Meet the Pennsylvania, New Jersey athletes representing Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The 2024 Paris Olympics are finally here, and the Team USA roster is ready to go. As always, the United States boasts elite talent, including Simone Biles, Noah Lyles and LeBron James, among many others. But did you know there are quite a few Olympians living right in our backyard?
Here are the athletes from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware who have secured their spots to represent the U.S. in Paris.
Team USA Track and Field
New Jersey native and defending 400-meter hurdles Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has cemented herself as one of the greatest hurdlers to ever touch the track. McLaughlin-Levrone first made her Olympic debut at the 2016 Rio Olympics at only 16 years old while running for Union Catholic High School in Union County. Since then, she has emerged as a track and field juggernaut. The 24-year-old has broken the world record for the 400 hurdles five times, most recently at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials in June with a time of 50.65 seconds.
Three-time Olympian and Bethlehem native Joe Kovacs is eyeing a gold medal this summer in shot put after winning silver in Rio and Tokyo. The Penn State alumnus is currently ranked No. 2 in the world with a throw of 23.13 meters.
Other standouts to watch include 800-meter runner Allie Wilson from Wallingford, Pennsylvania; pole vaulter Bridget Williams from Greensburg, Pennsylvania; javelin thrower Curtis Thompson from Florence, New Jersey; Keturah Orji from Mount Olive, New Jersey and discus thrower Sam Mattis from East Brunswick, New Jersey.
Track and field events for the Olympics don't start until Aug. 1.
Team USA Basketball
Outside of NBA All-Star Joel Embiid, one of the few athletes representing Philadelphia who made the U.S. Olympic team is 29-year-old Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper. The four-time WNBA All-Star hails from North Philadelphia and played for Girard College, where her jersey is retired. Copper helped the U.S. women's national team win gold at the 2022 FIBA Women's World Cup. She also won a WNBA title with the Chicago Sky in 2021, winning Finals MVP. This marks her third time making the Team USA roster.
Cooper will be joined by five-time WNBA All-Star Alyssa Thomas of the Connecticut Suns. Thomas is a Harrisburg native who attended Central Dauphin High School. She helped lead the Lady Rams to a 2008 State Championship victory. In 2020, Thomas led the WNBA in steals, and in 2023, she led the league in rebounds. This is Thomas' first time qualifying for the Olympics.
Newark, New Jersey, native Bam Adebayo also punched his ticket to Paris. The 27-year-old NBA veteran has been with the Miami Heat since 2017. The three-time NBA All-Star was named to the 2024 All-Defensive Team. This is Adebeyo's second time competing in the Olympics after winning gold in 2021 at the Tokyo Olympics.
Olympic competition for basketball starts July 27, but the women's games won't start until July 28.
Team USA Soccer
Former Philadelphia Union midfielder Paxten Aaronson has a leg up on his older brother, "Medford Messi" Brenden Aaronson. Paxten will do something his brother has yet to do: compete in the Olympics (Brenden has a World Cup to his name, though). Paxten left the Union in 2022, signing with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. Eintracht extended Paxten's contract through 2028 but loaned the Medford, New Jersey native to Utrecht in the Eredivisie.
Other standouts to watch include Casey Murphy of Bridgewater, New Jersey and John Tolkin of Chatham, New Jersey.
The Olympic competition for soccer kicks off on July 24.
Team USA Rugby
Malacchi Esdale from Newark, Delaware has officially become an Olympian. After being listed as an alternate for the Tokyo Olympic Games, Esdale is now looking to help lift Team USA to the podium.
Philadelphia's Ariana Ramsey, a standout from Upper Merion, has also qualified for the Olympics. Ramsey, who played collegiate rugby at Dartmouth, was named the team's MVP in 2023. This marks her second time qualifying for the Olympics.
Rugby events begin July 24.
Team USA Field Hockey
Ashley Hoffman is headed to the Games with Team USA Field Hockey. This is the Mohnton, Pennsylvania native's first Olympics, but she's not the first in the family to make it to the world stage in field hockey. Her mother, Brenda Hoffman (nee Stauffer), won a bronze medal in field hockey at the 1984 Olympics. Ashley Hoffman was coached by her mom at Twin Valley High School before attending the University of North Carolina. She played for Team USA in the Pan American Games in 2019 and 2023, winning bronze and silver medals respectively.
Sisters Emma, 23, and Brooke Deberdine, 25, are ready to bring home the gold for Team USA's field hockey team. The Deberdines are from Millersville, Pennsylvania and both attended Penn Manor High School and the University of Maryland.
The sisters are fierce midfielders and started playing in 2010. This is their first Olympic games, but they're no strangers to high stakes, having both played in the 2024 International Hockey Federation and winning a silver medal. Before this, the sisters took home fourth place in the 2022 Pan American Cup.
Other outstanding players from our area include Phia Gladieux from Oley, Pennsylvania, Karlie Kisha from Hamburg, Pennsylvania, Kelee Lepage from Honey Brook, Pennsylvania, Ashley Sessa from Schwenksville, Pennsylvania, Meredith Sholder from Alburtis, Pennsylvania, Maddie Zimmer from Hershey, Pennsylvania and Amanda Golini of Randolph, New Jersey.
Team USA's first women's field hockey game is July 27.
