good morning. stunning loss. >> agatha puts it away! >> kerri walsh jennings and april ross defeated in beach volleyball semifinals, the first defeat of walsh jennings' career, as gymnastics wraps up with a >> oh, my! >> two silver medals for danell leyva, a record-setting fourth gold for simone biles, this time in the floor exercise. and aly raisman takes silver, but that was just one memorable moment for the final five. zac efron showing up in rio to surprise his biggest fans, and

copacabana beach today, wednesday, august 17th, 2016. don't know if i've seen him do quite that good ever! >> and that may there and then have been the gold medal jump. >> that one just about perfect! >> announcer: from nbc news, this is a special edition of "today at the olympic games" with matt lauer live from rio de janeiro, brazil guthrie live from rockefeller plaza. and good morning, everyone. welcome to a special split-edition of "today." [ cheers and applause ] hoda, we're here to covering the olympics, so it's all about the athletes. we're going to be talking about a lot of medalists this morning, but with we could give out an olympic gold medal for sportsmanship and supporting team usa, the guy standing down

get it this morning. he flew all the way from los angeles here to surprise the final five. >> he's been watching simone biles tweet. he was keeping up with all of it. he said, what am i doing at home? he got on a plane. there was a lot of cloak and dagger. we're going to show you the epic surprise in a little bit. we love this guy, huh? >> yeah, we do. so does the crowd. we'll talk to him in a little while. before that big moment, the big surprise hoda just talked about, we were in the arena we caught up with them moments after they received their medals. we'll have that for you as well. >> wow, that's also a great, great moment. plus, we mentioned that heartbreaking loss for kerri walsh jennings and april ross in beach volleyball. natalie, al and billy were all there and natalie's got kerri and april's reaction right after the match. all that is coming up from here in rio. back to you in new york. >> pretty exciting, guys. we've got some breaking news

raging out of control in san bernardino county. look at that. more than 82,000 people being told to evacuate today. we will be there live. and we're also going to have the latest on this historic flooding in louisiana. officials are now saying 40,000 homes have been damaged. and we could see new communities inundated today. the crisis is not close to being over there, guys. we'll send it back to you in rio for now. >> all right, savannah. we'll see you in a couple of minutes. natalie joins us now with your "olympics roundup. >> oh, a busy day and a long, tough night for some americans. team usa racked up a slew of medals on tuesday. we're going to start, though, that showdown in the sand with kerri walsh jennings and april ross' disappointing loss. overnight, a shocking upset in women's beach volleyball. americans kerri walsh jennings and april ross knocked out in the semifinal match. >> brazil has upset the united states! >> reporter: after losing the first set, team usa struggled

players ever at one point serving into the net. >> very uncharacteristic. >> and every time the americans tried to rally, the quicker brazilian team had an answer. >> ross, blocked! >> the loss the first ever in olympic play for walsh jennings, who had won three consecutive golds. >> it's really disappointing. it's really heartbreaking, but the great tng is that we earned a right to fight tomorrow and to make it better. >> in gymnastics, team usa is back on top. simone biles delivering another near-perfect routine, this time in the floor exercise. winning gold for the fourth time during the games. her teammate, aly raisman, taking silver for her sixth career olympic medal. >> dismount. >> on the men's side, american

parallel bars before doing the same on the high bar. u.s. gymnastics team leaving rio with a combined 12 medals, the most since 1984. >> right now! ah! >> out on the track, american christian taylor leaping into the air and past the competition, winning his second consecutive gold in the men's triple jump. his teammate will claye came away with silver. >> effort. >> moments later, claye had another reason to celebrate, proposing to his girlfriend, 2008 track and field olympian harrington. >> today was the day. i just knew today was going to be the best day of my life. >> in the women's 1500 meters, jenny simpson became the first american to medal in the event, taking bronze behind ethiopia's genevieve debaba and the gold medal winner faith of kenya.

after crossing the finish line, her mother watching from the stands in disbelief. >> set. [ shot ] >> and earlier in the day, usain bolt advanced in the men's 200 meters. after winning his third gold medal in the 100-meter dash earlier this week, he's looking to do it again, aiming for his third gold in the 200 meters. all right, so, here's where the medal count stands. the u.s. up big after picking up nine more medalsn tuesday, followed by china, great britain and russia. looking ahead to today, it's a busy day in track and field, including the start of the men's decathlon and the u.s. men's basketball team plays in the quarterfinals. of course, also beach volleyball, gold medal match tonight for the women, also the bronze for the u.s. women. >> wow. >> so, against the other brazilian team. it's going to be a tough one for them, yes. >> what do you say we turn back to gymnastics for a second? simone biles capping her historic run in rio with that

