Deep dive: How news brands covered the Olympics 2024
An exciting 16 days in Paris entertained viewers from all over the world with heartbreaks, success stories and extraordinary performances from the first games back on European soil since London 2012. From concerns over the pollution in the Seine to controversial debates over gender in boxing, questioned victories and rules, and Snoop Dog being the unofficial mascot of the 2024 Olympic Games, see how news brands covered the highs and lows of the Games. Part one of two of the summer of sport deep dive.
Key controversial moments
Pollution in the Seine
The heavy downpour that hit the Olympic opening ceremony increased fears that the swimming events would be cancelled. Ahead of the triathlon The Times questioned if the triathlon was at risk as the rain swept sewage into the river Seine.
The swimmers were banned from using the river for training sessions ahead of the competition due to harmful levels of E coli bacteria caused by sewage. Swimming in the Seine has been banned since 1923 because of health risks.
Booed by spectators
The Olympics received criticism for allowing convicted sex offender and Olympic volleyball athlete Steven van de Velde to represent the Netherlands team in Paris. The 29-year-old was previously sentenced to four years in prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl. As a result, he was heavily booed by spectators at the competition as highlighted by the Metro and Daily Mail in TikTok videos.
That controversial boxing match
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif became the centre of controversy after Italian fighter Angela Carini aborted the fight less than a minute after it had begun. The incident became headline news after Carni claimed she had never been hit harder according to the Evening Standard.
Boxers Yu-Ting and Khelif were able to attend the Games despite being disqualified from the World Championships in 2023 for reportedly failing gender eligibility tests and faced a long period of gender controversy, the Daily Express reported.
Khelif spoke out about the effects of bullying, stating ‘It can destroy people,’ as she continued to face hostility throughout her participation in the Games. The Daily Mirror showed readers the support at Roland Garros from the Algerian fans who had entered the arena.
The i informed readers that the Algerian boxer left Paris an Olympic gold medallist, only the seventh gold in Algerian history according to the i article. Defiant in victory, reiterating her right to compete as a woman and thanking all those who supported her
Breakdancer becomes a pop-cultural sensation
Breakdancing was introduced for the Paris Olympics for the first time and it caused a stir in the French capital.
Australian breakdancer Rachael Gunn, AKA Raygun, has become a pop-cultural sensation since competing in the women’s breaking without scoring a single point. Her unique dance skills caused global controversy and viral moments such as the kangaroo hop.
Metro shared with readers, the breakdancer spoke out saying that you shouldn’t “be afraid to be different” and to “represent yourself”.
Meanwhile, the Times and The Sunday Times shared on X that Australia’s Olympic chief Anna Meares also voiced her opinion and compared the criticism Gunn has received to abuse female athletes have historically faced. An online petition denounced as ‘appalling’ has called into question the selection process.
It was confirmed breaking would not be renewed for the next Olympics in 2028 which will be held in LA the Sun explained.
After competing the dancer spoke out, saying: “It was disappointing it was decided that it wouldn’t be in LA, particularly before we even had a chance to show it.”
The Sun Sport team headed down to Tower Bridge to meet UK champion and European silver medallist Kid Karam to learn about breaking and key moves for a routine, see more here.
B-Boy Sunni and B-Boy Kid Karam became the first-ever breakers to represent Team GB, as they competed at the European Games in Krakow.
All-time highs of the Games
Wrestling champ makes history
According to the Independent, Greco Roman wrestling is one of the oldest sports disciplines to features at the Olympic Games, being a regular fixture since the 1908 Olympics.
Cuba’s Mijain Lopez, widely known as the ‘Giant of Herradura’ became the first athlete in Olympic history to win gold at five Games in the same individual event. Standing top of the podium for wrestling at Beijing, London, Rio, Tokyo and Paris at 130kg.
Aged 41, Lopez decided the time has come to retire, after beating his opponent Chile’s Yasmani Acosta. He left his shoes in the ring as a sign of respect to the sport.
The athlete sent a final message to the younger generation saying: “Winning one medal in an Olympic Game is not easy; winning three, four, or five is phenomenal – I think it’s time to say goodbye, to allow the young people who are inspired by sport and I just wanted to wish them success.”
