Everything You Need To Know About Watching The 2024 Summer Olympics

By now, you're probably aware that the highly anticipated Summer Olympic Games is set to be on screen this week. The world is gearing up for the international sports fest, eager to cheer on the athletes representing their country. This year's event promises to be an unforgettable spectacle of talent, including Katie Ledecky, Simone Biles, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Noah Lyles, LeBron James, and much more.

But if you're not a huge Olympics fan or haven't kept up with previous competitions, it can be confusing to know what's happening this year. We've got you covered. Here is your official roadmap to this year's Summer Olympics.

Where Are They? When Are They On?

The host city for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games will be, you guessed it, Paris, France! From July 26 to August 11, Paris will become the epicenter of sports. And if you weren't aware of how big of a deal this is, here are some shocking statistics about the Olympics: According to the official website, the Olympics totals about 350,000 hours of television broadcast with millions of viewers, uses 35 venues, and boasts 10,500 athletes.

If you have cable, NBC will broadcast the event daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central Time (CT). Events will also be available on NBC's streaming platform, Peacock, Hulu, YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, and Sling TV.

Who’s on the American Teams To Watch?

Simone Biles

Gymnast Simone Biles has made it to her third Olympic squad! No one is surprised, considering many see her as one of the greatest gymnasts in history. Biles won four gold medals plus a bronze at the 2016 Rio Games, as well as a silver and a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. At 27 years old, Biles has won the most championship medals of any gymnast in the world – man or woman – with 37 World Championship and Olympic medals.

Katie Ledecky

Swimmer Katie Ledecky is another fan-favorite. With an astonishing 10 Olympic gold medals and 21 World Championship titles, Ledecky is considered one of the world's greatest swimmers. Ledecky made history when she won gold in the first-ever women's 1500-meter freestyle. Her legendary status began when she was only 15 years old, when she became the youngest U.S. Olympic athlete to ever compete. Last year, Ledecky tied with Michael Phelps' record for the most individual world swimming titles. 

Coco Gauff

Tennis star Coco Gauff was revealed to be one of the highest-paid female athletes, earning $21.7 million in 2023. At only 20 years old, she has won 7 singles titles and 9 doubles titles in her career. She recently won the 2023 U.S. Open in singles and the 2024 French Open in doubles with partner Katerina Siniakova. Gauff will make her Olympics debut this year in Paris, and she's determined to win. “I think delusional is great,” Gauff told Forbes. “All of the greatest athletes and greatest artists have to have a little bit of craziness and delusion. Having a little bit of craziness in your goal is kind of healthy.”

Elle Purrier St. Pierre

Elle Purrier St. Pierre, 29, is gearing up for the women’s races in this year’s Olympics as part of the track team. She not only qualified with the fastest time ever by a woman in U.S. trials history – 14 minutes and 40.34 seconds in the 5,000 meters – but did so during her postpartum period, an astonishing achievement. Earlier this year, she clinched a gold medal at the World Athletics Indoor Championships, smashing records in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:20.87. Balancing her roles as a dairy farmer and mother to 17-month-old Ivan, St. Pierre is determined to win big at this year’s Olympics.

Caeleb Dressel

Caeleb Dressel will be at the Olympics this year to compete after a months-long hiatus from swimming. Dressel has won 7 Olympic gold medals and has set world records in 100m butterfly (long course), 100m butterfly (short course), 50m freestyle (short course), and 100m individual medley (short course). Dressel has become the face of men's American swimming since Phelps' retirement.

Noah Lyles

Sprinter Noah Lyles aims to win four gold medals this year, and with his 19.53-second run at the trials in Eugene, Oregon – the fastest time of the year – he just might do it. Lyles wants to go above and beyond the finish line and beat Usain Bolt’s records in the 100 and 200 meters. “He was the fastest man ever to do it,” Lyles said, adding, “and soon, it’ll be me.” In 2023, Lyles won the men's 100m race at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary. He is a six-time World champion and became the first man to complete the sprint treble at a championship since Usain Bolt in 2015.

Lebron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant

Basketball stars LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant will dominate the courts at this year’s Summer Olympic Games. There’s no way the U.S. will lose with a team like that, given their combined accolades: James with four Olympic medals and four NBA championships, Curry as a two-time MVP and three-time NBA champion, and Durant with two Olympic gold medals and an NBA MVP title.

Sha'Carri Richardson

Sha'Carri Richardson is considered one of the fastest women in the world. Richardson has won three world titles in 2023 at the 100m and the 4x100m relay and is currently the fourth-ranked female track and field star in the world. NBC Olympics cites Richardson's expertise on her "closing speed, strength and flexibility." This year will mark Richardson's Olympic debut. “It’s a phenomenal feeling,” the Texas native said after the 200m trials. “I feel as if they sense growth. They sense genuine love, and they also sense the responsibility that I know I have when it comes to my talent as well as the sport.”

Countries To Look Out For

While the U.S. is still expected to be one of the top countries to dominate the Olympics, other nations are worth watching. According to Gracenote’s VMT forecast, America is projected to earn 123 medals, compared to the 113 won in Tokyo 2020.

China

Projected to earn 87 medals this year, slightly down from the 89 won in 2020.

Great Britain 

Projected to earn 62 medals, slightly down from the 64 won in 2020.

France

Projected to earn 56 medals, a significant increase from the 33 won in 2020. 

You can view Nielsen's virtual medal table below:

The 2024 Summer Olympics Controversies

Seine Poop Protest

Weeks before the Olympics began in Paris, angry Parisians took to the Seine River to protest the high cost of purifying the water by defecating in it. The French government has spent about $1.5 billion to clean the river to make it swimmable. However, officials have announced that test results have shown E. coli and enterococci levels in the river. Christophe Dubi, the International Olympic Committee executive, said there were "no reasons to doubt" that the events would take place in the Seine as planned. "We are confident that we will swim in the Seine this summer," he said.

Anti-Sex Beds Rumor

Rumors circulated that the Olympic bedframes were made out of cardboard in order to keep athletes from having sex. The beds were provided by the Japanese company Airweave. While it is true that the beds are made from cardboard, Motokuni Takaoka, president and CEO of Airwave, revealed that the bedframes were made for sustainability purposes. “We will produce the cardboard bed frames in France, after the games, recycle them in France, and donate the mattress and pillows for second-life in France as well,” Takaoka said. “We promise to contribute to the Paris 2024 sustainability goals through our social good bedding.”

Social Media Users Call for Israel’s Exclusion

Many are calling for the Olympics to ban Israel from competing as tensions rise. 

Several petitions have called for a ban on Israel's participation. The International Olympic Committee, FIFA, EUFA, and FIBA will continue to allow Israel to participate in their events. Palestine will also join the Olympics this year, and athletes are said to not only represent themselves but "a country, a history, a cause."

Where To Get Updates on the Olympics?

As Paris prepares to host the 2024 Olympics, the world eagerly anticipates the unforgettable moments of athletic prowess and other historical celebrations that lie ahead. For more information, you can visit www.nbcolympics.com.

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