Team USA has stood tall above the rest in track and field at the 2024 Olympics.
The United States has put on a dominant showing in athletics at the Paris Games, earning an Olympics-high 34 medals. The next-closest country? Kenya with 10 medals.
The Americans racked up the most gold (14), silver (11) and bronze (9) medals. Those podium finishes featured stars like Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson, along with some breakout performers.
With the Olympic meet almost in the books (there is still one event left in the final day of the Games Sunday), here’s a look back at the top track and field moments in Paris:
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Ryan Crouser among US repeat champs
Four Americans successfully defended individual Olympic titles in Paris. The first was Ryan Crouser, who became the first athlete to ever capture three Olympic shot put titles — and he won them consecutively. The 31-year-old, who battled elbow and pectoral injuries earlier this year, secured his three-peat with a throw of 22.90 meters.
On the track, there was Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who not only defended her gold medal in the women’s hurdles 400m, but also broke her own world record in the event, finishing with a time of 50.37 seconds. Her previous world record was 50.65 seconds, which she set at the U.S, Olympic Trials earlier this year.
McLaughlin-Levrone also won gold in the women’s 4x400m relay, where she combined with teammates Shamier Little, Gabby Thomas and Alexis Holme to finish with a time of 3:15.27, which is the second-fastest in history.
Noah Lyles leaves Paris as fastest man in world
Noah Lyles had big goals in mind for his second Olympics, and he hit the ground running in Paris. The bronze medalist from Tokyo would go on to win gold in the men’s 100m final by .005 seconds, which is around 1/20th the time it takes for one human blink.
However, Lyles’ chances at gold in the men’s 200m were hindered by his COVID-19 diagnosis, which he revealed after the race. The 27-year-old, who took home bronze in the event, had to be taken away in a wheelchair to receive medical treatment after the race.
Lyles would get up and speak with reporters shortly afterward, but he did pull out of the men’s 4x100m event later in the week due to his illness (Team USA was disqualified in the men’s 4x100m due to a controversial decision).
Sha’Carri Richardson makes long-awaited Olympic debut
Sha’Carri Richardson, with her fan Cardi B watching, finally made her Olympic debut, bringing home a gold and silver medal for Team USA.
Richardson, who was prevented from taking part in the Tokyo Olympics despite qualifying at the U.S. Olympic Trials due to a one-month suspension for testing positive for the active ingredient in marijuana, finally made her first Olympic appearance in Paris.
Her first race, the women’s 100m, would also give her the first Olympic medal of her career, as she came in second with a time of 10.87 seconds.
But Richardson’s golden moment would come as the sprinter for the anchor leg of the women’s 4x100m, giving her the first gold medal of her career.
Cole Hocker, Quincy Hall’s capture gold in dramatic fashion
Noah Lyles wasn’t the only American who charged to gold with a thrilling comeback.
Cole Hocker stunned the world with his last-minute comeback in the final lap in the men’s 1,500m, when he passed four others, including the 2023 world champion Josh Kerr of Great Britain, to take home gold in a photo finish.
And then there was Quincy Hall, who leaped past several competitors to inch past the finish line first in the men’s 400m, bringing home his first Olympic gold.
Rai Benjamin rises to top of podium
In an improvement from his silver medal in Tokyo, the 27-year-old Rai Benjamin took home his first individual gold medal in the men’s 400m hurdles event.
Benjamin finished with a time of 46.46 seconds, which was actually longer than his silver medal performance in Tokyo, where he finished with a time of 46.17 seconds.
The Mount Vernon, N.Y., native also helped Team USA defend its gold medal in men’s 4x400m relay, holding off Botswana in the final lap of the event. Benjamin also won gold with Team USA in the event in Tokyo.
Kenya’s Beatrice Chebet pulls off rare distance double
How’s this for an Olympic debut? In her first appearance at the Games, Kenya’s Beatrice Chebet pulled off the rare distance double.
The 24-year-old first won the women’s 5000m final in 14:28.56, over a second ahead of second-place finisher Faith Kipyegon of Kenya. Four days later, Chebet fended off Italy’s Nadia Battocletti down the final stretch of the 10,000m to win in 30:43.25.
Not only did Chebet become Kenya’s first Olympic champion in the women’s 10,000m, she was also just the third woman to ever sweep the 5000m and 10,000m races at the same Games.
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Publish date : 2024-08-10 16:40:00
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