Olympics 2024: The youngest athletes at the Paris Olympics
Indian swimmer Dhinidhi Desinghu is one of the youngest athletes to compete at the Paris Olympics.
The youngest athletes at this year’s Paris Games primarily competed in skateboarding and swimming events. (Photo Credit: Reuters/Getty)
At the Paris Olympics, a new generation of athletes captivated the world, demonstrating their extraordinary talent on the global stage.
These young Olympians made history and set new records, highlighting the significance of nurturing childhood dreams and teenage aspirations.
Their inspiring performances shattered the notion that the Olympics is solely for adults, emphasizing that adolescents can also excel.
Discover the remarkable young athletes who graced the Paris Olympics, leaving an unforgettable impression and proving that age is not a barrier to achieving greatness.
Zheng Haohao
The Chinese skateboarder narrowly missed becoming the youngest competitor in Olympic history by just one year.
That distinction belongs to Dimitrios Loundras, a Greek gymnast who competed in the 1896 Athens Games at the age of 10.
Although Zheng was eliminated in the first round, she became the youngest Olympian to represent the People's Republic of China at the age of 11.
Zheng was coached by Danny Wainwright, a professional skateboarder with a background in judging elite skateboarding events. (Photo Credit: Getty)
Vareeraya Sukasem
The youngest skateboarder from Thailand to qualify for the Paris Olympics, Vareeraya Sukasem, is only 12 years old.
Interestingly, her idol, Britain's Sky Brown, also competed in skateboarding but in a different discipline called Park event. Sukasem finished 17th in the women's street event.
Dhinidhi Desinghu
India’s youngest Olympian at the Paris Olympics, the 14-year-old Indian clocked 2:06.96 to top heat 1 of the women's 200m freestyle.
The Bengaluru swimmer holds the national record for the event with a time of 2:04.24.
Despite this, the teenager finished 23rd out of 30 swimmers in the overall heats and did not advance.
Hezly Rivera
At just 16 years old, Hezly Rivera is the youngest athlete in the entire U.S. Olympic contingent.
Not only did she make her debut at the Paris Olympics, but she also clinched gold in the team gymnastics final.
During the team final Hezly did not compete but still earned a gold medal since the team finished in first place. (Photo Credit: Getty)
Quincy Wilson
At 16 years old, Quincy Wilson qualified for the men's 4x400m relay pool, setting a record as the youngest male track and field Olympian in American history.
After his opening lap in the first round of the 4x400 relay, Quincy was placed seventh.
Despite the challenging start, the American team pushed through, thanks to Christopher Bailey on the final lap to secure a spot in the final.
Sky Brown
Competing for Great Britain, this 16-year-old skater is already a two-time Olympian and a two-time medallist.
Sky Brown, who is also the idol of 12-year-old Thai skater Vareeraya Sukasem, became the youngest-ever medallist from Great Britain when she won bronze at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
She replicated this success by securing another bronze in the park event at the Paris Olympics.
Lola Tambling
Inspired by her father, a professional BMX rider, performing tricks on his bike, Lola Tambling decided to emulate those tricks on a skateboard.
This 16-year-old skater from Great Britain competed alongside her teammate and Olympic champion Sky Brown.
However, Lola finished 15th in the preliminary round and did not qualify for the finals.
Lola Tambling developed an interest in skateboarding at the age of seven when her parents opened a skatepark. (Photo Credit: Getty)
Eva Okaro
The 17-year-old Eva Okaro made history in the swimming arena by becoming the first Black woman to represent Team Great Britain (GB) at the Paris Olympics.
She was also the youngest British swimmer at the Games. Although the team did not win a medal, Okaro contributed to Team GB's performance in the final of the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
Summer McIntosh
This 17-year-old Canadian swimming prodigy made waves at the Paris swimming arena.
Summer McIntosh clinched gold in the 200-meter butterfly, 200-meter individual medley, and 400-meter individual medley, while also securing a silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle.
Popular magazine Time dubbed her performance at the Games as “Summer of Summer”.
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