USA Men’s Rowing Team Gets Emotional As The “The Star-Spangled Banner” Played After Historic Gold Medal

Doesn't get much more, "America, f**k yeah!" than this. And yes, I grasp that the delightful Team America: World Police song is critical of Dubya Bush/Cheney era jingoism and what have you. We're talking about the spirit of the thing, OK? The vibes. Let's keep it upbeat here. The USA men's rowing team — or "crew" if you like in American parlance — won the gold medal in a thrilling coxless four final race, edging out New Zealand for the top of the podium. I thought rowing races (regattas, right?) were a lot longer than this. No complaints, though! We got us some gold up on that board, and what a thrill this shorter, sprint-like format is. https://twitter.com/NBCSports/status/1819015843331678481 George Clooney directed a movie that released in late 2023 called The Boys in the Boat , which covered the USA's improbable qualification and gold medal win in the men's eights at the 1936 Summer Olympics. Men's rowing in those Berlin Summer Games was otherwise mostly dominated by hosting Germany. To get to this year's now-immortal Olympians, though: Nick Mead, Justin Best, Michael Grady, and Liam Corrigan became the first American gold medalists in the men's four since the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. The best part? The winning nation gets to hear their national anthem once they've completed the feat they've trained no fewer than four years for. You can see by the reactions of the rowers just how much this breakthrough triumph in Paris means to them when "The Star-Spangled Banner" rings out near the water. https://twitter.com/NBCSports/status/1818991357190390234 Well done, gents. Not sure if the Americans were favored coming into this particular event, but history would certainly suggest that was not the case. Can always get behind a good underdog story. Even better if they hail from the great US of A! This quartet certainly make the nation proud. As of now, the USA is leading the Paris Summer Olympics with 31 total medals. There's plenty more work yet to be done, however. With six gold medals and counting, we're trailing China (11), France and Japan (eight apiece), and Australia's seven golds. Feeling pretty confident that Simone Biles will add to that total here soon. She's already contributed one to the cause as the anchor of the USA's team final win. Next up is the individual all-around. LFG!