michael Phelps celebrates at the Olympic Games in Rio

(Image credit: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

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1. Phelps wins his 19th Olympic gold, Ledecky smashes her own world record
2. Japanese Emperor Akihito hints at abdication in rare TV address
3. At least 53 die in bombing at Pakistani hospital
4. Williams sisters upset in first round of Olympic doubles competition
5. Mudslides kill 38 as Tropical Storm Earl drenches Mexico
6. Massive crowd backs government in Istanbul rally
7. ISIS claims responsibility for Belgium machete attack
8. Pistorius denies speculation his injuries were from suicide attempt
9. Russian team banned from Paralympic Games over state doping scheme
10. Jim Furyk makes history with lowest PGA Tour score ever

published 8 August 2016

1. Phelps wins his 19th Olympic gold, Ledecky smashes her own world record

Sunday was a big night for the U.S. Olympic swimming team in Rio, with Michael Phelps winning his 19th gold medal, and Katie Ledecky smashing her own world record time to win gold in the 400m freestyle. Ledecky, 19, finished in 3:56.46, nearly five seconds ahead of her nearest competitor. Phelps, swimming the second leg of the 4x100 freestyle relay, swam the fastest 100 meters of his storied career. He entered the water a fraction of a second behind France, and gave his team a lead it would hold throughout the race. Phelps now has 19 golds, two silvers, and two bronzes, and has several more shots at adding to his record medal haul.

Japan's Emperor Akihito, 82, said in his second-ever televised address on Monday that he feared his worsening health could prevent him from fulfilling his symbolic duties as he ages. The remarks were widely interpreted as a plea to politicians to change Japan's imperial household law — which now requires emperors to serve until death — so that he can abdicate and pass the Chrysanthemum throne to his eldest son, Crown Prince Naruhito, 56. The Japanese public supports letting Akihito abdicate, but Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, "We must think carefully about what can be done."

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A bombing at a hospital in the Pakistani city of Quetta killed at least 53 people on Monday. A suicide bomber appeared to have detonated explosives near an emergency room entrance where lawyers had gathered to condemn the murder of a prominent colleague, Bilal Anwar Kasi, who had been brought to the hospital for an autopsy after he was fatally shot by men on a motorcycle while heading to court earlier in the day. Another 30 people were wounded in the bombing, most of them critically, so the death toll was expected to rise, officials said.

Serena and Venus Williams lost in the first round of the women's doubles tennis competition at the Rio Olympics on Sunday. The stunning 6-3, 6-4 defeat — by Czech players Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova — was the top-seeded Williams sisters' first loss in 16 matches. They won the women's doubles gold medals in 2000, 2008, and 2012. Venus Williams was also eliminated in the singles competition by Belgium's Kirsten Flipkens in the first round. Serena Williams on Sunday won her first round singles match, taking a step toward defending her 2012 title.

The death toll from Tropical Storm Earl rose to 38 in Mexico on Sunday after the storm hit the country's east coast with heavy rains, triggering mudslides. Most of the deaths occurred in Puebla state, where a hill collapsed and sent mud and rocks crashing into a remote village. The remnants of Earl, which made landfall in Belize last week as a Category One hurricane, could drop several more inches of rain in some areas, potentially causing more landslides and flooding.

More than one million people participated in an Istanbul rally to mark the end of nightly pro-government demonstrations that started after last month's failed coup. The attempt to topple the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan left more than 270 people dead, and sparked a broad crackdown against suspected coup sympathizers. The "Democracy and Martyrs' Rally" was seen as an attempt to counter Western criticism of the crackdown as anti-democratic.

An Islamic State news outlet on Sunday claimed that a man who cut two Belgian policewomen with a machete was one of the Islamist extremist group's "soldiers." Amaq News Agency said the attack was a "response to calls to target citizens of states in the Crusader coalition." The alleged assailant, identified by Belgian media as an Algerian named Khaled Babouri, had no known terrorism ties but was known to authorities for petty crimes. He was living in the country illegally and had been ordered to leave.

Former Paralympic track star Oscar Pistorius was treated for minor wrist injuries he suffered in the South African prison where he is serving a six-year sentence for killing his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, prison officials said Sunday. The incident occurred a day after the opening of the Rio Summer Olympics, where Pistorius once said he wanted to compete for the last time before retiring. A prison official said Pistorius "denied speculation of a suicide attempt," saying he was injured falling out of bed.

The International Paralympic Committee on Sunday banned Russia's entire team from competing in the upcoming Paralympic Games. The committee said the move was meant as punishment for Russia's doping operation, which it said had "polluted" sports and put "medals over morals." "Tragically this situation is not about athletes cheating a system," IPC President Philip Craven said, "but about a state-run system that is cheating the athletes."

Jim Furyk on Sunday shot 58 over 18 holes in the Travelers Championship, setting a record for the lowest round in PGA Tour history. Furyk's 12-under-par round included 10 birdies and an eagle. "I'm still a little stunned and a little flabbergasted," he said. Furyk's record round also made him the first golfer in PGA Tour history to shoot 58 over 18 holes. Furyk, 46, also became the first golfer ever to shoot in the 50s twice — he shot 59 in the second round of the BMW Championship three years ago.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.