medal overall here. her teammate, aly raisman, taking silver. and we talked to both of them after the medals ceremony. >> it is the final event in women's gymnastics. >> the usa's women's gymnastics team dominated once again. >> this will be remembered as one of the greatest dynasties in gymnastics history. >> 19-year-old simone biles twisting and tumbling her way into olympic history. >> she sets herself apart because she makes everything >> with a record fourth gold medal, the most any american woman has ever won in a single olympic games. >> and once again, obliterates! >> did you have any fun at all today? >> yes, i had tons of fun. it was very exciting. >> biles was hoping to leave rio with five gold medals, but that ended on the balance beam monday night. >> oh, don't touch! >> you know the expression's it's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get back

>> well, it was pretty easy, because if you think about it, like, i fell on beam and still got a bronze, and how often do you see that? >> clearly, it did not stop the pint-sized powerhouse from making the most of her final golden opportunity. >> power and dynamics that take your breath away. >> cranking out a nearly flawless floor routine. her score a half point ahead of the rest of the field. >> aly being the reigning olympic champion is hoping to defend her title. >> aly raisman finishing a strong second. >> jam packed with difficulty. tremendous. >> the 22-year-old team captain and self-proclaimed grandma of the final five was all smiles after the one-two finish. congratulations, grandma. how do you feel? >> i feel very good. i feel very young. >> you do? >> yes, i do. i'm very happy. i lost my voice a little bit because i was cheering so loud for the other girls the other days. >> i was screaming. did you hear me? >> i did. i did hear you.

ever. >> wow. >> how does that feel? >> you're the only person to actually say that out loud. i hadn't thought about that, but it feels amazing. it's crazy. i can't believe i have six olympic medals. so it doesn't feel real. if you told me that when i was a little girl, i would have thought you were crazy. >> two athletes at the top of their game but leaving the future wide open. will you be in tokyo? your coach says you're as strong as ever. >> up until now, i hadn't been think being it, but i'm going to take a vacation, take some time off, t never say never, you know. i'm definitely thinking about it. >> how do you improve for tokyo? >> i don't know. that's a really long ways away. we'll see. >> and just when you thought they left all their moves on the floor, they managed to save their best moves for last. every time hoda has interviewed you this week, she has gotten you two and the rest of you to dance. >> we looked for her in the stands. we couldn't find her. is she here? >> oh, they played her song

? michelle pfiefer, that white gold ? >> well, i'm here and all i'm asking is do a happy dance for hoda. ? >> oh. and by the way -- >> little did they know, the reason i was there in the mix zone doing the interviews is because you were setting up this huge surprise. >> the happy dances that we've had prior, this will not compare at all to the surprise. i want to check zac efron's hearing, because that scream was so loud, you could hear it can't wait. all right, as we mentioned, the u.s. beach volleyball team of kerri walsh jennings and april ross was defeated overnight by one of the teams from brazil. >> that's right. it is the first loss at the olympics for kerri after 26 straight wins and three gold medals. and natalie, you were there to talk to her afterwards. >> what an incredible career they've had. the crowd was so rowdy.

but these girls gave it all they had, point for point. unfortunately, it wasn't their night. >> reporter: the trouble started out early. brazil coming out strong. leading the u.s. right out of the gate. >> and she smacks it on the line. >> reporter: walsh jennings and ross trying to hold on. >> and she puts it away. >> reporter: but brazil's agatha and barbara, the number two ranked team in the world, wouldn't let anything go. >> agatha puts >> reporter: it was a wild scene in the stands with billy, me and al. >> oh! >> reporter: the hometown crowd going crazy. the brazilians taking set one. >> the brazilians have taken the first set. >> reporter: and did not let up. brazil won the second set. >> they can win it here. >> reporter: ending walsh jennings' 26-match winning streak. >> that's it!

states! >> reporter: her first loss at an olympic event. >> and heartbreak for the americans. >> we just never had the mojo today, so it's really disappointing. it's really heartbreaking. but the great thing is that we earned a right to fight tomorrow and to make it better. >> reporter: it was about the fiercest fight i've ever seen. how would you characterize the brazilian girls? >> i mean, they're relentless. they're very sound and they're very scrappy. they made the digs and we didn't. >> reporter: did the booing rattle you guys at all here? i i thought it was great. you know, you come into brazil, they're passionate about the game, they want their team to win. >> reporter: despite the loss, the 38-year-old walsh jennings doing what she does best, setting her sights on the next match. you have "joy" written on your hand right there. is that a reminder to yourself to in these moments just keep what's important in mind? >> in all moments, for sure. when life is tough, absolutely. when life is great, absolutely,

