The Games are About to Begin
Writing these words in late January, 2024, it is as difficult to believe that the Tokyo Olympic Games of 2021 were two and a half years ago as it is that the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad will begin in Paris in just about five months’ time (July 26th). Time, it may be said, passes with the speed of an Olympic sprinter.
At the New York Athletic Club, it is understandable that our focus should be resolutely focused on the Olympic Games at this moment in time. With the new year beginning, the months ahead are filled with anticipation of what may unfold. There is, after all, precedent. To this moment in time, NYAC athletes have won 291 Olympic medals and five Paralympic medals; 166 of those have been gold (164 Olympic, two Paralympic). Fifty-five NYAC athletes competed in Tokyo, securing 20 medals, 10 of which were gold. By those measures, we may be excused for feeling optimistic that similar numbers will have been tallied once the Paris Games conclude.
At the time of this writing, four NYAC athletes have already secured their places on the US team for Paris. Morgan Pearson and Taylor Knibb claimed slots on the triathlon team by virtue of their placings in the Paris Test Event last summer; Jess Davis earned her ticket to France by virtue of her placing in the Pan Am Games modern pentathlon competition in Santiago, Chile in the autumn; and Tatyana McFadden secured her position on the Paralympic Games marathon starting line thanks to her placing in last November’s New York City Marathon. We may rest assured that all four are deep into preparation for the coming Games and that, all being well, they will be joined by a glut of their club-mates in the coming months.
You can find bios of our current four Paris Olympians, by going to the Team NYAC page; and as team selections are made in the coming months, the news will be documented here, as will all manner of Olympics-related updates. Once the Games themselves begin, this will be your one-stop site for all you need to know about the NYAC in Paris.
What, then, may we expect? From a competitive perspective, we could not be faulted for expecting to claim medals in water polo, track and field, triathlon and wrestling; but our judokas, rowers and fencers should not be overlooked, nor indeed should any NYAC athlete on the team. There is, as we know, no such thing as a sure thing and, once the curtain rises on these Olympic Games, all athletes are created equal and all medals are up for grabs.
As for the Games themselves, it is certain that Paris will produce a spectacle and that, being considerably more accessible than the sites of the last two Games (Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo), the City of Light will be inundated with fans from all over the world. Those who make the journey will be treated to the first ever Opening Ceremony to take place outside of a stadium; will witness 32 sports including four new ones – breaking, surfing (although, this is being held in Tahiti), skateboarding and surfing; and will be among 10,500 athletes, 31,500 volunteers, 20,000 journalists and several million visitors, all spread across 41 venues.
All of which is to say that, while the competitions may be unpredictable, these Games, the third to be held in Paris (the others being in 1900 and 1924), and the first open to the public in eight years, are certain to be among the most joyous and the most memorable ever. Que les jeux commencent!