"Inspiring" - Coco Gauff celebrates USA's 400m hurdle runner Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone & long jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall's Paris Olympics gold medals
Coco Gauff celebrated Team USA's double gold medals won in athletics at the 2024 Paris Olympics on August 8. Tara Davis-Woodhall won the women's long jump event, while Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won the women's 400m hurdles event. Sydney finished her race in world record timing.
The athletics events have taken over the second and final week of the ongoing Olympics. Team USA has already left a mark on multiple events at the Games and they are continuing their good run into the track and field events.
Gauff, who has left Paris to participate in the Canadian Open, is closely following her compatriots after leading them as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony. She posted about Tara and Syndey's victories on her Instagram Story.
For Tara, she wrote:
"So happy for you sis... QUEEN"
For Sydney, she wrote:
"WR and [Gold medal emoji] absolutely inspiring"
Tara's winning leap measured 7.10m. She defeated the Tokyo Olympic gold medalist, Malaika Mihambo of Germany. The German had to settle for silver, with an effort of 6.98m. The USA also bagged the bronze medal in the event as Jasmine Moore landed third with a jump of 6.96m.
“Pinch me. I’m so stoked. I’ve gone through hell and back, faced everything you can imagine. When I found out that I was jumping at 8pm on 8th of August, I knew it was perfect," Tara said after her triumph.
Meanwhile, Sydney finished the women’s 400m hurdles in a new world record time of 50.37 seconds. She beat the previous record by 0.28 seconds, set by her in June at the national Olympic track trials. Moreover, she also beat the Olympic record of 51.46 seconds, set by her in Tokyo.
"Grateful to God for this opportunity, grateful to be celebrating my 25th birthday like this... It was yesterday, just a super opportunity, you can’t even imagine," Sydney said after her victory.
"I would a hundred percent choose to do it again" - Coco Gauff on her experience at the Paris Olympics
Coco Gauff made her Olympics debut in Paris and she broke records by becoming the first tennis player and the youngest athlete to be Team USA's flag bearer. However, she could not fulfill her dream of winning a medal at the Games.
She participated in all three events for which she was eligible but could not cross the round of 16 barrier in the singles and women's doubles events, while she was defeated in the mixed doubles event in the quarterfinal.
Despite her results, Gauff would choose to go through the Olympics experience again. At a recent press conference, she said:
"I think I'm just trying to learn from this experience and overall it was positive. I would a hundred percent choose to do it again, even if I lost first round in everything. It was something that was incredible."
Being flag bearer was something I wouldn't have expected, and meeting all the incredible people that I met, I don't take it lightly. And every Olympics that I qualify in, I'll for sure play unless I'm injured," Coco Gauff added.
Gauff, who shared that she does not expect to win at the Canadian Open, has reached the third round of the WTA 1000 event. She earned a bye in the first round as the top seed and defeated Wang Yafan in the second round. The American will take on Diana Shnaider in the third round.