2024 Olympic Digest: Team USA To Have Largest Delegation With 592 Athletes In Paris
By James Sutherland on SwimSwam
SwimSwam will be providing a weekly rundown of the top stories in Olympic sports (outside of swimming) in the lead-up to the 2024 Games in Paris.
Team USA Bringing 592 Athletes To Paris, Largest Delegation
The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has announced a 592-member roster of athletes that will compete at the 2024 Olympic Games, making Team USA the biggest squad in Paris.
The U.S. team, which includes over 250 returning Olympians and 122 Olympic medalists, is made up of 278 men and 314 women. It is the third-largest U.S. Olympic team ever, trailing Atlanta 1996 (646) and Tokyo 2021 (621). American athletes qualified in all but one sport: Team Handball.
The home nation of France will have the second-largest team at the Games with 571 announced athletes, while Australia is sending 460.
IOC OKs 16 Russian, 16 Belarusian Neutrals For Paris
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has officially invited and confirmed 32 individual neutral athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete at the Paris Games.
There will be 16 Russians and 16 Belarusians competing across 12 sports at the Olympics. The IOC extended 53 total invites (30 Russians and 23 Belarusian), but several athletes declined to participate.
Tennis will have seven Russians competing—the most independent neutrals of any sport—while swimming will have one Russian and three Belarusians.
200-Meter World Champion Shericka Jackson Has Injury Scare In Hungary
Jamaican sprinter Shericka Jackson pulled up in pain while racing the women’s 200 meters at the Hungarian Athletics Grand Prix on Tuesday.
Jackson, the 2023 world champion and owner of the #2 time ever in the event, was leading the race late before abruptly shutting things down before the finish, walking off the track in discomfort.
Although there was initially concern that Jackson might have a serious injury that would impact her status at the Olympics, her physiotherapist said it was just a “cramp in the hamstring” and all should be OK.
Taliban Won’t Recognize Women On Aghan Olympic Team
Afghanistan’s Taliban government won’t recognize the women who have qualified to represent the nation at the upcoming Paris Games.
The IOC invited Afghani six athletes to the Olympics, three men and three women, but a spokesman of the Taliban government’s sports director refused to acknowledge the female athletes.
“Only three athletes are representing Afghanistan,” said Atal Mashwani, referring to the male competitors.
“Currently, in Afghanistan girls’ sports have been stopped. When girls’ sport isn’t practiced, how can they go on the national team?” he told AFP.
The IOC said it has not consulted Taliban officials and noted they were only in contact with Afghanistan’s National Olympic Committee regarding which athletes will be in attendance at the Games.
Also Read: Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo Says She’ll Swim In Seine River
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