Simone Biles (USA)
Gymnastics
Her story: Probably the biggest (profile, not size) pure Olympic athlete in Paris. All eyes will be on Biles, regarded by some as the greatest gymnast of all time, as she chases a fifth gold medal at the ancient age of 27. Biles provided one of the huge stories of the Tokyo Olympics when she pulled out of multiple events with an attack of the "twisties" — not an excess of greasy snacks but a sort of spatial discombobulation. Should be back to her best this time.
Noah Lyles (USA)
Athletics
His story: He is no Usain Bolt — we will not see his like again — but Lyles is another expressive showman who backs up his talk with top-class performances. Just ran a personal-best 9.81sec for the 100m. And delivered plenty of trash talk in the Sprint series on Netflix.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (Jamaica)
Athletics
Her story: Another 100m sprinter, yes, but it is the event to rule them all. The queen of the track prepares for her last Olympics at the age of 37. Will she add to her tally of eight medals, including three gold? It is almost irrelevant at this point.
Steph Curry (USA)
Basketball
His story: LeBron James! Kevin Durant! Jayson Tatum! Joel Embiid! Anthony Davis! The Yanks are again loaded in men’s basketball. Do not overlook Curry, the diminutive Golden State Warriors point guard who changed the game. The four-time NBA champion and two-time MVP makes his Olympic debut. Side note: the Americans left Caitlin Clark off the women’s team. Ridiculous.
Katie Ledecky
Katie Ledecky (USA)
Swimming
Her story: There are some water babies coming up fast, but the grande olde dame of the pool will not go down without a fight.
Leon Marchand (France)
Swimming
His story: No pressure, mon ami! Marchand is a five-time world champion and world record holder in the 400m individual medley. Can he break France’s 12-year gold medal drought in Olympic swimming? Oui oui. His dad was an Olympian, and he has been guided by the former coach of the great Michael Phelps.
Delicious Orie (Great Britain)
Boxing
His story: Great name. Let’s start there. Orie was born in Moscow to a Nigerian father and a Russian mother, and moved to England when he was 7. Won gold at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 2022 and is great mates with Anthony Joshua.
Antoine Dupont (France)
Rugby sevens
His story: The best rugby player in the world, according to some. Made a huge call to skip the Six Nations so he could concentrate on winning Olympic gold at home.
Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya)
Athletics
His story: He is 39 now, and "only" managed 10th in the marathon at the Tokyo Olympics. But Kipchoge could well make history and become the first three-time winner of the great race.
Rayssa Leal (Brazil)
Skateboarding
Her story: No, it does not belong at the Olympics. But skateboarding is still fun to watch. And there are none cooler than Leal, known as the "Little Fairy". The 16-year-old boarder has 6million followers on Instagram and is passionate about environmental causes. An Olympic medal might be a bonus.
