USA Track and Field’s appeal of the disqualification of the men’s 400-meter relay team has been denied, according to several reports.

The U.S. quartet finished third in the final on Friday but soon afterward was disqualified because of a faulty baton exchange between leadoff runner Mike Rodgers and Justin Gatlin in which Rodgers passed it too early. Jamaica won, followed by Japan. Canada, which had finished fourth, was elevated to third following the U.S. disqualification.  

U.S. officials filed a protest with the Jury of Appeals of the International Assn. of Athletics Federations. The rejection of the appeal was first reported by Tim Layden of Sports Illustrated, who cited an official of the IAAF as saying all protests and appeals were rejected, leaving all results to stand. Associated Press also reported the protest had been rejected. 

The head of Guinea's Olympic delegation says two athletes did not return to the West African nation after competing at the Rio Olympics. 

Atef Chaloub said Saturday that swimmer Amadou Camara disappeared 48 hours before the team's scheduled departure. He said Mamadama Bangoura, who competed in judo, also did not return to Guinea, having disappeared after leaving a message saying she wanted to “try her luck” abroad. 

A friend of Bangoura's, who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid punishment for failing to stop her from fleeing, said Bangoura was ashamed she didn't earn a medal and wanted to try “working in a developed country.”

The extent of the property damage Ryan Lochte and three of his fellow U.S. Olympic swimmers caused to a gas station eight days ago might have been exaggerated by Rio de Janeiro police, according to a report by USA Today.

At a news conference Thursday, Fernando Veloso, the head of Rio de Janeiro's civil police, said the Americans had broken a soap dispenser and mirror inside the restroom. Other reports have said the four also broke a bathroom door.

But one of the U.S. swimmers, Gunnar Bentz, said in a statement Friday that he didn’t see anyone vandalize the bathroom and the only damage caused by the group occurred when Lochte pulled a “loosely attached” advertising sign from a wall.

On the first Saturday afternoon of the Olympics, NBC’s images of road cycling were so dazzling that the scenes could have been lifted from a travel promotion ad by the Rio de Janeiro tourist board.

The mostly aerial shots that tracked the bikes along the coastline displayed charmingly winding roads, granite peaks, blue-green ocean waves splashing against rocks and houses (some pink) quaintly clinging to hillsides.

Who among us did not consider firing up our laptops to begin researching our next possible vacation destination?

He was branded a traitor, an opportunist, a coward. He was ridiculed in his neighborhood, resented in his workplace, mocked by his former fans.

When Kevin Durant left the Oklahoma City Thunder to join the powerful Golden State Warriors this summer, mere weeks after the Warriors knocked the Thunder out of the playoffs, he was generally described with a single adjective.

Weak.

My medal platform of memories is filled by two people and a team that not only successfully defended their titles, but made history doing it.

The bronze goes to judoka Kayla Harrison, who become the first American to win two gold medals in her sport. The silver goes to middleweight boxer Claressa Shields, the first American — male or female — to win two Olympic boxing titles.

And the gold goes to the women’s water polo team, which not only became the first repeat champion in the history of its sport, but did it with a heavy heart after the brother of Coach Adam Krikorian died of a heart attack two days before the Games began.

The most difficult Games we have ever encountered.

Dark clouds hovered over Maracana Stadium at dusk, with a sudden wind tugging at flags and whipping the Olympic flame.

Then a drenching rain began to fall.

The storm that intruded on Sunday night’s closing ceremony at the Summer Olympics befit a mega-sporting event that, over the last few weeks, had blended spectacle with more than a few glitches and negative headlines.

See the best images from Times photographers Robert Gauthier and Wally Skalij

10:45 p.m.: That's all, folks, at least for the official part of the program. Partying might go deep into the night. Thanks, Rio. 

10:40 p.m.: A taste of Carnival, some fireworks, some confetti. Athletes dancing with the performers.Exuberant and vibrant ending. 

10:25 p.m.: Olympic flame is extinguished. Now, much dancing and merriment.