Paris 2024: 10 international stars to watch at the Olympics

Paris 2024 will be no different, as some of the most recognisable athletes on the planet do battle in the French capital.

To get you in the mood, we have picked out ten you should follow closely – some you will know well, others who should emerge into the spotlight this summer:

Simone Biles – Gymnastics

When Simone Biles left Tokyo 2020 with a bronze medal in the balance beam and suffering from ‘the twisties’, few would have given her much of a chance of making it to Paris 2024. The greatest gymnast of her generation – arguably of any generation – felt the weight of the world on her shoulders and chose to prioritise her mental health as she took a break from the sport. In 2023, though, Biles returned to the sport, doing so in spectacular fashion. She duly booked her place at the World Championships in Antwerp – the same venue where she won her first world titles back in 2013. A decade on, Biles came away with four gold medals, including a record sixth all-around crown. Not only that, she won a sixth gold medal on the floor, the most on any single apparatus. With 37 world and Olympic medals to her name, Biles is the most decorated gymnast in history, while in Paris she will look to add to her four Olympic titles – an American record. While Biles would need to make it all the way to Los Angeles to have a chance of overhauling Larisa Latynina as the most decorated Olympic gymnast, her position as arguably the sport’s biggest ever star is already assured.

Leon Marchand - Swimming

At Sydney 2000 it was Cathy Freeman, in Rio eight years ago, it was Neymar. By the time Paris 2024 wraps up, there is a strong likelihood that Léon Marchand will have established himself as the face of the Games. The 22-year-old swimmer has already written his name into the history books of his sport, breaking Michael Phelps’ last remaining world record on his way to World Championship gold in the 400m individual medley last year. Coached by Bob Bowman, the man who oversaw Phelps’ career, it was Marchand’s second successive victory in the event, and he now has five world titles to his name including three in Fukuoka in 2023. In Paris, Marchand could race in as many as four individual events and should he claim three golds, optimistic but not impossible, he would join Phelps, Mark Spitz and Caeleb Dressel as the only men ever to have achieved the feat. The likelihood is that no one will ever match Phelps’ 23 Olympic gold medals, but Marchand’s versatility compares with the greatest of them all. After making an Olympic final on debut as a teenager in Tokyo, Paris will be Marchand’s time to shine.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce – Athletics

When it comes to longevity and elite performance, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce stands alone as arguably the greatest sprinter athletics has ever seen. In Paris this summer, she will look to win an Olympic gold medal a full 16 years after she was first crowned champion. She is already the only track athlete, male or female, to win Olympic medals in the same event at four successive Games, having won the 100m twice, along with one silver and one bronze. Since claiming silver in Tokyo, she has added a tenth world title at the age of 35, and while she heads to Paris as an outsider to reclaim the crown she first won in Beijing back in 2008, the 37-year-old has a taste for the big occasion. More than anything, this will be the final opportunity to see Fraser-Pryce on the biggest stage. She has already announced that she will call time on her career after the Games to focus on her family. Fraser-Pryce was the first mother in 24 years to win a world title over 100m back in 2019. Unsurprisingly, she romped to victory at her son’s sports day last year, and now she will aim to bow out at the top level with one final win.

Mathieu van der Poel - Cycling

There are five different cycling disciplines at the Olympics. Such is Mathieu van der Poel’s versatility, you feel like he would be a medal contender in all of them. When it comes to Paris 2024, the Dutchman has a choice between two main options. He is the reigning world road race champion as well as a six-time monument winner – level with Tadej Pogacar as the most of any active rider. As a result, he looks a strong candidate for the road race in Paris, with his climbing ability and sprint finish well-suited to the demanding course that finishes near the Eiffel Tower. However, Van der Poel also has unfinished business in the mountain biking. In Tokyo, Tom Pidcock brought home Team GB’s first gold medal, but Van der Poel had gone into the race as one of the favourites for gold. His bid fell short, as did he, with a heavy crash on the first lap when a ramp that had been on the course in practice, was removed for the race. Having recovered from the back issues that he got from that crash, Van der Poel has kicked on to establish himself as one of the greatest riders of his era. Paris should be his time to add an Olympic medal to the palmarès.

Janja Garnbret – Speed climbing

Speed climbing made its debut at Tokyo 2020 and instantly became a fan favourite, with the spectacular backdrop of the wall in the city’s skyline at sunset. On the men’s side, pre-Games favourite Adam Ondra surprisingly only finished sixth. There were no such upsets when it came to finding a women’s champion though, Slovenia’s Janja Garnbret dominated qualifying and then cruised to overall victory by 40 points as she won both the bouldering and lead parts of the competition. In Paris, the format has changed, with the exciting speed climbing discipline separated from lead and bouldering. As completely distinct disciplines, this makes sense, and should only increase Garnbret’s dominance. The 25-year-old has won three of the last four combined world titles and is widely accepted as the greatest female competition climber ever. In Paris, she will look to maintain that dominance, but a broken toe suffered just as Olympic qualifying season got underway derailed her plans somewhat. Garnbret had to spend an extended period away from the sport, but is now fully recovered, qualified for Paris and setting her sights on that second Olympic gold.

