U.S. athletes to watch in the Paris Olympics

The 2024 Paris Olympics are here. The opening ceremony isn’t until Friday, but events are officially underway with men’s soccer and rugby. Millions of fans will descend on the city, as will athletes from around the globe. To preview the summer games, Amna Nawaz spoke with Christine Brennan of USA Today.

Read the Full Transcript

Amna Nawaz: All right, well, the 2024 Paris Olympics are here.

The Opening Ceremony isn’t until Friday, but events are officially under way today, including men’s soccer and rugby. Millions of fans will descend on the city, as will athletes from around the globe, including American superstars like Simone Biles, Sha’Carri Richardson, LeBron James, Coco Gauff, and Katie Ledecky.

To preview the Summer Games, I am joined from Paris by Christine Brennan, columnist for USA Today.

Christine, great to see you. Thanks for joining us.

Christine Brennan, USA Today: Amna, great to be with you. Thank you.

Amna Nawaz: So, before we dive into this game, I have to just ask you about some Olympics-related news out today. The International Olympic Committee announced that the 2034 Winter Games will be hosted by Salt Lake City, but there’s been some controversy around that decision. Explain that to us.

Christine Brennan: Exactly.

Salt Lake City is really the only city that wanted the 2034 Games. They’re very controversial. It costs a lot of money. We expected this, Amna, to just be a slam dunk. Instead, the IOC, several members brought up basically a demand, demanding the local officials in Utah, in Salt Lake City, including the governor, accede to their wishes to shut down the federal investigation that’s going on involving the Chinese doping controversy that I’m sure many remember and have heard of involving swimming.

The U.S., the FBI’s investigating. There’s a law called the Rodchenkov Act that actually allows the United States to investigate doping schemes that affect U.S. athletes, which this one certainly does, and maybe deprive some of medals.

And so, surprisingly, shockingly, the U.S. officials said, yes, we will sign this agreement with the knowledge that we have now been told by the IOC that we should try to shut down an investigation that would impact the IOC, because if they come into the country, as has been the case with one official, where they get subpoenaed when they land in the United State — and these International Olympic Committee people on it, they think they’re royalty.

And they think they’re untouchable, and they don’t want to deal with us laws. Truly stunning development that they caved in to the IOC in this manner.

Amna Nawaz: Not the headline they wanted to kick off these Games.

But let’s turn to these summer events ahead now. They’re featuring some of the biggest us stars folks will know, including gymnast Simone Biles, truly the GOAT. Now, we have to remind folks, Team USA took the silver last Olympics. Remember, Biles had to pull out and made extreme stress that was actually putting her in physical risk.

How do we expect her to do and the team this year?

Christine Brennan: This is the story of the Olympics, at least for U.S. fans, for sure, and gymnastics fans.

And Simone Biles, of course, is a survivor of the worst sexual abuse case and scandal in Olympic history and in sports history, the Larry Nassar saga. And she’s been so vocal as a survivor and supporting others, those hundreds of women who were just horrifically abused.

And so she’s a survivor. She’s the greatest of all time, as you said. She is coming back after terrific Olympics in Rio eight years ago and then, of course, a difficult Olympics three years ago in Tokyo. She had the twisties, the word we all didn’t know, and then we all knew.

And she withdrew to take care of that physically, mentally, came back when the bronze medal in the balance beam. And here she is now. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if she wins the gold in the individual all-around, the U.S. gets that team gold back, and she’s able to win gold in several of the events, including floor exercise, balance beam, maybe — and vault as well.

She’s 27, but she’s on top of her game, Amna. And she really feels great coming into these Olympics and obviously is going to be the one to watch over the next 10 days or so.

Amna Nawaz: Also one to watch, if we head over to the pool now, is Katie Ledecky. She’s swimming in her fourth Olympic Games, looking to add to her six individual gold medals. What should we watch for here?

Christine Brennan: Yes, I think she’s going to win two more individual gold medals in the 800 and the 1,500. The longer she swims, the better she does. And she’s great, of course, at those distances, and has dominated the mile, the 1,500 and also the 800.

The 400 will kick off the Olympic competition on Saturday. There’s an Australian, Ariarne Titmus, who won the gold three years ago. Katie got the silver. So Katie has won gold in Rio in this event, the 400 meters, and then silver. And the question is now, will she win a medal at all? And if she does, will it be a bronze?

There’s great competition. All these young swimmers who grew up idolizing Katie Ledecky are now competing with her because she, like Simone Biles, is 27. They were born in the same week in March of 1997. Amazing, Ledecky and Biles.

So, Katie, though, is just such a superb athlete, so good, and loves this so much. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see her win four medals overall, one in the relay, and then three in the 400, 800, 1,500, with gold in those last two events.

Amna Nawaz: That was a great week to be born in 1997.

All right, what about track and field? We all know superstar names like Sha’Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles. How is Team USA expected to do?

Christine Brennan: You know, this is really one of the marquee events, and it’s the second week of the Olympics after swimming is done and a lot of gymnastics.

And Americans love their sprinters. I mean, all the way back to Jesse Owens, to Carl Lewis, Florence Griffith Joyner, Evelyn Ashford, on and on, Gail Devers, and now Sha’Carri Richardson. She gets that chance that she did not get three years ago.

I’m sure people remember the positive drug test from marijuana. It broke everyone’s heart, but it is a banned substance. So she did not go to the Tokyo Olympics. She’s back. She’s expected to do great and I think win potentially the 100 meters.

And then Noah Lyles on the men’s side, the same, those sprints, the 100 and the 200. He won the bronze in Tokyo, and he has just been dominating on the world stage at world championships. Those two, those names that I mentioned earlier, we always look for the next one. We look for that next superstar in the sprints.

And I think Richardson and Lyles are definitely going to fit the bill, obviously, a lot of pressure, but I think they’re ready to do it.

Amna Nawaz: Christine Brennan from USA Today, joining us from Paris, covering the Olympic Games.

Christine, thank you so, so much. We will check back in with you soon.

Christine Brennan: Thanks, Amna. Take care.