This year's Olympic trials have been years in the making for some of America’s greatest athletes whose talents will be on display during the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
There are the stars who have already established themselves as household names. And then there are those whose stories, much like their talent relative to the rest of the world, will become what everyone’s talking about in the coming weeks.
Here’s a look at 10 need-to-knows coming out of Team USA Olympic trials.
1. Let the Sha’Carri Show begin
You will be hard-pressed to find an athlete folks are more eager to see perform during the Olympic trials than 100-meter sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson. The 23-year-old has bounced back from the heartbreak of making the team in 2020 but was unable to participate after testing positive for THC metabolites. That led to a one-month suspension by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, which kept her from competing in the 2020 Olympics. Since then, she has been a dominant force globally in the 100-meters, becoming the United States 100-meter champion in 2023 and later claiming gold in Budapest in the World Athletics Championships.
2. Break(ing) out a new event in Paris
From fancy footwork on flattened cardboard boxes to box office hits like Breakin’ to Shaquille O’Neal rocking a shoulder roll during All-Star weekend, breakdancing has come a long way— to the Olympics, even.
This will be the first Olympic Games at which breakdancing will be included among the events on the slate of competitions.
3. Keep an eye on McKenzie Long
While Sha’Carri Richardson is the hottest name in the track world, she may soon have company. McKenzie Long, 23, was a dominant sprinter at Ole Miss this season, sweeping the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter relay to claim three national championships at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
4. Team USA’s 200-meter track pool is deeper now
One of the top sprinters in the world learned last month that he was eligible to run in Team USA Olympic trials.
Erryiyno Knighton, holder of the under-18 and under-20 records in the 200 meters, was cleared by an arbitration panel . The panel determined that his positive test for a banned substance came from contaminated meat.
According to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, Knighton tested positive for the performance enhancer trenbolone during an out-of-competition test in March.
Knighton will join an already stacked field of 200-meter hopefuls, led by Kenny Bednarek (Silver medal in 2020 Tokyo Olympics); Noah Lyles (bronze medal winner in 2020 Tokyo Olympics); and Courtney Lindsey.
5. Women’s Boxing Adds Weight Class
Look for women’s boxing to pack even more punch in Paris during this Olympic Games with the addition of another weight class. With a new weight class combined with a weight class in the men’s division being dropped, there are now six weight classes for women and seven for men.
6. Will Team USA’s 100-meter drought end?
The luster of Team USA’s once-dominant presence in Track and Field sprinting events is indeed a thing of the past. But this year’s Olympic Games provide hope that the drought will end. Noah Lyles swept the 100-meter and 200-meter titles in the World Athletic Championships in Budapest and will look to continue his strong running during the Olympic trials. He will look to be the first Team USA runner to win an Olympic gold in the 100-meters since Justin Gatlin did so in the 2004 Athens games, a victory that came by 0.01 seconds . Other 100-meter hopefuls include Fred Kerley, Christian Coleman and 18-year-old Christian Miller.
7. Riding the Best Waves
Surfing was added to the Olympic Games menu during the 2020 Games in Tokyo, but you won’t see it in Paris. It’s still part of the 2024 Games, but the actual competition will happen more than 9,000 miles from the French capital in Teahupo’o, an island in Tahiti, French Polynesia primarily because of the location’s intense waves.
8. Sport Climbing on the Rise
Sport climbing was added to the Olympic Games in 2020 and its growth globally is undeniable. In Tokyo, there were 40 competitors. In Paris, that number is up to 68 with the competition now split into two events instead of just one.
9. Who’s Christian Miller?
Chances are folks won’t be asking that question much longer. The 18-year-old has already made a name for himself in track circles as one of America’s most promising young sprinters. But this year's trials offered the casual Track and Field fan a chance to see why he is seen as the future of American sprinters. Miller is the youngest to run 100 meters in less than 10 seconds. In April, he ran 100 meters in a wind-legal 9.93 seconds. Then, 17 years old, he set a world under-18 record while also breaking the American under-20 record that was held by Trayvon Bromell (9.97 seconds), which stood for nearly a decade prior to Miller’s time.
10. Simone Manuel, on the comeback trail
Upon completion of the swimming trials, Simone Manuel had already secured a spot on the Team USA swimming team as part of the 4x100 relay team, with a chance to compete as an individual in the 50 freestyle. Her story is one of resiliency following the weight of unprecedented success. After becoming the first Black woman to win an individual swimming gold medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, Manuel pushed her body too hard afterward and was diagnosed with overtraining syndrome, which impacted her performances leading up to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Manuel failed to qualify for the 100-meter freestyle in Tokyo, where she won a gold medal during the 2016 Rio Games. After doctors told her to shut down all physical activity for six months following the Tokyo Olympics, Manuel has bounced back, looking very much like the dominant swimmer who took home three medals in the 2016 Olympics (two gold, one silver) and has racked up 14 medals in the last three World championships.
Most Popular
Comments / 0