today doesn't make me any less blessed. it makes me more determined. >> they're so determined, kerri and april. they'll be playing for bronze tonight against brazil's remaining team. will it be kerri's last olympic match? that's anyone's guess. so far, though, she hasn't ruled out tokyo in 2020. i've got to say, they are such a class act. after the game, they both went around, they were shaking everybody's hands in the stands. >> wow. >> like, all of the people that worked the sidelines. was amazing. >> how deep is brazil? the team they'll play tonight are incredible. >> very incredible. the brazilians are known for beach volleyball, too. >> thank you very much. along with that beach volleyball match, you can also see usain bolt's return to the track in the 200-meter semifinals. that's tonight, nbc prime time olympic coverage. let us go now for some breaking news to savannah in new york. >> that's right, guys. we have two big stories to follow this morning, including a raging wildfire in southern california that exploded

and in louisiana, that unprecedented flooding has now damaged 40,000 homes. curfews are now being enforced in several parishes. let's start with nbc's gabe gutierrez in sorrento, between baton rouge and new orleans. gabe, good morning to you. >> reporter: savannah, good morning. the magnitude of this disaster is staggering. at least 11 people are confirmed dead, thousands are in emergency shelters, and eight more parishes have been added to the fel while officials are warning that the threat is far from over. this morning, a desperate scramble. >> it is horrible. >> reporter: the toll of louisiana's historic flood growing by the hour, that record rainfall now rushing downstream, inundating new communities. how long have you lived here? >> all my life, 50 years. >> reporter: have you ever seen it flood like this? >> never. >> reporter: at least 30,000 people rescued, more than 40,000 homes damaged.

three-quarters of the buildings are destroyed. powerful before-and-after images of schools and neighborhoods are emerging. this baton rouge movie studio has now become a massive makeshift emergency shelter. today as some prepare for the worst, others are already living it. >> pictures of my daughters. we'll never get things like that back. >> reporter: bob gatley, a retired firefighter who helped hurricane katrina victims, just returned home. >> it's all right. >> reporter: to a loss that can't be measured. just a heartbreaking loss. now, the waters have largely receded up near baton rouge, but as we mentioned, there is still plenty of waters in areas like this, in sorrento and communities to the south and to the west of here are bracing for even more flooding today. all that water not expected to clear out until later this week. savannah? >> all right, gabe.

and now to that massive out-of-control wildfire that's happening in southern california, consuming homes and forcing tens of thousands to evacuate. nbc's jolene kent has the latest for us this morning. hi, jo. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, savannah. hundreds of firefighters here fighting this blaze overnight as more plan to join them from across the state of california as this wildfire continues to spread. a through southern california overnight, moving fast, tripling in size and engulfing more than 18,000 acres of land. more than 82,000 residents have evacuated. >> i looked outside and i saw the flames, and it's ready to go. >> reporter: as air workers worked tirelessly to douse the flames. >> oh my god, look at the flames. >> the blue fire started tuesday east of los angeles, close down a major interstate and roadways

declaring a state of emergency. >> police have been running up and down the street and telling us that we need to get out. and i guess it's really moving fast. >> reporter: the fire is the result of a punishing heat wave and strong winds. it's still 0% contained as hundreds of firefighter crews battle the fast-moving flames. >> hopefully, we get to come back. this is the third time. so, hopefully, it will still be standing. >> reporter: now, t firefighters have been minorly injured in this fire so far, but thankfully, they are doing okay and they are out of the hospital. but red flag alerts across the state of california right now, and that means imminent extreme fire danger over the next 24 hours, savannah. >> all right, jo. thank you so much. and now for the race to the white house. with less than three months to election day, donald trump's campaign undergoing a major staff shake-up this morning. nbc's hallie jackson is in milwaukee.

tell us about it. >> reporter: hey, savannah. good morning to you. yeah, this is serious stuff from the trump campaign, this shake-up now with less than three months to go before election day. we're talking about two new names added to the top of donald trump's team. one man once described as the most dangerous political operative in america. that's steven bannon. he's a top executive with the conservative breitbart news. he will be stepping into the role of campaign ceo. kelly ann conway, who's already been a senior adviser, will now these moves signal a shift that paul manafort may be losing some sway, no longer calling all the shots. i'm told this morning by a senior adviser that the decision-making came from donald trump himself, all of this meant to make him more comfortable, and he hopes stop him from sliding further to hillary clinton in the polls. savannah? >> all right, hallie jackson. thank you. one more note on the election -- we have an exclusive interview with hillary clinton's running mate, tim kaine and his wife, ann, airing in our next