LeBron James - Basketball

When Team USA were knocked out of the 2023 FIBA World Cup in the semi-finals by Germany, before missing out in the bronze-medal match to Canada, LeBron James got out the bat phone and started calling all the biggest stars in the NBA. It was time to get the old band back together. At 39, James continues to defy the laws of aging. His Los Angeles Lakers team might not be title contenders at the moment, but James remains one of the NBA’s elite players in his 21st season in the league. James, the league’s all-time record points scorer, is somehow becoming more efficient with age. He is already a double Olympic champion, in 2008 and 2012. But while the USA will head to Paris as favourites to make it five in a row in men’s basketball, the field is closing in. USA are in a group with Serbia, led by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic – whose Denver Nuggets swept James’ Lakers in the first round of the play-offs. Giannis Antetokounmpo won two MVP titles before Jokic and will be looking to lead Greece to a first Olympic medal. And then you have hosts France, silver medallists in Tokyo and adding rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama, a 7ft4 phenomenon whose nickname ‘Alien’ was bestowed upon him by James himself.

Aitana Bonmatí - Football

Aitana Bonmatí was born into a family willing to fight for their cause, and the Spanish footballer has shown a similar approach on the pitch. Born to Catalan language teachers, Bonmatí’s parents fought for a change to Spain’s patriarchal naming customs, and when that came into law, she became one of the first people in the country to have her mother’s surname – Bonmatí – as her first surname. Joining the Barcelona youth section at 13, she followed in the footsteps of her idols, Xavi and Andres Iniesta. Her friendship with the former – the coach of the Barcelona men’s team – has flourished and Bonmatí has a similar influence on her teams as Xavi did with Barca and Spain. Bonmatí was the player of the match and a goal-scorer as Barcelona won their first Women’s Champions League in 2021. At the 2023 World Cup in Australia, Bonmatí was even better, helping Spain to the title as they beat the Lionesses 1-0 in the final. Her performances, including three goals, saw her recognised with the Golden Ball, as well as the Ballon d’Or Féminin. Earlier this year, Bonmatí scored the first goal as Spain won the Nations League, booking their place in Paris where they will be among the favourites for gold.

Antoine Dupont – Rugby Sevens

The man who is widely accepted as the best rugby player on the planet made the decision not to play in this year’s Six Nations because his focus was on being ready for the Olympics. France skipper Antoine Dupont has led his country to a Grand Slam, has won everything there is to win with club side Toulouse and now wants an Olympic medal to add to the burgeoning trophy cabinet. Despite very little experience playing rugby sevens, his skillset made the transition to the quicker version of the game relatively straightforward. In the spring, he joined up with the French team for two SVNS World Series events in Canada and the USA. Les Bleus finished third in the first of those, before winning the second – a first tournament victory on the circuit in 19 years and their second ever. It was not all Dupont, of course, but there is no question that he will be crucial to France’s ambitions of winning a first men’s sevens medal. A year after missing out on World Cup glory on home soil – Dupont recovered from a facial fracture only for France to lose a heart-breaking quarter-final to eventual champions South Africa by a single point – Dupont will be back at the Stade de France and could potentially give France their first medal in Paris.

Mollie O’Callaghan - Swimming

Australian swimming is riding the crest of a wave – particularly on the women’s side – and Mollie O’Callaghan looks set to be the star of the show in Paris. The 20-year-old is already a two-time Olympic gold medallist, but where in Tokyo, she had a relatively minor role, swimming the heats of three relays, in Paris, it will be a very different story. Coached by Dean Boxall – whose enthusiastic support for protégé Ariarne Titmus was one of the viral moments in Tokyo – O’Callaghan dominated at the World Championships in both 2022 and 2023. She is a back-to-back world champion over 100m freestyle, added the 200m freestyle crown in Fukuoka last year and had eight world titles in all while still a teenager. Her 200m freestyle win in Fukuoka also saw her dethrone Federica Pellegrini’s long-standing world record and it would not be a surprise to see her go after Sarah Sjostrom’s 100m mark in Paris. Compatriot Emma McKeon was the star in the pool in Tokyo, winning seven medals including four golds. O’Callaghan might not match seven medals, but she has a shot at equalling, or even topping the four golds.

Novak Djokovic - Tennis

Love him or loathe him, Novak Djokovic is on his way to making his case as the greatest male tennis player of all time unassailable. By the end of 2023, Djokovic had won 24 Grand Slams, level with Margaret Court for the most by any player, male or female. Considering that he has spent the majority of his career doing battle with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, his next closest male rivals on 22 and 20 slams respectively, Djokovic has done it the hard way. The only hardware that his two main rivals have over him, is an Olympic gold medal. Nadal won singles gold in Beijing and men’s doubles gold eight years later in Rio. Federer only managed a silver medal in singles – beaten by Andy Murray at London 2012, but does have a men’s doubles title to his name in Beijing. That was the year that Djokovic won his sole medal – a bronze in singles. Heading into Tokyo, all the talk was of whether he could complete a golden slam – winning all four singles titles and Olympic gold in the same year. He was beaten by eventual champion Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals however, so arrives at Roland Garros – Nadal’s fortress – looking to make amends.

Watch every moment of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 live only on discovery+, the streaming home of the Olympics.