Officially the athletics starts at Paris 2024 today – but it’s not the events we love to watch in the stadium.

At 7.30am (6.30am BST) it is the men’s 20km race walk followed by the women’s at 9.20am (8.20am BST).

If that’s too early don’t worry – there is plenty more sporting action from Paris to enjoy.

FINE AND DANDY

It’s the Dan and Andy show again, as the tennis obituaries for Murray get dusted down for the third time this Olympics.

The pair take on American duo Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul at Roland Garros in the quarter finals in what could be Murray’s final professional tennis match. That contest will be the final match of the day on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

The previous encounters in Paris for Murray and Evans have ended in match tie-breaks – and it would not be a surprise if they served up another nail-biter.

FLEETWOOD HACK

The men’s golf gets under way at Le Golf National at 9am (8am BST).

Some of the world’s top golfers – many who play for eye-watering amounts of money each week – will be fighting it out for gold, silver and bronze medals.

Representing Team GB is Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick, while Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry will be teeing up for Ireland.

But it’s a who’s who of world golf on show, including world number one Scottie Scheffler (US), recent Open winner Xander Schauffele (US), Australia’s Jason Day and Norway’s Viktor Hovland.

SPARKLING SIMONE

She has attracted Hollywood’s finest to Paris already and now American superstar Simone Biles is favourite to reclaim her women’s all-around gymnastics crown at the Bercy Arena, starting at 6.15pm (5.15pm BST).

Biles, who bagged the team title with the US on Wednesday, qualified in first place for the final of the event she first won in Rio in 2016.

But Biles may not have it all her own way with Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade – the vault champion from Tokyo – and US team-mate Sunisa Lee set to provide some sturdy competition.

MUM’S THE WORD

Mum-of-three Helen Glover will be the headline attraction at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on Thursday as four more rowing finals are held.

Glover, who won pairs gold in 2012 and 2016 and was Team GB’s flagbearer in Paris with diver Tom Daley, is targeting a third Olympic title in the women’s fours alongside Rebecca Shorten, Esme Booth and Sam Redgrave at 11.50am (10.50am BST).

There is also British representation in the women’s double sculls final in the form of Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne and Rebecca Wilde at 11.18am (10.18am BST), while David Ambler, Freddie Davidson, Matt Aldridge and Oliver Wilkes contest the men’s fours final at 12.10pm (11.10am BST).

WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY

There were five Team GB medals yesterday – two in triathlon, one in rowing, one in diving and one in BMX – a diverse range of sports that sums up the Olympics.

And dreams came true – Lola Anderson, one of the four rowers that won gold in the women’s quadruple sculls, is proof of that.

She threw a note in a bin after watching the rowing at London 2012 that her dad secretly recovered and handed it to her seven years later, two months before he died.

She had written: “My name is Lola Anderson and I think it would be my biggest dream in life to go to the Olympics in rowing and if possible win a gold for GB.”