Team USA Swimming
Chris Guiliano, a Berks County native and Daniel Boone High School alum, excelled at the University of Notre Dame. He was named the 2024 ACC Swimmer of the Year, a six-time ACC All-American and a four-time 2024 ACC Champion. Guiliano won the men's 100 freestyle at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials. This is the first time he has qualified for the Olympics.
Guiliano will be accompanied by West Chester native Ivan Puskovitch, who attended Episcopal Academy in Newtown Square. This is the first time Puskovitch has qualified for the Olympics.
On the women's side, Megumi Field from Wilmington, Delaware punched her ticket to Paris as a synchronized swimmer. The 18-year-old also competed in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Other standouts to watch include Josh Matheny, 21, of Pittsburgh who will compete in the 200 breaststroke, Nic Fink from Morristown, New Jersey and Jack Alexy from Morristown, New Jersey.
Competition for swimming events begins July 27.
Team USA Rowing
Nick Mead and Justin Best are two local athletes representing the United States in rowing at the upcoming summer games. Both rowers were part of the men's eight boat that secured a fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Olympics, and they are now preparing to compete again.
Mead, a Princeton University graduate, attended Episcopal Academy. Rowing runs in his family, with his father having rowed at Princeton and his mother and brother rowing for Penn. This marks Mead's second appearance at the Olympics.
Justin Best hails from Kennett Square and attended Unionville High School before rowing for Drexel University. This will also be his second Olympic appearance.
Both men aim to build on their previous experience and bring home a medal this time.
Twenty-seven-year-old Michael Grady of Pittsburgh will make his second Olympic Games appearance this year after placing fifth in the men's four event at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
Molly Reckford from Short Hills, New Jersey will also be representing Team USA in Paris.
The rowing events at the Olympics will begin on July 27.
Team USA Wrestling
Penn State alum Zain Retherford's Olympic Games debut is 23 years in the making.
Retherford, 29, will compete in the men's freestyle 65kg weight class, which is equivalent to a little over 143 pounds.
The Columbia County native stands at 5-foot-8 and most recently, won gold in the men's freestyle 70kg at the 2023 World Championships. Previously, he participated in the 70kg in 2022 and 2023 before this, wrestling in the 65kg weight class.
But the Penn State grad cut down to 65kg so he could compete in Paris since 70kg is not a weight class for the men's freestyle Olympic event.
Spencer Lee of Murrysville, Pennsylvania is a University of Iowa graduate and a three-time NCAA and three-time PIAA State Champion who also won gold in the men's 50kg weight class during the 2014 World Championships. The Western Pennsylvania native will compete in the 57kg weight class this summer in Paris.
Wrestlers hit the mat Aug. 5-11.
Team USA Water Polo
Hailing from Haverford but originating from Belgrade, Serbia, Jovana Sekulic made her first Olympic team at 21 years old. A standout water polo athlete at Princeton, Sekulic led her team in 2023 with an impressive 76 goals.
Her talent runs in the family, as her brother also competes for Princeton's water polo team.
The competition for water polo kicks off July 26.
Team USA Table Tennis
Amy Wang is sure to make her hometown of Sewell, New Jersey proud when she wears the red, white and blue in table tennis. Wang started playing at age 4 and made her first national team at just 12 years old. Wang came close to making Team USA for the 2020 Games but fell short in what she described as "a hard moment to forget about" in a post on the Team USA website.
After that heartbreak, Wang took a yearlong break from the sport before bouncing back to win U.S. titles in 2022 and 2023. Wang is also a full-time student studying pre-med at UCLA. If the 21-year-old earns a medal in Paris, it would be the first Olympic medal for the U.S. in table tennis.
Table tennis competition begins July 27.
Team USA Archery
Casey Kaufhold, 20, from Lancaster, Pennsylvania is heading to her second Olympics for archery. A Conestoga Valley High School graduate, Kaufhold represented the U.S. in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she finished 17th, showcasing her potential for future success.
Competition for this event starts July 25, one day before the opening ceremony.
Team USA Equestrian
Boyd Martin, a native of Cochranville, Pennsylvania is a 44-year-old seasoned equestrian. A three-time Olympian, Martin is still chasing his first Olympic medal.
His best performance came in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where he placed sixth.
Equestrian events begin July 27.
Team USA Canoe/Kayak
Thirty-four-year-old Casey Eichfeld, hailing from Drums, Pennsylvania is set to compete in his fourth Olympic Games in Paris. Drums is located roughly 20 miles north of Jim Thorpe. Eichfeld is no stranger to the Summer Games, having previously competed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, where he achieved his best finish of seventh place.
More Team USA athletes
Several more athletes from North Jersey are competing in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Check them out!
Climbing
- Jesse Grupper, 27, of Upper Montclair, New Jersey
Fencing
- Jackie Dubrovich, 30, of Riverdale, New Jersey
- Elizabeth Tartakovsky, 24, of Livingston, New Jersey
- Mitchell Saron, 23, of Ridgewood, New Jersey
Golf
- Scottie Scheffler, 28, of Ridgewood, New Jersey
Gymnastics
- Hezly Rivera, 16, of Oradell, New Jersey
Judo
- Jack Yonezuka, 21, of West Long Branch, New Jersey
Triathlon
- Morgan Pearson, 30, of New Vernon, New Jersey