The 2024 Summer Olympics are finally here—and history is already being made.
From July 26 to August 11, the world’s greatest athletes are convening in Paris for a chance to win Olympic gold. Along the way, spectators can expect to witness magnificent acts of athleticism and heartwarming displays of sportsmanship, as well as a starry array of surprise celebrity cameos.
Ahead, read about the biggest moments so far from this year’s Games—and make sure to watch this space for updates.
The U.S. women’s basketball team wins its eighth gold medal.
On Sunday—after overcoming a 10-point third-quarter deficit—Team USA secured a 67–66 win over France, earning the gold medal. The victory marks the team’s eighth gold medal in a row.
Key players included A’ja Wilson, Kahleah Copper, and Breanna Stewart. As they celebrated their win, teammate Brittney Griner—who spent 10 months in Russian custody after being detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport for cannabis possession—embraced her medal with tears of gratitude in her eyes.
Sha’Carri Richardson finally wins her gold.
Sha’Carri Richardson led Team USA’s women’s relay team to first place with her anchor finish in the 4×100-meter final on August 9. Along with Melissa Jefferson, Twanisha Terry, and Gabby Thomas, Richardson took home the gold medal—marking her first Olympic gold win.
Noah Lyles wins bronze after testing positive for COVID-19.
Lyles finished in third place during the men’s 200-meter final, following after Team USA’s Kenny Bednarek, who won silver, and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, who took home gold.
After the race, Lyles was filmed recovering from the run while lying on the ground. Medics rushed to his side and he was placed in a wheelchair. Later, he rejoined NBC’s broadcast wearing a face mask, confirming that he had tested positive for COVID-19 earlier that day after experiencing symptoms in the morning.
A French runner proposed to her boyfriend after breaking a European record.
Moments after French runner Alice Finot broke the European record in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase final on August 6, she ran to the stands to greet her boyfriend—and then dropped to one knee to propose to him. Though her fourth-place finish ultimately meant she didn’t earn a medal that day, Finot is still a winner in our books.
Gabby Thomas ran for the gold.
The U.S. track and field star took home the gold in the 200-meter final on August 6 with a time of 21.83. Julien Alfred of St. Lucia finished second, and Brittany Brown of Team USA finished third.
Simone Biles wins silver in her final competition of the Games.
For the final day of artistic gymnastics, Biles won her last medal of the 2024 Games, earning silver in the floor final. During her floor routine, Biles showcased her extremely technical and powerful skills by performing some of her signature moves, but two out-of-bound bounces ultimately took her off track for gold. In the end, Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade won first place, while Biles’s Team USA teammate Jordan Chiles took the bronze.
Cindy Ngamba secures the first-ever medal for the Refugee Olympic Team.
Cindy Ngamba, a boxer born in Cameroon and now based in the United Kingdom, made history when she secured the first-ever medal for the Refugee Olympic Team. She beat out France’s Davina Michel in the women’s 75-kilogram quarterfinal, earning a chance to fight for the gold during the final this Saturday. Whether she wins or loses, Ngamba has guaranteed at least a bronze medal win.
“I want to tell the refugees around the world: Keep on working hard, keep on pushing yourself, and you can accomplish anything,” she said after the fight.
Noah Lyles becomes the world’s fastest man.
On August 4, sprinter Noah Lyles of Team USA won the 100-meter race at the Paris Olympics. His record time of 9.79 seconds didn’t just win him a gold medal, though—the victory also made him the fastest man in the world.
Lyles is the first American sprinter to win an Olympic gold medal in the men’s 100-meter since Justin Gatlin took the gold at the Athens 2004 Games.
The U.S. women’s soccer team narrowly advances to the semifinals.
A goal from Trinity Rodman in the 105th minute pushed the U.S. women’s soccer team to the semifinals on Saturday, after a close match with Japan. Team USA will face either Germany or Canada next.
Katie Ledecky becomes the most decorated American female athlete.
Katie Ledecky won her ninth gold and 14th overall medal on August 3, taking the 800-meter freestyle and concluding her fourth Olympic Games. Her win defended her three-time title, while her nine gold medals made her the most decorated female swimmer and the most decorated American female athlete across all sports. She is now tied with Larisa Latynina, a Soviet gymnast who won nine golds in the 1950s and 1960s, for most Olympic gold medals won by a woman.