efron? oh, no, it's al. >> not yet. >> sorry. sorry. >> hoyou've got that heat out west. >> oh, my gosh, it's not going to help the firefighters out there. let's show you what we've got. a big dome of high pressure. red flag warnings stretching just to the east of san diego up into los angeles, and we are going to see temperatures that are going to be brutal, anywhere from 95 to 100 degrees i and as you get into central california, that is repeated. in fact, this record-setting heat moving all the way up into the pacific northwest right on into the weekend. we're going to get to your local forecast coming up in the next 30 seconds. poor foster kid black

muslim the only label that matters is olympian. >> chris: good wednesday morning, everyone. a warm start. temperatures close to 80 degrees early on this wednesday morning. a breezy start to the day. the wind initially out of the southwest. transitions to the northwest. once we see that, the lower humaniil so we're lowering the humidity thrut the day. it will be warm. upper 80s in boston. low 80s through the worcester hills. 7 on 7 forecast, a lot of mid-80s to upper 80s a i cross the board. limited rain chances heading through the weekend. coolest at the coastline saturday and sunday. next best chance and that's your latest weather. guys? >> all right, al. thanks so much. coming up, so excited, how we pulled off our big surprise

of simone biles' crush, zac efron. >> and zac is here on copacabana beach live hanging with the crowd. but first, this is "today" on nbc. for all those pokers, prodders, shuckers and sniffers, all stop & shop produce is triple checked. we're focusing on fresh... ...so you don't have to guess.

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>> this is 7news now. >> christa: good morning, it's wednesday, august 17th. here's chris lambert with a

feels more like south florida. relief is on the way. dew points across western mass me low 60s. so we do lower the humidity back into the upper 50s this afternoon. we keep the breeze, as well. so it will be an enjoyable afternoon with a mix of sun and clouds and temperatures topping off in the mid to upper 80s. >> christa: chris, thank you. three people are in the hospital this morning after they were hit by a car in dorchester. police say the victims are a ten-year-old girl, her father and a 22-year-old who is in a wheelchair. it happened last nightn hill avenue and we're told the driver did stop and that no charges have been filed. the man accused of leading police on a car chase through gardener and westminster in north central massachusetts will face a judge today. the suspect crashed on route 2 yesterday. according to investigators, the suspect has an extensive criminal background. now back to the "today show"

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and get another pair free. this is genuine eye care in your neighborhood. this is pearle vision. ? all right, we're back now, 7:30 on a wednesday morning. it's the 17th day of august 2016. can you believe that view? >> no, i cannot. >> that is a view from the helicopter looking down on copacabana beach on aer we're loving day 12 of the olympics. >> yeah. there are a lot of reasons to love day 12, but we'll get to the other reason in a minute, won't we? >> why the beach just got better for you? >> yeah, just got better for all of us. >> let's talk headlines, shall we? here we go. the drive for the fourth gold medal for beach volleyball star kerri walsh jennings is over. she and her partner, april ross were defeated in straight sets late last night by a team from brazil. kerri and april will play in the bronze medal game against

americans christian taylor and will claye take gold and silver in the triple jump. it marked a repeat of their appearance in london four years ago. we're going to talk to them in our next hour. and the final day of artistic gymnastics was a very good one for team usa. danell leyva won silver medals in both the parallel and horizontal bar, while simone biles and aly raisman finished one-two in the floor exercise and then hadve women's competition, we were working on a big surprise for simone and the rest of the final five with zac efron. this is going to be so -- >> notice how her voice goes up like four octaves when she says that? >> this is part of our special real edition of "make your today." take a look. in rio's olympic arena, simone biles was getting ready for one

normally does, it's just fun. >> but little did she know just how good it was going to get, because just a stone throw's away, zac efron, her crush whose life-size likeness she has in her bedroom, is here to surprise here in rio. it's happening. you're here at the olympics, and you know who's going to totally freak out. >> simone. she's awesome. >> we're going to sneak in there, we'll watch her, tha >> cool, cool, awesome. >> are you ready? we had to hide zac in a room in the national broadcast center near the venue where we watched simone perform in the floor exercise. >> now simone biles, floor exercise s exercise. she's been doing the same routine. >> come on, girl. >> she's good. >> holy shnikies.

tumbling runs. you won't see them done like this, though. >> oh, my god. she gets so much air. what the heck is in her legs? she looks happy. look at that. >> look at that score. 15.9! >> oh, my gosh! she crushed it! >> she did! >> oh, man! >> high-five her. come on. okay, i think this might be time for our selfie. where's simone? >> there they are. >> okay. >> and here comes the gold. >> going to be kind of emotional. ? >> so crazy. >> but moments later, things were about to get crazier. >> over here -- >> we heard your song at the arena. >> while zac was hidden away, the entire gymnastics team showed up thinking they were just doing another interview with me. they didn't have a clue.

