It’s been 16 years since Team USA has failed to finish atop the medal table at the Summer Olympics.
China got the best of the Americans at the 2008 Beijing Games, collecting 48 gold medals to the United States’ 36. Still, the U.S. team totaled the most medals overall (112), a feat it has accomplished in each of the past seven Olympics.
But with every edition of the Games comes a pool of young athletes looking to continue Team USA’s dominance. Here are five who could become the face of the U.S. Olympic team in Paris this year.
Sha’Charri Richardson
We were robbed of seeing Richardson at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — held in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic — after a urine test came back positive for THC, a chemical found in marijuana, leading to a one-month suspension that kept her out of the Games.
But Richardson, now 24, is headed to Paris, and she’ll be gunning for gold in the women’s 100-meter.
And it hasn’t taken long for Richardson to step into the spotlight, as she appeared on the cover of Vogue for its August digital edition.
Also Read: Fastest NFL players
Anthony Edwards
It’s no secret that Edwards can talk the talk, but now he’ll have to walk the walk after proclaiming that LeBron James, Stephen Curry and the rest of the men’s basketball team will have to “fit in to play around” him.
The 22-year-old Edwards came off the bench and went for 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting on Wednesday night in an exhibition game against Canada, helping the Americans earn an 86-72 victory.
Despite what he had to say, Edwards might not end up being the No. 1 option at this year’s Olympics, but he certainly should begin to install himself as a centerpiece with James, Curry and Kevin Durant likely all close to wrapping up their Team USA careers.
Also Read: Best NBA players ever
At 16 years old, Wilson has a chance to become the youngest American man to participate in a track & field event at the Games. He finds himself in the 4x400m relay pool, meaning that he can compete in the mixed relay or the men’s relay.
Wilson broke the under-18 world record in the first round of 400m heats at the U.S. Olympic track & field trials in Eugene, Ore., last month, then recorded another U-18 world record in the semifinals of the same event.
Even though Wilson ended up finishing sixth in the final, other runners believed that he was deserving of a spot in the relay pool, thus beginning what should be a long and prosperous Olympic career.
Also Read: NFL defense rankings 2024
Thomas Heilman
Getting compared to Michael Phelps is a pretty easy way to end up on this list.
That’s exactly why Heilman is here. The 17-year-old is set to swim in the 100m and 200m butterfly in Paris, and he broke Phelps’ age-group record in the former event.
Being mentioned alongside Phelps is “always great,” according to Heilman, but the teenager is more concerned about focusing on his preparation ahead of his first Olympics.
Also Read: Top 10 USA Olympics track victories ever
Hezly Rivera
The youngest athlete on Team USA, Rivera just turned 16. She met Simone Biles back when she was in elementary school, and now the two are headed to Paris together as members of the gymnastics team.
Working toward getting a driver’s license is going to have to wait.
Biles is now 27 and will have to pass the torch soon, and there’s a good chance that Rivera could be the one receiving it.