Ledecky swam Saturday’s 800-meter event with a time of 8:11.04, the 13th-fastest recorded time, preceded and followed by her own performances.
Sha’Carri Richardson wins her first Olympic medal, while Julien Alfred wins St. Lucia its first-ever Olympic medal.
After winning her heat and placing second in the semifinals, Sha’Carri Richardson won second place in the women’s 100-meter final on August 3, taking home her first Olympic medal. She ran the sprint event in 10.87 seconds, finishing 0.15 seconds behind gold winner Julien Alfred, who clinched the first-ever Olympic medal for her island country of Saint Lucia. Richardson celebrated her second-place win with training partner and third-place finisher Melissa Jefferson of Team USA.
Sha’Carri Richardson wins her first Olympic race.
The fastest woman in the world got off to a fiery start in her Olympic debut. On August 2, Sha’Carri Richardson won first place in her first-ever Olympic race, beating out eight other runners in her heat of the women’s 100 meters, with a time of 10.94 seconds. The victory qualifies her to advance to the semifinals on August 3.
The U.S. women’s fencing team makes history.
The U.S. women’s fencing team made history on August 1 as it beat Italy in the foil team gold-medal match bout, earning its first team gold at the Olympics.
The winning team includes Laureen Scruggs, Lee Kiefer, Jackie Dubrovich, and Maia Weintraub.
Simone Biles takes the gold at the women’s gymnastics all-around final.
She’s done it again! Days after Biles made history by winning the most Olympics medals for an American gymnast, she took first place once again at the women’s gymnastics all-around final event on August 1.
Overall, Team USA earned two spots on the Olympic podium, with fellow American gymnast Sunisa Lee securing bronze. Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade won silver.
The U.S. wins 3,000 Olympic medals—the first country ever to do so.
Team USA hit a major milestone on July 31 by becoming the first country ever to win 3,000 Olympic medals. That total includes hardware earned from both Summer and Winter games, and NBC notes that no other country in the world has garnered even half that.
Katie Ledecky beats her own Olympic record.
On July 31, Ledecky won an Olympic gold medal in the 1,500-meter freestyle final, beating her own Olympic record and earning her her 12th Olympic medal overall. That tally means Ledecky now ties with Olympic legend Jenny Thompson for most Olympic gold medals won by an American swimmer. Both athletes each have eight golds, three silvers, and one bronze.
Team USA’s women’s rugby team wins its first-ever Olympic medal.
On July 30, the U.S. women’s rugby team triumphed over Australia with a score of 14–12. The win secured a bronze medal for Team USA and marked the team’s first time on the Olympic podium.
Ilona Maher has emerged as the team’s breakout star, with the 27-year-old Vermont native often going viral on social media for her skills on the field, as well as for her wholesome TikToks filmed straight from Olympic Village.
After winning bronze, Maher said she hopes the victory will result in further funding for the women’s rugby team. “I hope this means more money and funding for us, ’cause we deserve it,” she said in a post-game interview. “I hope this means more girls in the U.S. trying out rugby and see[ing] what it can do for them.”
Simone Biles makes history again.
After leading Team USA to first place in the women’s gymnastics team final on July 30, Biles secured her fifth Olympic gold medal and eighth Olympic medal overall. The fresh win makes her the most decorated American gymnast in Olympic history, breaking her previous tie with Shannon Miller. At 27 years old, Biles is also the oldest woman to win the gold for Olympics artistic gymnastics since 1964, when the Soviet Union’s Polina Astakhova took home the gold.
Coco Gauff loses in the women’s singles tournament.
American tennis star Coco Gauff is out of the Olympics women’s singles tournament, losing to Croatia’s Donna Vekic in a 6–7, 2–6 defeat on July 30. The loss came after a tearful, minutes-long argument with the chair umpire over a controversial line call.
The critical moment came during Gauff’s attempt to stage a comeback in the second set. A line judge initially called out Vekic’s return for hitting near Gauff’s baseline, with Gauff consequently hitting the ball into the net. Moments later, chair umpire Jaume Campistol deemed Vekic’s return in and handed the Croatian player the point, giving Vekic a decisive advantage over Gauff. Gauff argued that the point should be replayed, since the call was made just moments before she hit the ball.
