The Paris 2024 Olympic Games have underscored the universal appeal and global reach of athletics, setting a new record for the most countries winning gold in a single Games.
A remarkable 27 nations claimed athletics gold medals, surpassing the previous record, and demonstrating the sport’s deepening global footprint.
Among the nations making history were Dominica, Pakistan, and Saint Lucia, all of which secured their first-ever athletics golds.
Thea LaFond’s victory in the women’s triple jump for Dominica, Arshad Nadeem’s gold in the men’s javelin for Pakistan, and Julien Alfred’s triumph in the women’s 100m for Saint Lucia marked historic firsts for their respective countries.
Botswana also celebrated a landmark achievement as Letsile Tebogo won the men’s 200m, delivering the nation’s first Olympic title in any sport. This victory added Botswana to the growing list of countries that have won an Olympic athletics medal, bringing the total to 105.
The diversity of success extended beyond gold medals, with 43 countries appearing on the athletics medal table in Paris, matching Tokyo’s tally as the largest in more than two decades.
Furthermore, 75 countries placed athletes in the top eight, showcasing the depth and breadth of talent across the globe.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe praised the Paris 2024 organizing committee for creating a platform where the sport and its stars could excel. “Paris 2024 has been an absolutely spectacular Olympic Games for athletics,” Coe said.
“Our athletes have dazzled audiences in Paris and around the world with performances that will be remembered for years to come. With three world records, 13 Olympic records, and countless national and area records, the performances were nothing short of outstanding.”
Coe emphasized that the success of Paris 2024 is part of a broader trend of exceptional performances in athletics, following similarly impressive showings at the World Championships in Budapest last year.
He noted the strong demand for tickets to the upcoming World Championships in Tokyo, reflecting the continued global enthusiasm for the sport.
In total, 26 athletes won multiple medals in Paris, including Dutch stars Femke Bol and Sifan Hassan, as well as the USA’s Gabby Thomas. Bol secured gold in the mixed 4x400m relay, silver in the women’s 4x400m relay, and bronze in the women’s 400m hurdles.
Hassan won gold in the women’s marathon and bronze in both the 5000m and 10,000m events. Thomas captured gold in the women’s 200m, 4x100m, and 4x400m relays.
A standout moment of the Games came when 16-year-old Quincy Wilson, running in the heats for the US men’s 4x400m team, became the youngest ever men’s Olympic gold medallist in athletics.
Paris 2024 also earned the distinction of being the highest quality Olympic Games in history, according to competition performance rankings, solidifying athletics as the heartbeat of the Olympic movement and a truly global sport.
Source: World Athletics
