Memorable Moments from the Paris Olympics: Simone Biles Was the Star but the Spotlight Reached Many Faces
PARIS: Simone Biles stole the show at the Paris Olympics with a captivating comeback that had jaws dropping both inside and outside the gym.
All eyes were on Biles as she won four medals, but the spotlight was bright enough to shine a light on new names, new faces, and some unlikely new stars. The Paris Games will be remembered for breathtaking venues, unprecedented accessibility, and Snoop Dogg taking a starring role in NBC’s record-breaking coverage.
Paris introduced the world to “The Pommel Horse Guy” and “The Real John Wick” and a meme-filled performance by an Australian professor in breaking’s Olympic debut.
French swimmer Leon Marchand put on a Michael Phelps-esque performance at his home Olympics, winning five medals, four of them gold. Ilona Maher made headlines on the reality show “Love Island” after leading the United States to a late, breathtaking victory that gave the U.S. its first-ever medal, a bronze, in rugby sevens.
Noah Lyles was crowned the world’s fastest man for winning the 100 meters, but after finishing third in the 200, his first loss in his favorite event since the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, he revealed he had tested positive for COVID-19. Sha’Carri Richardson chased down two competitors in the rain to wrap up her first Olympics with a relay gold after settling for silver in the 100.
The United States topped the medal count (121 of them going into the final day of competition on Sunday, including 37 gold), with the Americans again prevailing in men's basketball and women's soccer.
Here are some of the highlights of the Paris Olympics:
Biles has skyrocketed
Biles returned to the Olympics three years after withdrawing from several events at the Tokyo Games due to mental health reasons and won four medals, three of them gold.
She was the most popular attraction in Paris, competing in front of packed crowds of celebrities. Those who couldn't sit in the stands with Tom Cruise, Spike Lee, Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga tuned in from afar as NBC said 34.7 million viewers on its platforms watched Biles lead the United States to team gold.
Next up for the greatest gymnast in Olympic history is the 30-stop “Gold Over America Tour” for the GOAT.
Fight in swimming
After nine days of competition, the Americans have barely managed to wrest the lead for the gold medal in swimming, needing a win in the final event of the Olympics to do so.
The United States finished with just eight golds, its fewest since the 1988 Seoul Games and one more than its biggest rival, Australia.
“It’s one of the worst performances in U.S. team history,” said Phelps, the most decorated Olympian ever.
The rest of the world had more wins (20) than the United States and Australia combined, the first time this has happened since the 1996 Atlanta Games.
Tracking issues
The 34 medals and 14 golds won by the Americans represent the best result in track and field at a non-boycotted event since the early 20th century, when more events were held and fewer nations participated.
And all this despite the disappointment of Richardson missing out on gold in the 100, Lyles losing in the 200 after being diagnosed with COVID-19, and being disqualified from the men's 4×100 relay.
The relay's performance was so poor that nine-time gold medalist Carl Lewis called for radical changes in the U.S. track and field program.
But the United States finished with a bang: Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone set another world record by again winning the 400m hurdles, and was then part of the 4x400m relay that she and Gabby Thomas led to a landslide victory on the final night at the Stade de France.
The Americans had won gold in the same race, in a much tighter finish, about 15 minutes earlier.
The 14 golds won by the United States represent the most in a non-boycotted Olympics since 1968.
USA Hoops Win Another Gold
Stephen Curry added another piece to his legacy by finally winning an Olympic gold medal.
Curry scored 24 points to lead the U.S. to a 98-87 victory over France in the men's basketball final. It was the U.S.'s fifth consecutive gold medal, and the 17th in 20 appearances at the Games.
Kevin Durant, the first four-time men's gold medalist in Olympic basketball history, scored 15 for the Americans, as did Devin Booker. And LeBron James, wearing metallic gold sneakers, scored 14 for the U.S., winning his fourth Olympic medal and third gold.
Victor Wembanyama, in his first Olympic final, scored 26 points for France and was in tears after the match.
US Women's National Soccer Team Returns to the Top
The U.S. women's soccer team won its fifth Olympic gold medal by defeating Brazil 1-0 in the final. The Americans had not won gold since the 2012 London Olympics.
The gold capped an undefeated run to the title in their first international campaign under new coach Emma Hayes.
As the final whistle blew, the U.S. players celebrated as Bruce Springsteen's “Born in the USA” resounded throughout the stadium.
Boxing controversy
Women's boxing has been embroiled in culture wars over gender misconceptions involving two of its competitors.
Algeria's Imane Khelif and Taiwan's Li Yu-ting have come under scrutiny after the Russian-dominated International Boxing Association disqualified them from last year's world championships, claiming they had both failed a fitness test for the women's competition, to which IBA officials refused to answer basic questions.
Khelif endured harsh scrutiny in the ring and online abuse from around the world over misconceptions about her femininity, and still won gold in the women's welterweight division.
The next night, Lin won a gold medal in the women's featherweight division, capping her four-fight unbeaten streak in Paris by winning Taiwan's first Olympic boxing gold medal.
“I am a woman like all the others. I was born a woman, I live a woman and I am qualified,” Khelif said after her victory.
Last year, the International Olympic Committee made the unprecedented decision to permanently ban the IBA from the Olympics, following years of concerns about its governance, competitive fairness and financial transparency. The IOC called the gender tests the sport’s governing body imposed on the two boxers hopelessly flawed.
