PARIS – Star player Maggie Steffens didn’t even know.
It wasn’t until the final minutes of Saturday’s 15-6 thumping of Greece that an assistant coach pointed it out to her. There was first lady Jill Biden in the seats at the Olympic Aquatic Center, watching Steffens and the powerful U.S. women’s water polo team in action.
"My jaw dropped," Steffens said. "I just felt really honored that she was there to watch our sport. So much of what we do is to help grow the sport of water polo. To have her there and see her in the crowd made me like our sport has that growth opportunity and just that respect and love."
After watching the U.S. water polo victory, Biden and Staley met with the team afterward.
"She reminded me of my mom," Steffens said of Biden. "I was like, 'You are the cutest.' ... So approachable. So kind. So cute. I just felt like I could talk to her for hours, and that made me feel so special that she was giving her time out of everything that's happening in the world to the sport of water polo."
For more than a decade, the U.S. has been a dominant force in women’s water polo, winning the past three gold medals and earning a larger profile for the sport.
It wasn't just Biden and Staley.
Flavor Flav has become an ardent supporter of the U.S. team. Plus, former gold-medalist figure skater Brian Boitano and Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass, who was visiting ahead of her city hosting the 2028 Olympics, also visited with the team, U.S. coach Adam Krikorian said.
Jul 27, 2024; Paris, France; United States of America First Lady Jill Biden waves to the crowd during the match between Greece and United States of America in women’s water polo group B play during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Aquatics Centre. Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports
What was Biden’s message to the players?
"Just that she's behind us," Krikorian said. "She's rooting for us, and she was impressed with the game. That was probably her first water polo game ever. She just couldn't believe what goes into that and how fit you need to be in order to play it."
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