when we did the interview last time, you said that if a certain person showed up -- >> stop. >> -- you would need a defibrillator? >> yes, stop. >> do you remember that? >> yes. if you bring him out, i'm going to pass out. >> do you remember that? >> stop. >> wait, do you remember that? >> stop! >> do you remember that? [ screaming ] >> is that the final five? >> just realized. oh, my god, stop. >> wait, i want a hug, too. >> how are you? >> good. >> how did you do this? >> oh, my goodness! >> simone just said, can i ask you one question? what's going on right now? >> i'm shaking, i'm so scared! >> i'm the one with butterflies. >> how did you make this happen? pinch me, i'm not crazy.

monitor every move -- >> i didn't even do my signature move. >> will you do it time for him now because he's got time. >> when i found out you guys were fans, i was like, what am i doing sitting here on the couch? like, come see you, come hang out and support you guys. i immediately got on the plane and came out to see you guys. >> he's so much more gorgeous in person! >> you guys are like america's heroes right now. >> you need to put your arm around that little girl, because -- come here. you're the best. >> thank you. >> awesome. >> she's always like super calm, by the way. >> give me a high five. high fives. >> i was going to say, i've never seen -- you're super calm when the whole eyes of the world are on you, when you're about to perform a routine. and in this moment, you're totally dying! olympic gold medalist. but on this night, just teenagers at heart on top of the

>> are you ready? >> yeah. >> oh! >> whoo! [ applause ] >> you are awesome! that was great. >> that was great. >> that was really, really great. >> it was so fun to meet them. >> what was it like for you walking in the room? we kind of got to see it from their perspective, but what was it like for you? >> it was interesting. they just got off the world's biggest stage. they won gold they've been crushing it the entire olympics. and i was, like, hiding in a closet waiting to come in, so i didn't know what to think. i was kind of getting nervous myself. but it ended up being amazing. they're so sweet. >> you had spent seven hours locked away with hoda waiting to do that. >> yes, we were. >> before you got to walk in. i loved what you said, zac. you said, i'm watching this unfold in rio, and i'm asking myself, why am i sitting on a couch at home? i've got to get there. >> yeah. i mean, i've been a fan of the

life, like hard core. coming to see the world's best of the best come together and compete in their individual events is amazing. and then their story just blew my mind. when i found out simone and the team was a fan, i was like, what kind of guy am i if i don't show up? >> now, how did you first become awa aware, zac? she's not just a fan, simone, she's a crazy superfan. i know you had a twitter exchange, but how did you know the extent of it from her? >> i kind o from everybody. various people started telling me she was a fan. so i started watching all the gymnastics. i typically wouldn't start watching gymnastics first, i'd say, in the olympics, but i was immediately captivated by these girls and what they were doing. >> one of the things he was worried about -- or she was worried about, simone was, is she kept saying she smelled bad. she kept going, oh, my god, i'm sweating! i'm so nervous! >> but they have such heart, and there was clearly something special that was going on. and so, i was really excited.

those young ladies. so i just want to say, from the "today" show, thank you so much. >> no, thank you guys. thank you. >> zac, we love you. >> i love you, too. >> we love you. >> thank you to the girls. >> all right, zac efron, guys. >> that was great. >> let us get a check of the weather from al. wow, that was terrific. >> that was awesome. >> that was great. wasn't that spectacular? >> that was really special. >> that was really great. all right, we've got all of our friends joining us here. let's show you what we've got going on, besides west. we have the big story, again, flooding continuing through texas, gulf moisture, southeast a texas, 11 million people under a flood watch or advisory. you can see the rain continues to train along this stationary front. rainfall amounts, we're still looking at anywhere from 3 to 5 inches from central texas into central arkansas and parts of northwestern louisiana. but locally, we could see upwards of 5 to 6 inches in some spots. that's what's going on around >> chris: good wednesday

early on this wednesday morning. a breezy start to the day. the wind initially out of the southwest. transitions to the northwest. once we see that, the lower humanity will work in. so we're lowering the humidity thrut the day. it will be warm. upper 80s in boston. low 80s through the worcester hills. 7 on 7 forecast, a lot of mid-80s to upper 80s a i cross the board. limited rain chances heading through the weekend. coolest at the coastline saturday and sunday. and that's your latest weather. now time to go to our new anchor, zac efron. >> that's right. we're not letting zac leave. >> i'm in the middle now. >> it was great until this moment right here. i was like, you can go, zac, it's time. >> it feels good. i've got all the notes. >> you'll take care of it. >> yeah, i'm loving it. coming up, a fall, a true

>> and next, danell leyva has two medals. we're going to talk to him right after this. >> very cool. poor foster kid black immigrant cancer patient small muslim the only label that matters is olympian. ?

