In the year 1900, women were finally allowed to compete in the Olympics for the first time, an Olympics that just so happened to be held in Paris, France. That year, twenty-two women competed in sailing, golf, cricket, tennis, and equestrian sports. Hélène de Pourtalès, a Swiss-American athlete, competed in sailing and represented her native country as the first female Olympic champion. In tennis, Charlotte Cooper of Great Britain became the first female athlete to win a gold medal on her own. Since then, the number of women participating in sports has increased dramatically, and it seems almost serendipitous that Paris 2024 was set to be the most gender-equal Olympics to date with nearly half of the competitors being female.
This year, the spirit of super-womanhood conquered Paris and ran through the Olympic village like Flo-Jo. Between that and the momentum surrounding the current presidential election, you can almost smell the patriotism in the air. It’s an aroma of spritz, FENTY Beauty, and grit. It’s been clear for a minute now that women have been dominating from the White House to the locker room and have been doing so without even sweating our hair out. This is why it comes as no surprise that women earned 26 of the 40 gold medals won by the United States in this year’s 2024 Paris Olympics, making history with 65% of the total, and closing the Olympics with 127 medals, with the United States winning the most.
American women did quite well in both individual and team competitions such as track and field, swimming, and gymnastics, where superstars like Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Sunisa Lee, and Simone Manuel, gave amazing performances. After winning four medals in Paris in 2024, Katie Ledecky became the most decorated female athlete in Olympic history with a total of 14 medals. Ledecky won the 800-meter freestyle in swimming with a hold on Ariarne Titmus, marking her fourth straight victory in the competition. Ledecky dragged teammate Paige Madden to the top step of the Olympic podium, as Madden had also just won her first Olympic individual medal (Bronze).
After the Tokyo Olympics, Black athletes specifically accounted for only a third of the women’s medals. However, this year, Black women earned 42% of Team USA’s women’s competition medals, exceeding records set by previous Olympic games. Of those, 68 were won in women’s competitions, while the remaining six were in mixed-gender sports. Fourteen of the 68 women’s titles were won by Black women who competed on their own, while six of the group medals were won by teams that included Black women in their composition, and two of the medals were won by teams that were made up entirely of Black women. That means that, for Team USA, a total of 38 Black women won medals.
The magic was on the court and in the air for USA gymnasts Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles going viral for their role in the first all-Black gymnastics podium. They took their places next to Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade for Gold, while Biles and Chiles followed through with the Silver and Bronze for the floor routine finals. Simone left Paris becoming the most decorated gymnast in Olympic history while breaking her own records and setting her own rules with routines too difficult for even judges to score, better yet too difficult for many other gymnasts even to attempt. Chiles, is currently fighting to retain her Bronze medal in the face of controversy, following an error on behalf of the judges during the floor routine finals. After her performance, the coaches from Team USA filed a legal inquiry after they felt Jordan’s routine wasn’t scored accurately on difficulty. Prior to the inquiry, Team Romania was in position for the Bronze, and original reports stated that Team USA filed the inquiry 4 seconds too late, although the inquiry was accepted and reversed by the judges, which resulted in them then awarding Chiles the Bronze. Chiles was given the Bronze medal which was distributed during a viral celebratory moment, and days later, Romania challenged the inquiry along with its legitimacy, which was followed by the judges revoking their decision and demanding that Chiles’ return her Bronze medal. Team USA then submitted video footage proving that their inquiry was in fact submitted 47 seconds after the completion of her routine, making it 53 seconds early according to Olympic rules. That submission was then denied, and Team USA is still in legal battles defending the honor of Jordan’s talent, reputation, and well-earned accolades. She released a statement saying that she believes the decision to strip her of her Bronze is unjust, but she is also overwhelmed by the love and support she has received in one of the most difficult moments of her athletic career. As of now, Jordan has rightfully decided to retain her Bronze medal, and Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu has been awarded her own.
