So much to love about these 2024 Olympic Games | Bench Talk with Ben Ray

There was no shortage of storylines from the 2024 Paris Olympics. From the gold medal race the Aussies gave the United States in swimming to the controversy with Imane Khelif from Algeria, which was all just smoke, to Noah Lyles winning gold then getting COVID and still running — what a spectacle the Olympics continues to be.

It was headlines deluxe from start to finish in Paris and the attention-grabbing stories really embodied why we love the Olympic Games.

Over the past few weeks, but really since 2020 and beyond, division has been a problem in this country. This still happens even when we are rooting for a team with the stars and stripes on their chest. Just like the women’s soccer team and their progressive stances that upset some U.S. fans.

Hell, even the opening ceremony ruffled feathers. But at the root of the Olympics, the sports themselves, the fans were fantastic this year. People from across America and even here at home put aside their differences and gave a shout to an athlete that they didn’t even know existed 40 minutes before their event started.

We were also privy to some amazing athletes from around the world. There was Yusef Dikec from Turkey, winning a silver medal with his nonchalant shooting style that captured the internet. Then we had some Anerican love with Katie Ledecky doing what she does, dominating in the pool and owning the top 15 times in the 1,500-meter swim. And how could we forget pommel horse guy Stephen Nedoroscik, who helped the U.S. men medal for the first time since 2004 in team gymnastics.

Then in the final days, U.S. women’s soccer and basketball took home gold medals. And seeing Steph Curry, Lebron James and Kevin Durant crushing the French dream of a gold medal in basketball on the home court for the second straight Olympic Games was a sight to behold.

Somewhere in between all that, Simone Biles and Team USA shined in the gym. Biles hasn’t lost an all-around event since 2013, which is truly remarkable.

Arguably the biggest story line for the Americans on the track in the final days of the Olympics was Noah Lyles. After winning the gold in the 100-meter dash in the days prior, Lyles took third in the 200-meter dash, the race that he has shown is his best race. After the run, he fell to the ground and needed to be wheelchaired off the track. It was then revealed that he tested positive for COVID, and then he didn’t run in a relay that the U.S. was disqualified from.

The U.S. and China ended with 40 gold medals, but the U.S. blew the Chinese out of the water in total medals with 126 to China’s 91. A pair of Caribbean island nations took home the most medals per capita in the Paris games: Anderson Peters (javelin) and Lindon Victor (1,500 meters) both took home bronze from Grenada, making it one medal for every 56.289 people. While Thea LaFond’s gold medal performance in the triple jump gave Dominica their first ever gold in its eighth Olympic appearance (debut in Atlanta 1996). Dominica’s gold medal per population ratio sat at 67,408.

The country with the highest population per medal was India, which failed to secure a gold in these games. Its six medals meant one medal per 234,151,666 people.

Now we wait four years for the Summer Games to come again, but next time, sunny Los Angeles will be the host. The last time the City of Angels hosted was 1984 and 1932, and that 1984 Olympics made an incredible impact on young athletes all over the United States.

Baseball and softball are back as well as cricket, which has exploded in popularity here in the U.S. This will be the second worldwide sporting event held in North America after the World Cup concludes two summers prior in 2026.

Ben Ray writes about sports in South King County. Contact benjamin.ray@soundpublishing.com.