The 2024 Paris Olympics were an unforgettable display of athleticism and sportsmanship, so narrowing down the best moments was a tough call. Nonetheless, here are a few of TOGETHXR’s fave mems from the Olympics.

On April 8, 2023, Mallory Swanson suffered a devastating knee injury during a USWNT friendly match against Ireland. Swanson endured numerous surgeries, a serious infection, and intense rehabilitation to work her way back onto the pitch.

The Olympics marked an incredible comeback for the star striker, who had help from her fellow offensive savants and Triple Espresso teammates, Trinity Rodman and Sophia Smith. 490 days after her injury, Swanson scored the lone goal in the final match of the Olympics to seal Team USA’s 1-0 victory against Brazil.

Women can do anything - even while pregnant. Azerbaijan’s Yaylagul Ramazanova competed in the archery competition while 6.5 months pregnant. She made it to a shootout against China and stated that her baby kicked right before she shot a 10 to win the shootout. 

In fencing, Egypt’s Nada Hafez announced to the world that she’s seven months pregnant after competing. Hafez is a medical doctor and clinical pathologist, as well as one of the top fencers in the world.

Imagine working your entire life to earn a spot at the Olympics, only to have your incredible accomplishment overshadowed by bigotry and hatred. After defeating her first-round opponent in just over 60 seconds, misinformation filled the internet and ignited a transphobic wave of criticism toward Imane Khelif. Despite all the outside noise, Khelif stayed focused and fought her way to the most prestigious medal in the world, earning the respect of fans worldwide in the process.

The final skill of the Gymnastics portion of the Games was the highly-anticipated floor event. While many talented gymnasts participated, Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade and USA’s Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles earned the highest scores and thus became the first-ever all-Black podium in Olympic history. The best part of this historic moment came from an impromptu idea from Jordan Chiles: that she and Simone would bow to Rebeca Andrade as she stepped up to accept her gold medal. The class, sportsmanship, and overall camaraderie between the women had us all holding back tears.

Team USA’s women’s rugby squad met the moment in the biggest way. Despite women’s rugby being an underfunded and underappreciated sport in America, Team USA defied the odds and earned a bronze medal in what might be one of the most exciting moments of the Paris Games on a last-second try from Alex “Spiff” Sedrick. Could this triumphant victory be the start of a rugby surge, like what the ‘99 World Cup win did for women’s soccer in America? Only time will tell, but we’re feeling pretty good about those odds.

Some of our favorite stories to come out of the Games were the fun crossovers between athletes from different sports interacting with each other. What started with the most wholesome interaction between Jamaican track legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and New Zealand rugby player Michaela Blyde blossomed into more collabs, like pin trading, leg-sleeve inspirations, and Ilona Maher meeting, well, everyone. We love seeing the gworls uplift each other.

We’re crowning this moment from the handball final as our favorite sportsmanship moment from the Games. In a heated final, Angola’s captain, Albertina Kassoma suffered a knee injury and was unable to walk off the floor of her own power. Despite being in the middle of a gold medal match, Brazilian player Tamires Araújo Frossard saw team doctors struggling to help Kassoma to the sideline and stepped in — carrying Kassoma in her arms to the Angola bench. 

Let’s be all the way real here: female and nonbinary athletes owned the best moments of the Paris Olympics, and the world tuned in to watch them compete on the biggest stage of all. Fans broke attendance records for rugby and basketball, overwhelmingly tuned in for gymnastics and soccer, and female athletes dominated our social media feeds. There’s not much more to say except Tout Le Monde Regarde Le Sport Fémenin.