Being chosen to participate in the Olympics is one of the greatest honors an athlete can experience, but an even greater accolade awaits two Team USA athletes at the 2024 Summer Games.
The United States will choose two flag bearers to lead the country into the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics. These individuals — one male and one female — are chosen by their Team USA counterparts and will lead the delegation of more than 350 athletes onto the world's greatest stage.
Who has earned the highest honors among the United States' 592 athletes at the Paris Games? Here's what to know about the country's flag bearers for the 2024 opening ceremony.
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Who are the U.S. Olympic flag bearers at the 2024 Olympics?
- Male flag bearer: LeBron James
- Female flag bearer: Coco Gauff
Team USA announced Monday that LeBron James would be its male flag bearer for the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics. Coco Gauff was announced as the female flag bearer Wednesday, two days ahead of the ceremony.
James and Gauff will become the second duo to co-lead the United States into the Summer Olympics. WNBA star Sue Bird and Eddy Alvarez — who earned silver medals in speed skating and baseball during his Olympic career — were the first pair to share the honors at the 2021 Tokyo Games.
James is the first-ever male basketball player to serve as a flag bearer for Team USA. He is the third basketball player to earn the honor overall, as Bird (2021) and Dawn Staley (2000) each carried the flag while representing the U.S. women's basketball team.
Gauff, the No. 2-ranked female tennis player in the world, is the first American tennis player to serve as a flag bearer for Team USA. At just 20 years old, she will be the youngest opening ceremony flag bearer in Team USA's history.
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Why LeBron James is an Olympic flag bearer
James was chosen as an Olympic flag bearer by his peers, who voted on the honorees in a poll conducted by the Team USA Athletes' Commission.
It's easy to understand why James was chosen. The 39-year-old is playing in his fourth Olympics and led Team USA to gold in his last two appearances in Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
James' 273 points scored are the third-most ever by an American man at the Olympics, behind only Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony. He could pass Anthony in Paris if all goes well for Team USA.
| Rank | Player | Points scored |
| 1 | Kevin Durant | 435 |
| 2 | Carmelo Anthony | 336 |
| 3 | LeBron James | 273 |
James has publicly stated the 2024 Summer Games will be his last Olympics, so it makes sense to honor him for being one of the long-time faces of USA Basketball.
"Being selected by your teammates to carry the flag is a tremendous honor – and a testament to LeBron’s passion for Team USA and his dedication to his sport," USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland said as part of her statement announcing James as flag bearer.
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Why Coco Gauff is an Olympic flag bearer
Like James, Gauff was selected by her peers to serve as Team USA's flag bearer. The vote was conducted by the Team USA Athletes' Commission and made the 20-year-old the first tennis player ever to carry the flag for the United States at the opening ceremony.
Gauff's selection shouldn't be a surprise. She burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old at Wimbledon with a win over Venus Williams and has seen her star rise considerably in the five years since that matchup.
Gauff is the reigning US Open champion and has made it to the semifinals in three of her last four Grand Slam appearances. She has won 75 percent of her major tournament matches and has taken the torch from Serena Williams to establish herself as the best active American tennis player.
Even so, Gauff was surprised she had earned the honor at her first Olympics. The shock was apparent on her face when her selection was revealed by her teammate, Chris Eubanks.
Opening Ceremony Flag Bearer @CocoGauff. 🇺🇸
— Team USA (@TeamUSA) July 24, 2024
The moment Coco got the news from her teammate @chris_eubanks96… 🫢#ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/yjIWPjm6J1
"I never thought in a million years I would have the honor of carrying the American flag for Team USA in the Opening Ceremony," Gauff said in a statement released by the USOPC. "I could not be more proud to lead my teammates with LeBron as we showcase our dedication and passion on the biggest stage there is — at a moment where we can bring athletes and fans together from around the world."
U.S. Olympic flag bearers by year
Below is a look at Team USA's flag bearers at the Summer Games dating back to the 1908 London Olympics.
| Year | Athlete | Sport |
| 1908 | Ralph Rose | Track and Field |
| 1912 | George Bonhag | Track and Field |
| 1920 | Patrick McDonald | Track and Field |
| 1924 | Patrick McDonald | Track and Field |
| 1928 | Lemuel (Bud) Houser | Track and Field |
| 1932 | F. Morgan Taylor | Track and Field |
| 1936 | Alfred Jochim | Gymnastics |
| 1948 | Ralph Craig | Yachting |
| 1952 | Norman Armitage | Fencing |
| 1956 | Norman Armitage | Fencing |
| Warren Wooford | Equestrian | |
| 1960 | Rafer Johnson | Track and Field |
| 1964 | William Parry O’Brien | Track and Field |
| 1968 | Janice Lee Romary | Fencing |
| 1972 | Olga Fikotova Connolly | Track and Field |
| 1976 | Gary Hall | Swimming |
| 1984 | Edward Burke | Track and Field |
| 1988 | Evelyn Ashford | Track and Field |
| 1992 | Francie Larrieu Smith | Track and Field |
| 1996 | Bruce Baumgartner | Wrestling |
| 2000 | Cliff Meidl | Canoe/Kayak |
| 2004 | Dawn Staley | Basketball |
| 2008 | Lopez Lomong | Track and Field |
| 2012 | Mariel Zagunis | Fencing |
| 2016 | Michael Phelps | Swimming |
| 2021 | Eddy Alvarez | Baseball |
| Sue Bird | Basketball | |
| 2024 | LeBron James | Basketball |
| Coco Gauff | Tennis |
Team USA only had two flag bearers once before Tokyo 2021. That came during the 1956 Olympics, when equestrian events for the Summer Games were held in Stockholm, Sweden rather than host city Melbourne because of Australia's immigration laws surrounding horses.
As such, Norman Armitage led the U.S. delegation at the ceremony in Melbourne. Meanwhile, Wooford represented the United States in Stockholm at the equestrian events, which were held five months before the Olympics began.
