What we’ll always remember from the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
What we’ll always remember from the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
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Truly, what an incredible Olympics it was here in France.
It’s hard to condense a two-week period as jam-packed with memorable moments as these incredible Paris Olympics, but this is our best attempt.
Here are the 12 things we’ll always remember from the Paris Summer Olympics of 2024:
Simone Biles cements her status as the greatest of all time
Simone Biles came to Paris as the most decorated gymnast ever and left with another three Olympic gold medals as well as a silver, becoming one of the biggest stories of these Games.
Such a haul underlines her status as the greatest athlete the sport has ever seen, particularly in light of her journey to the Olympic Games, which is now well-known but becomes no less extraordinary with each retelling.
The 27-year-old pulled out of several events at the Tokyo Olympics suffering from the “twisties,” a mental block causing gymnasts to lose track of themselves in the air, and took time away from the sport to focus on her mental health. Then, in Paris, she led the US to a brilliant gymnastics team gold, before securing individual golds in the all-around and vault competitions as well as a silver on floor.
Despite all the hype and expectation around her, Biles told CNN Sport’s Coy Wire that her return to the Olympics was for no one else.
“It was important to me because nobody forced me to be out there on that stage,” Biles said. “I solely did it for myself and I’m in a really good spot mentally and physically. So doing this for just me meant the world.”
Her return to the pinnacle of the sport has become a story about the importance of therapy, prioritizing your own mental health and bouncing back from rock bottom.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif becomes an unlikely face of the Games
Imane Khelif became an unlikely face of these Olympic Games when she was subjected to online abuse after Italian boxer Angela Carini quit their bout in 46 seconds. Khelif went on to win the women’s 66kg welterweight gold medal a week later.
Some spectators watching her bout against Carini later raised questions about Khelif’s participation, citing a 2023 decision by a now-discredited boxing regulator to bar her from a women’s tournament.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), however, strongly supported her participation in the 2024 Games, with IOC spokesperson Mark Adams saying she was “born female, was registered сколько стоит юрист по жилищным вопросам female, lived her life as a female, boxed as a female, has a female copyright.”
The fight became a flashpoint for an often-misinformed debate about how women are allowed to compete in sports. It also triggered an onslaught of online abuse, with transphobic commentators incorrectly calling Khelif “a man” because of an alleged physical advantage.
With the eyes of the world on her, Khelif progressed through the competition, received huge amounts of support from the crowds watching her fight and eventually won a gold medal.
“I’m very happy. For eight years, this has been my dream and I’m now the Olympic champion and gold medalist,” she said after the fight. “I’ve worked for eight years, no sleep, eight years tired.”
After Khelif won her gold medal, her lawyer Nabil Boudi said on Saturday that she has filed a legal complaint with the Paris prosecutors saying she suffered “aggravated online harassment.”
“Imane Khelif decided to lead a new fight: one of justice, dignity and honor,” her lawyer Nabil Boudi said.
Katie Ledecky becomes most decorated female US Olympian of all time
Katie Ledecky only furthered her legacy as an Olympic great at these Games, winning four medals – two gold, one silver and one bronze.
In the process, she became the most decorated female US Olympian of all time with 14 medals, surpassing fellow swimmer Jenny Thompson.
At 27, Ledecky likely has another Games in her, especially with the prospect of a home Olympics up next in Los Angeles in four years’ time.