Lily Zhang and Ryan Santos to carry the U.S. Flag at the 2023 Pan American Games Closing Ceremony
The final event of the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, will be the closing ceremony on November 5 at the Estadio Nacional de Chile.
One of the highlights of this commemoration of the achievements and spirit of the quadrennial continental championship will be the athletes' parade, where flag bearers from each nation will represent their nation. Team USA has selected two remarkable athletes to represent the country: table tennis star Lily Zhang and rugby sevens squad captain Ryan Santos.
Having won multiple medals at the Pan American Games, including the bronze in the women's singles competition in 2023, Lily Zhang will forever be remembered as a table tennis legend. Her incredible table tennis career extends to the Olympic arena, where she has won a whopping nine medals (including four gold) over the course of the last three Olympics.
Ryan Santos, on the other side, has been an outstanding leader and scorer for the United States men's rugby sevens squad. Under his direction, his team won silver in their first Pan American Games appearance in 2011, again in 2015, and bronze in 2019.
With a congratulatory message and a photo of the two athletes, Team USA announced the selection of Lily Zhang and Ryan Santos as flag bearers on X (previously known as Twitter).
They follow the footsteps of past legendary American athletes who carried the flag at the end of the Pan American Games. Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky and wrestler Jordan Burroughs had this award at the end of the 2019 Games, and Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles and shooter Vincent Hancock had it at the beginning of the 2023 Games.
Miles Chamley-Watson Shows Off His Style and His Tattoos at the 2023 Pan American Games
Miles Chamley-Watson is a fashion icon as well as a world-class fencer. The 33-year-old athlete has been drawing attention with his unique style and extensive tattoo collection during the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile.
In a recent interview, he explained why he still dresses in his signature style while the temperature outside is 92 degrees at the F1 Grand Prix.
"I had to. It was 92 degrees outside, yet I still felt it was necessary to wear a suit. I assumed I'd kill a new day by wearing my favorite sportswear."
Among the many tattoos he has, he also pointed out his personal favorite. He revealed that it was the digits 8-9-13, which stand for the day he made history by becoming the first American fencer to win a world championship in 2013. His reply was,
"That is kind of like my biggest."