Key Moments You Might Have Missed

The 2024 Summer Olympics are finally here—and history is already being made.

From July 26 to August 11, the world’s greatest athletes are convening in Paris for a chance to win Olympic gold. Along the way, spectators can expect to witness magnificent acts of athleticism and heartwarming displays of sportsmanship, as well as a starry array of surprise celebrity cameos.

Ahead, read about the biggest moments so far from this year’s Games—and make sure to watch this space for updates.

Despite sustaining a calf injury during warm-ups, Simone Biles earned the highest overall score in the women’s gymnastics all-around qualification round on July 28, with 59.566 under her belt, a total that advanced her to the finals. (Team USA gymnast Suni Lee is also heading to the finals.)

Besides making waves for her gravity-defying moves, the world-renowned American gymnast also got the internet buzzing when 16-year-old Chinese gymnast Zhang Yihan was caught fangirling over Biles’s floor routine on camera. In a widely shared clip, Yihan can be seen making awestruck facial reactions to Biles’s choreography. In another clip, her teammate Qiu Qiyuan reportedly tells Yihan they should put their coats on over their leotards, to which Yihan enthusiastically responds, “I can’t, I have to get a photo with Simone Biles!”

Team USA racked up its first gold medals at this year’s Olympics, courtesy of the men’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay team. On July 27, Jack Alexy, Chris Guiliano, Hunter Armstrong, and Caeleb Dressel clinched first place by finishing 1.07 seconds ahead of runner-up Australia.

Earlier in the day, Team USA won its first medals of any kind in Paris due to synchronized divers Sarah Bacon and Kassidy Cook, who took home the silver in the women’s 3-meter synchronized springboard event.

On July 26, Beyoncé made a surprise Olympics cameo when NBC aired a clip of her introducing Team USA during the opening ceremony.

In the video, the music phenomenon continued her embrace of western fashion trends, in the form of a bedazzled American flag–themed cowboy hat, which she paired with a matching “USA” leotard; a red, white, and blue coat cape; and blinged-out cowboy boots.

Fittingly, the clip was set to an Olympic-themed update of “Ya Ya,” an energetic track from March’s Cowboy Carter.

An assortment of Team USA athletes starred in the patriotic montage presented by Beyoncé, including Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Sha’Carri Richardson, LeBron James, and Katie Ledecky.

Source: Getty Images