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tide. number 1 rated. >> announcer: "today's olympic start" is sponsored by kellogg's. what gets you started. and we're back now with "today's olympic start." this morning, the u.s. gymnast who went from an alternate to a star. >> yes, he certainly did. danny leyva scored two silver medals on tuesday, one for his nearly flawless routine on the parallel bars, the other on the horizontal bar. and he is with us now.

>> congratulations. >> how are you? congratulations, honey. >> i mean, you weren't even going to be here. you were an alternate, and you end up walking away with those two silver medals. who's going to play you in the movie? i mean, this is really, it's like a fantasy. >> hopefully, i play myself in the movie. that be cool. >> did you feel like you had something to prove, that you needed to prove, you deserve to be here? >> um, in a way, you know. i wasn't really -- that wasn't really my mind-set. i wasn't coming here tryino i was trying to just show my work as best as i could, you know, and enjoy it, like my friend and somebody that i admire a lot, and she's an amazing role model to me like simone biles. she's out there and you can tell how much she's enjoying what she's doing. and that's what i try and emulate. >> well, you're doing the parallel bars. there was a lot of hand-wringing, wasn't there, matt? you were at the match. >> he went first. he went first. he put up a great score, but then you had to sit there and

>> -- for every other competitor to see if you could hang on to a spot on the podium. >> yeah that was a little bit stressful. >> did you watch the other routines? you had a towel over your head for a little bit. >> i did. i did. i would put it over my head for a while because i was like, all right, all right, calm down. because i was reminding myself, i still have another event. >> and it wasn't long after you had that second event. did you have time to get your head in the right place? because you were probably on a high from this. >> yeah, absolutely. but we still had the girls competing on the floor, so i had gym and, like, rewarm up on high bar and get ready for the competition. >> your stepdad has been your coach for what, 20 years? >> yeah, basically. >> a long time. what was it like to share this moment with him? >> it was amazing, honestly. as soon as i was able to get back to the back gym, especially after the parallel bars, i grabbed my medal and i put it on him as well, because it's like just as much his medal as it is mine. >> well, danny, i lost hair

it wasn't much to lose! congratulations. >> we're so proud and happy for you. thank you, sweetie. >> appreciate it. all right, coming up, after the fall, a true display of olympic spirit during a race that has the world talking. but first, these messages. ? ? ds a smile to any morning. one jar; so many delicious possibilities. nutella - spread the happy! hi! hey! i've made plans for later in case this date doesn't go well. likewise! but, funny story. on top of that? my mom is my best friend. uh oh. yeah. oop! there's the rescue text from my roommate saying she needs me.

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>> this is 7news now. >> sarah: good wednesday morning, everybody. 7:57 as you take a live look over boston. let's send it over to chris lambert with more on your forecast. >> chris: warm start, sarah. 28 in boston. 73 in worcester. e morning. busy breeze out of the west. as we watch these dew points drop back into the upper 50s and lower 60s. so more comfortable feel to the air this afternoon. feels warm outside. upper 80s in boston. low 08s in the worcester hills. lots of 80s in the seven-day forecast ahead. >> sarah: now to the top stories this morning. three people are recovering in the hospital after they were hit by a car in dorchester. the accident happened last night on blue hill avenue. police say the driver hit a

nd 22-year-old friend in a wheelchair. so far no charges have been file. an everett police officer is off the job this morning after he's accused of beating his pregnant wife. investigators say 34-year-old michael mori kicked his wife and tried to strangle her sunday night after they got in a fight. we're back in 25 minutes with another update. hope to see you then. introducing dunkin's new cold brew coffee, steeped slowly in cold water for small batches with an ultra-smooth, full-bodied flavor. he craft of cold brew today and keep on.

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? it's 8:00 on "today." and coming up, stunner on the sand. kerri walsh jennings and april ross beaten by a brazilian team in the beach volleyball semifinals. >> it's really disappointing. it's really heartbreaking. but the great thing is that we while in gymnastics, simone biles and aly raisman dominate on the floor. another gold for biles, as raisman takes the silver. and on the men's team, danny leyva wins silver in the parallel and horizontal bars. ? i'm gonna stand by you ? plus, true sportsmanship. heartbreaking fall during the 5000-meter race. >> there we see abbey d'agostino

