The Canadian delegation shone on the Olympic stage in 2024

The Olympic meeting in Paris left its mark. Its organization proved to be a resounding success in France, where Canadian athletes made several pages of history, with a record number of medals for a non-boycotted Summer Games.

The City of Lights and its surroundings shone brightly during the Olympic fortnight. Initial fears were immediately brushed aside, as popular fervor rose from the kick-off with a grandiose open-air opening ceremony in the heart of Paris, a first to be held at the outside of a stadium.

At the end of a stunning parade on the Seine of 184 countries, including Canada led by standard bearers Andre de Grasse and Maude Charron, a performance by Céline Dion on the Eiffel Tower was the high point of the celebrations opening, where French history and art were brought to the forefront. The singer who sang The hymn to love by Édith Piaf had not performed in front of an audience since 2020.

But even before the lighting of the Olympic cauldron in the Tuileries gardens, Canada was splashed by a spy story which turned into a scandal. An employee of the women’s soccer team was caught filming a training session of the New Zealand team with a drone.

This was followed by the exclusion of two members of the team, as well as the withdrawal of head coach Bev Priestman from a match, at her request, before she was ultimately suspended, then relieved of her duties and replaced by his deputy Andy Spence.

A penalty of six ranking points resulted from the cheating, seriously compromising the career of the Canadian players, who were not involved in this affair. However, they stuck together to get out of their group and reach the quarter-finals. The reigning champions’ Olympic tournament, however, came to an end against the Germans after a shootout.

A success from swimming pool to athletics

The disagreement within the Maple Leaf delegation quickly evolved when the country began its harvest of 27 medals thanks to Summer McIntosh. The now 18-year-old swimmer started with silver in the 400m freestyle, then took gold three times rather than once, in the 400m medley, the 200m butterfly and finally the 200m four strokes.

Great feats which allowed Summer McIntosh to win half of the eight national medals obtained at the Olympic swimming pool, while Josh Liendo (silver in the 100m butterfly), Ilya Kharun (bronze in the 100m and 200m butterfly) and Kylie Masse (bronze in the 200m backstroke) completed the harvest.

It goes without saying that Summer McIntosh is the Canadian queen of these last Olympic Games. The French people also acclaimed their king at the swimming pool, Léon Marchand, crowned with glory in front of a delirious crowd after four solo titles and another relay podium.

Then, Canadian successes were transposed from the pools to the athletics stadium. The country established its domination in the hammer throw with the expected triumphs of Ethan Katzberg and Camryn Rogers, both already world champions.

The two champions have thus become brand ambassadors for their discipline, little known to the Canadian public.

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On the track, the quartet of maple leaf sprinters in the 4 x 100 m relay, against all odds, captured a first gold medal since the historic victory recorded at the Atlanta Games in 1996.

The Canadian team’s race was close to perfection, en route to consecration for Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, Brendon Rodney and Andre De Grasse, who was also injured. He had the honor of reaching the finish line to create a major surprise.

Andre De Grasse also amassed his seventh Olympic crown, a national record that he now shares with swimmer Penny Oleksiak.

A balm for the Torontonian, unable to qualify for the final in his two individual races. The American Noah Lyles won the 100m, considered the queen event of the Games, and the Botswanan Letsile Tebogo was crowned in the 200m, causing consternation in the French capital.

Other athletes representing Canada distinguished themselves on the field and the athletics track.

A constant duel in which Marco Arop was engaged completed the 800 m. In the heart of a heated fight for gold, the middle-distance runner was defeated by a measly hundredth of a second. He came close to overtaking Kenyan Emmanuel Wanyonyi following a comeback at the end of the course.

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Never before had Alysha Newman had a Canadian pole vaulter stood on an Olympic podium. This is now a thing of the past after her performance, which sent her to the third step of the stand. Previously, one had to go back as far as the Stockholm Games in 1912 to note the last medal of a representative of the maple leaf in this sport.

Speaking of firsts, Christa Deguchi gave the country an Olympic title in judo. Three years after missing the Tokyo Games, in her native Japan, where her sport was born, this time she had a meeting with history in Paris.

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Her decisive triumph against Huh Mimi in the -57 kg category also had a flavor of revenge, since the South Korean had defeated her two months earlier in the world final. A disqualification in overtime after a penalty awarded for a third shido confirmed Christa Deguchi’s victory.

Back on his throne, Frenchman Teddy Riner won gold twice rather than once in judo, first solo in the +100 kg category, then in a mixed team to return to the top at the age of 35 years. The behemoth of more than 2 m and exceeding 300 lbs now has five Olympic triumphs since his debut at the Beijing Games in 2008.

The entry onto the scene of breaking

The Olympic baptism of breaking took place in France, where Phil “Wizard” revealed his art to the world and used his magic to become the first Olympic champion in the b-boy event.

Ranked 2nd in the world, Philip Kim beat the Japanese Shigekix, the benchmark in breaking, in the final four and won in the final against the Frenchman Dany Dann, whom he had previously defeated in the group phase. . The British Columbian remained undefeated in six matches.

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The Olympic adventure of breaking was, however, short-lived, since the sport is not on the program for the 2028 Games, which will be held in Los Angeles.

Some nice surprises also occurred in France, starting with Eleanor Harvey. His bronze medal in foil is historic for the Canadian delegation, which had never reached the Olympic podium in fencing.

Reeling from his victory, seemingly not realizing his accomplishment, Harvey left his mark at the majestic Grand Palais in Paris in his third Summer Games experience.

The Roland-Garros stadium has also given rise to memorable moments in tennis. Félix Auger-Aliassime led long runs in both singles and mixed doubles. La Porte d’Auteuil was undoubtedly the scene of its best performances in 2024.

Auger-Aliassime took bronze alongside his compatriot Gabriela Dabrowski, before settling at the foot of the podium alone, following setbacks against the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz and the Italian Lorenzo Musetti.

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The poster in the men’s singles final could hardly have been more enticing, as Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic crossed the racket on the prestigious Philippe-Chatrier court. Youth on one side, experience on the other. The Serb won the last title missing from his extensive record in two rounds which ended in a tiebreaker.

In another enchanting setting, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, the tandem formed by Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson experienced an Olympic tournament in two stages. Winner from the start, the duo lost their next two matches, forcing them to go through a play-off match.

From that point on, Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson strung together four triumphs to advance to the final against Ana Patricia Silva Ramos and Eduarda Duda Santos Lisboa. However, they were unable to maintain the pace of the Brazilians during a clash that was as intense as it was thrilling. Until then, Canada had never reached the podium in beach volleyball.

The weightlifting final in which Maude Charron participated promised to be one of the toughest in history. Nothing to shake the Olympic champion in the -64 kg category in Tokyo, who this time finished with silver around her neck in the -59 kg category in Paris.

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No less than five weightlifters surpassed the old Olympic mark in the snatch, including Maude Charron, who can say mission accomplished after successfully transitioning to -59 kg. Its former category was removed from the Olympic program during the last cycle.

Not surprisingly, the Canadian delegation was led by flag bearers Summer McIntosh and Ethan Katzberg during the closing ceremony. Sporting exploits were highlighted during the closing celebrations, particularly those of Léon Marchand, at the center of the final party.

The Paris Games were seen globally by some five billion people on television and digital platforms, a record, according to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Its president, Thomas Bach, in office since 2013, experienced his swan song in France after the maximum two mandates provided for in the Olympic Charter. A new leader will therefore be elected in March, during the 143rd session of the CIO.

Thomas Bach’s successor will take full office in June, less than a year before the start of the Milan-Cortina Winter Games. Seven people are candidates for the presidency of the Olympic body.