The Nigerian women’s team, who defeated Canada on August 4th, received their first-ever quarterfinals Olympic advancement, which then placed them the USA. The USA women’s Basketball Team then went on to remain undefeated with their 88-74 win against Nigeria, which qualified them for the Olympic semifinals, where they would compete against France for the gold. Starting forward for Team France Gabby Williams went toe to toe with Team USA and was two inches from a buzzer-beater that would’ve forced the championship game into overtime for the first time in 24 years. Her last-minute jump shot from on top of the three-point line ended up being a two-pointer which gave Team USA a one-point victory to claim the Gold medal, a game much too close for comfort. Williams has since been signed to the Seattle Storm of the WNBA, and this may be a sign of hope that American professional women’s basketball can finally provide competitive salaries and a more sustainable way of life for women’s athletes compared to international leagues. Stars such as A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, and Kelsey Plum led the USA women’s Basketball team to their eighth straight Gold medal and their 61st consecutive Olympic win in 32 years. Brittany Griner, also suited up for Team USA for the first time since being detained for 10 months in a Russian prison back in 2022.
Track and Field is where we know the girls do not come to play. The magic was left in the dust as American sprinter Gabby Thomas won the women’s 200m and helped Team USA win the 4×100m as well as the 4×400m relays, becoming the second U.S. runner to win three gold medals at an Olympics since Allyson Felix in 2012.
Tara Davis-Woodhall won gold in the long jump, and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won two gold medals while breaking her own Olympic record in the 400-meter hurdles.
The DMV’s own Masai Russell won Gold in the women’s 100m hurdles, while Jasmine Moore took home two Bronze medals in the women’s Long Jump and Triple Jump.
Brittany Brown won an Olympic Bronze in the women’s 200m race, and Melissa Jefferson took home the Bronze in the women’s 100 meter.
Nigerian-American hammer thrower Annette Echikunwoke was the first woman to medal in the event for Team USA, while Julien Alfred became the first athlete ever to clench an Olympic medal for the island of St. Lucia, by winning the Gold for the women’s 100m final, in a stunning upset against Team USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson. After St. Lucia started participating in the Olympics in 1996, 40 athletes have gone on to represent the nation. Alfred, the only female representative from St. Lucia to reach the Olympic podium, finished the race in 10.72 seconds,.15 seconds faster than Sha’Carri Richardson, who came in second. St. Lucien celebrations went viral as Alfred sobbed and covered herself with the St. Lucian Flag after learning she had won gold.
Richardson however contributed to two of 15 of the women’s medals in her first Olympic competition, by winning the silver medal for the women’s 100 and carrying Team USA to the Gold by running the anchor leg in the women’s 4×100 relay.
Queens, N.Y. native Lauren Scruggs became the first Black American woman (and Harvard student) to win an individual medal in Fencing by bringing home the Silver and played a pivotal role in helping Team USA capture its first gold medal in Fencing as a team.
Naya Tapper and Ariana Ramsey helped make history during the US Rugby Sevens by bringing home the USA’s first medal in the sport by securing the bronze in the finals.
While Lynn Williams, Sophia Smith, Jaedyn Shaw, Crystal Dunn, Trinity Rodman, Casey Krueger, and Naomi Girma helped lead the USA women’s Soccer Team to Gold on the final day of the Olympic games.
The excitement behind women’s sports seems to be a global phenomenon, and at this year’s Olympics, its impact was most certainly displayed on the big screen both domestically and internationally. On August 3rd, 35 million people watched Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky, and Sha’Carri Richardson win medals on NBC networks, this also includes the streaming service Peacock which did an impressive job of providing viewers live, up-to-date, and multiview option access. 3.0 million people turned in to witness U.S. women’s Soccer vs. Japan, whereas 4.2 million people watched U.S. women’s Soccer vs. Germany on July 28. In the gymnastics all-around competition, Simone Biles and Suni Lee won gold and bronze, respectively, in front of 32 million people. Watching the U.S. women’s Gymnastics Team win gold, 34.7 million people tuned in. The women’s soccer gold medal match between Brazil and the United States drew an average audience of 9 million people, the highest since 2004. Peak viewership for the gold medal women’s basketball game between the United States and France was 10.9 million. Not to mention, for the first time ever, the Olympics and Paralympics will showcase the same amount of male and female athletes.
May this year’s Olympics be a clear example of what women are capable of whether under pressure or on top of their game. In the wise words of 2023 WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, “I’m not surprised at all because, when it comes to getting the work done and the job done, a woman’s going to always step up to the plate and get it done. When it’s time to shine bright under these big lights, we’re going to always prevail in that because we’re used to this.”