>> and the uplifting moment that followed, warming hearts around the world. ? and natural wonder. keir simmons goes inside brazil's spectacular iguazu falls, including an amazing look at the exotic birds that call it home, today, wednesday, august 17th, 2016. ? hey, that's what i like, i like about you ? >> from family and husband in california! ? how you do, how you do, i like about you ? ? come on, now, hey ? >> qualified for team usa in wrestling! go, usa! >> christian taylor! go medal winner! >> going today, track and field. go usa!

all right, we are back now, 8:00 on this wednesday morning, 17th day of august 2016. grab your boogie board, come on down to copacabana and join the crowd. lots of red, white and blue on another great morning here during the olympics. >> a beautiful morning. if you guys are thinking about getting in shape after you've been watching all of these athletes do their thing, well, we have jill martin's "steals an your alley. so you'll check all of that out. hey, savannah! >> hi, guys. good to see you. also ahead from here, politics. our exclusive interview with vice presidential candidate tim kaine and his wife, anne. kaine opening up about donald trump, hillary clinton's e-mail investigation and the perception among some voters that his running mate can't be trusted. our exclusive interview and all of the news just ahead, guys. >> all right, look forward to that, savannah. thank you very much. first, the olympic highlights of the morning. for that, we turn to peter alexander.

again. peter, good morning to you. >> reporter: hey, matt and hoda. good morning to you. what a bummer on the beach for team usa. kerri walsh jennings suffering her first loss after 26 straight olympic wins, including three golds. the americans have all sorts of things to celebrate today. the women's gymnastics team making history, winning its most medals, nine, in a single olympics. a stunner on the sand. >> that's it! brazil has states. >> reporter: u.s. beach volleyball superstar kerri walsh jennings and her teammate, april ross, falling to a tenacious brazilian duo. >> for kerri walsh jennings, her first match loss in olympic play. >> reporter: walsh jennings eyeing her fourth consecutive gold will now go up against another brazilian team for the bronze instead. in gymnastics, golden girl simone biles cementing her historic run. >> it's simone's party and everyone else is just a guest. >> reporter: pulling off a

>> and once again obliterates seems like the right word. >> reporter: earning her fourth gold medal of these games. >> her first tumbling run jam-packed with difficulty. >> reporter: her teammate, aly raisman, adding to her medal count as well, tumbling her way to a silver. for the men, american danell leyva taking home two silver medals for the high bar and the parallel bars. >> dismount? oh, my! >> it really is a dream come true, man, honestly. >> ah! >> reporter: in track and field, american christian taylor taking gold again in the triple jump. his teammate, will claye, winning silver, then taking an even bigger leap. just moments after medaling, claye jumped into the stands, stunning his girlfriend, now fiancee, queen harrison. in women's basketball, team usa extended its undefeated streak with a blowout victory over japan. >> u.s. 6-0 after their 47th

competition. >> reporter: the spanish women with a breathtaking buzzer-beater over turkey. >> can she get it off? she does. >> oh! >> and it counts! it counts! game over! spain wins it! >> reporter: securing them a spot in the semifinals for the first time. finally, in women's soccer, brazil suffering a devastating loss in its semifinal showdown. >> and she scores! sweden are into the gold medal match! >> reporter: in front of a deafening hometown crowd, intense shoot-out, advancing to friday's final against germany. after the game, an uplifting display of sportsmanship. the swedish players consoling their heartbroken brazilian rivals. for the final, sweden versus germany in women's soccer. this morning, here's your medal count. the americans dominating the games with china, great britain and russia, as you can see, trailing well behind. 16 more medals up for grabs

dash. the men's decathlon kicks off today. argentina tries to repeat its 2004 upset of team usa in men's hoops. then back on the beach, kerri walsh jennings and april ross will play for bronze. this one's going to be a battle. they will face the top-seeded brazilian team, matt and hoda. this is a match that most people expected would be the one for gold. back to you. >> actually, peter, you and i and a bunch of us, we've seen that top-seeded team play in person, and they are extremely tough. peter, thank you now to some other stories in the headlines this morning, and for that, let's go all the way back to new york and check in with savannah. >> all right, guys. in the news this morning, more than 80,000 people in southern california have been ordered to leave their homes as a fierce, new wildfire spread quickly overnight in san bernardino county east of los angeles. the blue cut fire, named after the trail where it started, was first reported on tuesday morning. by nighttime, it had burned 28

and other buildings. governor jerry brown has declared a state of emergency. two firefighters suffered minor injuries. parts of louisiana are starting to recover from historic flooding this week that damaged 40,000 homes there, but other areas are just now being flooded as the runoff from heavy rainfall travels downstream. when floodwaters receded in baton rouge tuesday, searchers found several more victims, raising the level of fatalities about 8,000 people remain in emergency evacuation shelters. in politics, donald trump has announced a major shake-up in his campaign team. steven bannon, an executive at the conservative website breitbart news, is now being brought in as campaign ceo. and trump is promoting adviser and polster kellyanne conway to campaign manager. it's not clear what those changes will mean for campaign chairman paul manafort, but he is keeping the title. the campaign also confirmed its