The situation is reminiscent of an incident that occurred earlier this year during a match between Polish player Iga Świątek and Gauff at the French Open.
“I always have to advocate for myself on this court, all the time,” Gauff reportedly said. “I feel like I’m getting cheated on constantly in this game.”
Team USA’s men’s gymnastics team wins its first Olympic medals in 16 years.
For the first time since 2008, the U.S. men’s gymnast team is bringing home Olympic medals.
Brody Malone, Frederick Richard, Asher Hong, Paul Juda, and Stephen Nedoroscik secured the bronze in a team event, in which Japan won gold and China won silver.
The men’s triathlon is postponed due to pollution in the Seine.
After a plan to clean up the critical Paris waterway cost the city an eye-watering $1.5 billion, the men’s triathlon—originally slated to take place July 30—has been postponed due to pollution in the River Seine. The race will now take place on July 31, the same day the women’s triathlon is scheduled.
World Triathlon, the sport’s governing body at the Olympics, revealed that the decision to reschedule came after water-quality tests “did not provide sufficient guarantees to allow the event to be held” due to “health reasons.” The tests were done after it rained in Paris, a weather event that can affect water quality.
Veteran Olympics commentator taken off the air after criticism over comments made about Australia’s women’s swim team.
Eurosport dropped commentator Bob Ballard from its Olympics coverage after he was criticized for making sexist remarks about Australia’s women’s swim team.
After Mollie O’Callaghan, Shayna Jack, Emma McKeon, and Meg Harris won the gold in the women’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay, Ballard said on air, “Well, the women just finishing up. You know what women are like … hanging around, doing their makeup.”
Ballard’s remarks made the rounds on social media, sparking widespread outrage. Eurosport later said in a statement that Ballard’s comment was “inappropriate” and that he has subsequently “been removed from our commentary roster with immediate effect.”
Ballard later posted his own statement about the incident: “It was never my intention to upset or belittle anyone and, if I did, I apologise. I am a massive advocate of women’s sport.”
Simone Biles sparks a fangirl moment in fellow gymnasts.
Despite sustaining a calf injury during warm-ups, Biles earned the highest overall score in the women’s gymnastics all-around qualification round on July 28, with 59.566 under her belt, a total that advanced her to the finals. (Team USA gymnast Suni Lee is also heading to the finals.)
Besides making waves for her gravity-defying movies, the world-renowned American gymnast also got the internet buzzing when 16-year-old Chinese gymnast Zhang Yihan was caught fangirling over Biles’s floor routine on camera. In a widely shared clip, Yihan can be seen making awestruck facial reactions to Biles’s choreography. In another clip, her teammate Qiu Qiyuan reportedly tells Yihan they should put their coats on over their leotards, to which Yihan enthusiastically responds, “I can’t, I have to get a photo with Simone Biles!”
Relay swimmers win Team USA’s first gold medals.
Team USA racked up its first gold medals at this year’s Olympics, courtesy of the men’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay team. On July 27, Jack Alexy, Chris Guiliano, Hunter Armstrong, and Caeleb Dressel clinched first place by finishing 1.07 seconds ahead of runner-up Australia.
Earlier in the day, Team USA won its first medals of any kind in Paris due to synchronized divers Sarah Bacon and Kassidy Cook, who took home the silver in the women’s 3-meter synchronized springboard event.
Beyoncé introduces Team USA.
On July 26, Beyoncé made a surprise Olympics cameo when NBC aired a clip of her introducing Team USA during the opening ceremony.
In the video, the music phenomenon continued her embrace of western fashion trends, in the form of a bedazzled American flag–themed cowboy hat, which she paired with a matching “USA” leotard; a red, white, and blue coat cape; and blinged-out cowboy boots.
Fittingly, the clip was set to an Olympic-themed update of “Ya Ya,” an energetic track from March’s Cowboy Carter.
An assortment of Team USA athletes starred in the patriotic montage presented by Beyoncé, including Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Sha’Carri Richardson, LeBron James, and Katie Ledecky.
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As an associate editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com, Chelsey keeps a finger on the pulse on all things celeb news. She also writes on social movements, connecting with activists leading the fight on workers’ rights, climate justice, and more. Offline, she’s probably spending too much time on TikTok, rewatching Emma (the 2020 version, of course), or buying yet another corset.