Spectators Welcomed Back to First Post-COVID Summer Games
The 2024 Olympics are just weeks away. Unlike the last summer games, originally scheduled for 2020 in Tokyo, but postponed until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s competition will take place before a live audience. Set in Paris, the games will open on Friday, July 26 and the closing ceremonies will take place on Sunday, August 11. Athletes from 206 countries will vie for medals in 329 events in 32 different sports. The two countries that topped the medal board in Tokyo—the United States and China—are projected to repeat. Experts say the U.S. should take home around 120 medals, including nearly 40 gold, while China is favored to bring home about 90 medals.
Top Athletes to Watch in Paris
Every athlete who competes in Paris will bring world-class credentials, but there are some who have already become legends in their respective sports:
- Men’s basketball—Lebron will be there for the first time in 12 years, looking to lead the United States to its fifth consecutive gold medal. He’ll be joined by Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. Two-time MVP Nokola Jokic will represent Serbia and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will lead the Canadian team.
- Women’s basketball—Two-time MVP Breanna Stewart will join five-time Olympian Diana Taurasi will pilot an American team that seeks its 8th consecutive gold.
- Women’s volleyball—World champions Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes will seek their first gold medal together in beach volleyball
- Women’s cycling—Five-time world champion Hannah Roberts, an American, seeks to add her first Olympic gold to her storied resume
- Women’s diving—17-year-old phenom Quan Hongchan, who earned three perfect scores in her last five dives at the Tokyo games (when she was only 14). She’s the clear favorite.
- Simone Biles—With just one more gold, Biles will become the most decorated American female gymnast in Olympic history
- Women’s track and field—Many expect Sha’Carri Richardson to bring home America’s first gold in the 100 meters since 1996. Hurdler Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is also a favorite for the 400 meter.
New and Newer Sports in the 2024 Summer Games
The Paris games will debut two new competitions, as well as four that have appeared on a limited basis in prior Olympics:
- Breaking—Originally a form of dance that has become competitive, breaking requires athletes to improvise moves to music they don’t know in advance. They are then judged on creativity, personality, variety, musicality, technique and performance.
- Kayak cross—Think kayaking crossed with slalom skiing. Contestants run through gates as they come down a ramp above the water.
- 3×3 basketball—A debut sport at the Tokyo Olympics, where the U.S. women took home the gold, it’s the classic pickup game—half court, first team to 21.
- Surfing—This sport also debuted in Tokyo. Note, though, that there are no places to hang ten in the Paris area…the competition will be in French Tahiti, some 9,000 miles away.
- Skateboarding—It’s a skateboarder’s dream—ripping it up on the Place de la Concorde. Look for Japan to dominate, as it did when skateboarding debuted in Tokyo.
- Sport climbing—Another carryover from Tokyo, this sport has different competitions that focus on speed, difficulty and finesse