in ohio, florida, north carolina and pennsylvania. six children are recovering from an apparent electric shock they received from an amusement park ride tuesday in new london, connecticut. the most seriously injured was a boy who had minor burns on his hands. the riders and the operator all said they felt a tingling sensation. this is the fourth reported case of injuries at fairs, amusement and water parks in the u.s. in less than two weeks. and some moscow residents found a way to make the best of the streets were flooded after 18 hours of torrential rains. so, as cars inched along through the water or plowed through the water, yes, a wet suit-clad rider toeride y rider towed by an suv displayed some wakeboarding skills. not a bad way to get through the commute. by the way, the rainfall levels broke a 130-year-old record

back to rio. >> savannah, thank you very much. we'll check back with you in just a little while. well, the big tax bill that team usa athletes along with their medals are going to be having to deal with. does that need to change? we're going to talk about it. plus, how people are reacting to our big zac efron surprise for simone biles and the rest of the final five. and the inspirational moment after a midrace crash that captured what the we'll talk about that right after i'm phil mickelson, pro golfer. my psoriatic arthritis caused joint pain. just like my moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. and i was worried about joint damage. my doctor said joint pain from ra... can be a sign of existing joint damage... that could only get worse. he prescribed enbrel to help relieve pain and help stop further damage. enbrel may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal, events including infections,

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second to come sit in the sun so the perspiration can be delayed a little bit. >> don't sweat. don't sweat. >> don't sweat. >> talk yourself through it. >> all right, do you guys want to know what it means to be a true olympian? are y >> yes. >> watch this next video. keep your eye on the far left of your screen, all right? that guy is hurdler jeffrey jemlis of haiti. he stumbles on the first hurdle, right? tumbling over, falls on the ground. he's clearly disappointed. so you know what he did? >> he won? >> no, he gets up going. jeffrey finished the race. >> you go, jeffrey! >> an impressive performance in london where he didn't make it beyond the heat. so, he was going to hit that finish line. >> he finished the race. >> number eight on the scoreboard, number one in your heart. >> there you go. i'm curious to hear what you guys think of this next story. >> okay. >> check out this image going viral. it's from the women's marathon. it shows twin sisters from germany holding hands as they cross the finish line. a lot of people thought this was

some calling it one of the most uplifting of these games. but you know who disagrees? the head of germany's athletic federation. >> what? >> he criticized the sisters, saying they were just trying to get attention. >> no. >> and since they finished the race 15 minutes behind their personal best, the official also said they weren't trying hard enough. >> oh, come on. >> they're training partners! they're sisters. come on, they wanted that moment together. >> what do we say, thumbs up or thumbs down for the hea >> thumbs down for germany. >> boo! >> get off the stage! all right, the folks at getty have just released their official portrait of michael phelps, the greatest of all times, wears all the medals he's won here in rio, five gold and one silver. like other medalists, michael also receives a cash bonus for all the hardware. guess what? he's going to have to pay taxes on every single medal -- >> what? >> -- and every single bonus. it's called the victory tax.

bonuses are considered income, you pay taxes. so michael could end up paying $55,000. >> what? >> that's crazy! >> big brazilian boo! >> thumbs up or thumbs down for the taxes? >> thumbs down! >> boo! >> thumbs down. but this morning, the "wall street journal" says there is a new move here to give olympians a tax break. >> come on. >> yes. yes on that. >> give them a break! all right, bill, are you ready for "pop start"? >> i am ready for "pop start." this man is a picture of cool. >> don't talk in third person. >> we've been talking about it all morning and so has the rest of the world. zac efron's surprise for the women of the final five. the moment was a top trender on google, facebook, instagram and twitter all night long. one tweeter said, "zac efron flew to rio and surprised simone biles. she's crying. i'm crying. everyone's crying."

someone ask . and we like the headline on "time" magazine's article, "see zac efron fulfill his olympic dream of meeting simone biles." >> i like that! that's a good line. >> right. get him a poster for his wall. >> that's the headline. >> the gold medal swimmer's getting in on the push-up challenge. we told you about this yesterday in the orange room. it's a social media campaign to raise awareness for vets. stars like anna s all participated. in his video, dwayne "the rock" johnson called out two-time olympic gold medalist simone manuel, and this morning shas ee responded. >> hi, the rock. thank you for the shout-ound