Metro Sport shared on its TikTok platform, WWE legend and gold medal winner at the 1996 Olympic Games, Kurt Angle supporting the Cuban Phenomenon Mijain Lopez after he claimed his fifth gold medal in a row.
Snoop Dog became the unofficial mascot of the Games
From equestrian to gymnastics, rapper Snoop Dog became the unofficial mascot of the Games. Metro Sport revealed the artist was one of the final torch bearers of the Olympic flame and had been working as a special correspondent, covering the games for US network NBC in aim to boost viewing figures.
An article in the Independent disclosed Snoop allegedly earned $500,00 per day plus expenses to work and promote the games.
Snoop went viral when he attended the equestrian team dressage event with business partner Martha Stewart when the pair arrived dressed head to toe on competition gear.
Men’s 100m final
The men’s 100m final was exhilarating and one for the history books as the world’s eight fasted male sprinters raced for the winning title resulting in a photo-finish. It came down to five-thousandths of a second, a margin between gold and silver between American sprinter Noah Lyles and Jamaican sprinter Kishane Thompson. In the end Lyles claimed the crown of the fastest man in the world along with a gold medal to show for it. All eight finalists finished within 0.12 seconds of each other. The Guardian shared the results and showed just how close it was, Lyles had run 9.784. Thompson 9.789. Another American, Fred Kerley, took bronze in 9.81, with the South African Akani Simbine fourth.
Team GB mothers going for gold at the Paris Games
“Being an athlete mum feels like the hardest job in the world,” wrote Nekoda Smythe-Davis, a Commonwealth gold medal-winner in Judo, who represented Great Britain at the 2016 Olympics.
“It is such a juggle; a balancing act. You feel like you’re burning the candle at both ends and you are trying to give 100% to two different areas – in some ways you are splitting yourself in two – but it is rewarding when you get it right. And all the sacrifices that I make will set us up for life if things pan out the way I want them to,” Smythe-Davis, added in a piece for Guardian Sport. Previously, motherhood could be seen as the end of a sporting career however this year saw more mums taking part in the Olympics and Paralympics. There was a nursery in the Olympic village for the first time.
“Training while pregnant kept me grounded and gave me a goal. I tried to prepare for the birth as if it were a mini-Olympics. At the end of that day, I was definitely going to have my prize.”
Keely Hodgkinson storms to 800m gold for GB’s first athletics triumph
“I’d love to be a four-time Olympian, bringing home medals every time.” Keely Hodgkinson featured as the front cover star for the Telegraphs Women’s Sports monthly supplement.
In the exclusive interview the star athlete relived the moment her dream came true, what’s left to achieve and revealed: “My body is naturally going to get stronger – I’d love to be a four- time Olympian, and let’s see if we can bring home medals from every single one. That’s a great challenge.”
Tom Daley retired
Elsewhere, one of team GB’s stars Tom Daley announced he was retiring from diving aged 30, admitting it “feels like the right time” to finish his career after he claimed the fifth medal of his Olympic career in Paris the Daily Star shared.
This summer was Daley’s fifth Olympic Games having made his first debut in Beijing 2008 at 14-years-old. He captured the hearts of the nation when he won a bronze medal on home soil, in the London Olympics in the men’s 10m platform. The diver won silver this summer, adding it to his gold from Tokyo 2020 and three bronze medals.
Front pages
Campaigns
Olympics and Paralympics captivated audiences worldwide and advertisers turned to news brands and captured the spirit of the Games and showed support for team GB.
The closing ceremony
The Telegraph covered the closing ceremony which featured the athletes’ parade and the handover of the Olympic flag to the organisers of the 2028 Summer Games which will be held in Los Angeles. The mayor of LA, Karen Bass took the flag from the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo. Actor Tom Cruise also made a spectacular entrance into the Stade de France.
Great Britain won two bronze medals on the final day of Paris 2024 to surpass their haul from the previous Olympics in Tokyo – at least one of Team GB’s athletes having reached the podium on every day of the Games.
As the 2024 Summer Olympic Games came to an end, the Evening Standard and the Guardian took a look back at the most iconic moments seen throughout the event.
