The Olympics are back! The multi-cultural festival finally saw the return of fans, the soul behind any sport. Paris Olympics 2024 have been a success thanks to all the drama it has produced- uplifting stories, brewing controversies & the sensational memes. The 33rd edition of the Summer Olympic Games has the internet in a chokehold, whether it be Yusuf Dikec's iconic shooting stance, Chinese gymnast, Zhou Yaqin's heartwarming podium celebration or French runner Alice Finot's marriage proposal to her man Manu Bhaker, the 22-year-old shooter, clinched the double bronze, becoming the first woman shooter for India to win a medal at the Olympics. The Haryana-born shooter won a bronze in the individual 10m air pistol event, securing the double in the 10m air pistol mixed team with Sarabjot Singh. Bhaker's historic performance earned the privilege to be India's flag-bearer for the closing ceremony. Neeraj Chopra, India's Golden Boy, etched his name in the history books, securing India's first silver medal at the Paris Olympics. The 26-year-old failed to replicate his extraordinary gold-winning performance in Tokyo 2020 owing to Pakistan Arshad Nadeem's Olympic record-breaking throw. The Indian hockey team, under the leadership of Harmanpreet Singh, secured the second consecutive bronze following a 2-1 victory over Spain. India upheld its wrestling legacy by winning a 5th consecutive medal in wrestling, a streak that began in Beijing in 2006. Aman Sehrawat secured the bronze medal after shedding 4.6 kgs in ten hours. The 21-year-old became the youngest Indian to win an individual medal Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat produced one of the biggest upsets at the Olympics. She defeated Japan's Yui Susaki in women's wrestling in the 50 kg category, ending her impressive winning streak. The celebrations were cut short as she was disqualified by a mere 100 grams for missing weight. The heartbreaking qualification led Phogat to announce her retirement on social media, which translated to, "My courage is broken; I don't have any more strength now. Goodbye Wrestling, 2001-2024." Phogat and her legal counsel appealed in the Court of Arbitration for Sport to be awarded a joint silver medal. The decision lies in limbo as CAS has allowed the sole arbitrator more time for a decision originally supposed to be made at the end of the Olympics. The hot topic of the Olympics 2024 was the controversy that spurred from the women's boxing match between Algeria's Imane Khelf & Italy's Angela Carini. Carini abandoned the fight after 46 seconds after being struck with a powerful blow to the face. This incident was met with a loud outcry claiming Khelif must be a "male" or possess unfair "biological advantage". The disqualification of Khelif and Lin Yu-ting in the 2023 world championship for failing to meet the sex-testing standards further amplified the outrage. However, independent of the IBA, the International Olympic Committee deemed them fit to compete. Khelif's dominating displays were overshadowed by controversies, casting an unfair cloud over her performances. The women's gymnastics floor was one of the most controversial moments in the Paris Olympics. Initially, Romanian gymnasts had secured the bronze medal. However, following an appeal by U.S. coaches, Jordan Chiles' score was increased by 0.1, resulting in the historical all-black podium. The Romania Olympic Committee appealed in protest over the results, claiming unfair penalisation of Ana Barbosu. Paris Olympics 2024 got fiery and fierce as female Paraguayan swimmer Luana Alonso was allegedly kicked out of the Olympics village for creating an “inappropriate situation”. Alonso failed to qualify for the semi-finals after finishing 6th in the 100m butterfly heat. The controversial dismissal led the 20-year old to announce her retirement to five hundred thousand followers on her social media. Australian breaker Rachel Gunn - aka Raygun - brewed up quite a stir on social media with her unusual style. The 36-year-old's unorthodox & uninspiring performance failed to win any points from the Olympic judges. Gunn lost all three rounds. Gunn's kangaroo-inspired routine set the internet ablaze with memes mocking her performance while others questioned her qualifications. The breakdancing event was short lived as it is not set to return in the LA Olympics 2028. The 100m men's final was a race for the ages. USA's Noah Lyles became the fastest man alive, defeating Jamaica's Kishane Thompson by a margin of 0.005 seconds. Later, it was revealed that Noah Lyles was competing while being diagnosed with COVID-19, making his win even more impressive. On August 5th, history was created as Brazil's Rebecca Andrade & Team USA's Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles shared the first all-Black podium in Olympic gymnastics history. After securing the Olympic gold that had long evaded him, Novak Djokovic won all there was to win. Djokovic bounced back from his defeat at Wimbledon, defeating the rising star Alcaraz. The final between France and Spain was a topsy-turvy match. France opened the scoring but soon found themselves down three because of Spain's dominant performance. The game was reminiscent of the World Cup final between France and Argentina as the host nation fought back to equalise 3-3. France failed to achieve the dream ending as they fell short in extra time, losing 5-3. Spain continued their streak of international success after the recent Euros win. Olympics basketball witnessed the return of the USA's dream team. The stacked U.S. squad, expected to roll through the tournament, found themselves down 15 at the end of 3rd quarter in the semi-final game. Serbia, led by the world's best player, Jokic, gave the USA a run for its money as it looked like a disappointing finish for the USA. The fourth quarter produced one of the best moments in basketball history as the trident of Lebron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant rallied the U.S. team to the finish, defeating Serbia 94-89. The Dream Team faces the host nation led by Victor Wembanyama in the finals.India's sporting Titans
Unveiling The Controversies
Paris Olympics Jaw-Dropping Highlights
20 Aug 2024
Aryan Gupta
