Last Dance in Paris: Six athletes gunning for final Olympic glory
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(Clockwise from top left) Cuba's Mijain Lopez Nunez, China's Ma Long, Australia's Emma McKeon, Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Britain's Tom Daley, and Taiwan's Tai Tzu-ying.
PHOTOS: ST FILE, REUTERS, AFP
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PARIS – Among the 10,500 athletes competing in Paris, some of them will be hanging up their spikes, rackets and swimsuits after the Games. The Straits Times profiles six athletes who are making Paris 2024 their last dance at the Olympics.
1. Mijain Lopez (Cuba), wrestling Greco-Roman 130kg
Cuba's Mijain Lopez Nunez celebrates his gold medal win against Georgia's Iakobi Kajaia in their men's greco-roman 130kg wrestling final match during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
PHOTO: AFP
Not many outside wrestling have heard of Lopez, but he cannot be missed – and not only because of his 1.98m, 130kg frame.
He is one of just six athletes who has four consecutive Olympic golds in the same discipline, along with Danish dinghy sailor Paul Elvstrom, American long jumper Carl Lewis, Japanese wrestler Kaori Icho, American swimmer Michael Phelps and discus thrower Al Oerter.
At Paris 2024, the 41-year-old super heavyweight giant gets the chance to go one better.
“I see it, but I won’t believe it until the moment I achieve it,” he told Olympics.com.
“That is my great goal, to be the best. Paris 2024 will be something historic and different, it’s a great challenge. This pressure is not easy for any human being, but I can manage it.”
Hailing from a village of only 6,000 inhabitants, Lopez, nicknamed El Terrible, grew up chasing animals and riding on fruit crates. The kid from Herradura managed to channel his restlessness to become a formidable force on the mat.
Winner of five world titles, he has become so dominant that he has not conceded a single point in 12 bouts at the last three Olympics, although he will be unseeded this time.
2. Ma Long (China), table tennis men’s team
China’s Ma Long reacts during his men’s team final match against France’s Simon Gauzy at the 2024 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Regarded as the Greatest of All Time in his sport, Ma’s era of invincibility is coming to an end.
The 35-year-old told The Straits Times: “Age is not a factor, but ability is. Look at how teenagers like Miwa Harimoto and 60-somethings like Ni Xialian who make it to major tournaments and the Olympics.”
While acknowledging evolving styles of play owing to new technology and gear have been a challenge, the world No. 3 and his famed forehand topspin remains relevant.
Despite being unbeaten at the Olympics, Ma will not get the chance to make it a record three men’s singles crowns as the two spots are filled by world No. 4 Fan Zhendong and No. 1 Wang Chuqin.
The Anshan native said: “Acknowledging that I am at the end of my career has allowed me to be more relaxed and at peace with myself regardless of the result.”
3. Emma McKeon (Australia), swimming 100m butterfly and 4x100m medley relay
Australia’s Emma McKeon celebrates after winning the women’s 100m Butterfly final at the Australian Swimming Trials.
PHOTO: AFP
With a whopping four gold and three bronze medals at Tokyo 2020, McKeon joined Soviet gymnast Maria Gorokhovskaya (Helsinki 1952) for the most medals won by a woman at a single Olympics.
The freestyle and butterfly specialist then took a sabbatical and contemplated retirement before returning for a last stab at Olympic glory. She is just one medal away from overtaking the women’s swimming record of 12 medals shared with Americans Jenny Thompson, Natalie Coughlin and Dara Torres.
The 30-year-old has had to cope with a torn muscle in her armpit, and she told Olympics.com that her motivation levels have “definitely gone up and down”.
She added: “Success for me in Paris would be to swim faster than I ever have before. The confidence is still there, but I’ve kind of got to keep positive when you’ve got these young ones coming through. (Australia’s depth) is crazy... It’s definitely kept me pushing really hard in training.”
4. Tai Tzu-ying (Chinese Taipei), badminton women’s singles
Tai Tzu-ying from Taipei in action against An Se-young from South Korea at the KFF Singapore Badminton Open 2023 on June 10, 2023.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Like her many deceptive shots, the 30-year-old Tai caught ST off guard when she explained why she was calling it quits at the end of 2024.
The world No. 3 said: “I’m retiring simply because I just don’t want to train so hard any more. I’m also 30, which I feel is old in the women’s singles.”
In 2023, she defeated top-ranked South Korean An Se-young en route to a record fourth World Tour Finals/Superseries Finals title.
She said: “I still have the same high demands of myself. Even though I announced my retirement, I don’t take things easier because I still have to compete against the best players in the world in a hectic schedule. If I don’t want to get injured while competing against them, I have to be at the top of my game in all aspects.”
While she will not miss the hours of hard training, she said she would cherish the last few times she gets to scamper around the court with her adoring fans cheering in the background.
A first Olympic gold medal would be the perfect way to round up her career for the Tokyo Games silver medallist.
5. Tom Daley (Britain), diving 10m synchronised platform
Britain’s Tom Daley in an interview after winning the men’s 10m platform final at Tokyo 2020.
PHOTO: REUTERS
“Papa, I want to see you dive at the Olympics.”
The request from his six-year-old son Robbie was enough to convince Daley to come out of retirement after he stepped away from sport in 2021.
The poster boy of British diving was only 14 when he became the youngest Olympic finalist at Beijing 2008. After taking a bronze at London 2012 and Rio 2016, he finally won gold in the 10m synchro at the Tokyo Games, in addition to another bronze.
With a fifth Olympics appearance, the 30-year-old said: “Of course I would be lying if I said I didn’t want to win another medal. It’s in my nature, I’m going to give it everything that I’ve got.”
6. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (Jamaica), athletics 100m
Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in the women’s 100m semi-finals at the Olympic Stadium during the Tokyo Olympic Games.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Another legend entering her fifth and final Olympics before wrapping up a glittering career is 37-year-old Jamaican sprinter Fraser-Pryce.
The 1.52m pocket rocket, who has three Olympic golds in her eight-medal haul, told Essence magazine: “There’s not a day I’m getting up to go practice and I’m like, ‘I’m over this’.
“My son needs me. My husband and I have been together since before I won at (Beijing) 2008. He has sacrificed for me... I now owe it to them to do something else.”
Having made a comeback after giving birth to Zyon in 2017 and winning a fifth 100m world title in 2022, Fraser-Pryce is also looking out for the next generation of Jamaican sprint stars.
She said: “You can have an impact, and it’s important to show people that you can’t be selfish. You have to think about the next generation that’s coming after you, and give them the opportunity to also dream – and dream big.”
