Australia’s Jessica Fox is already widely regarded as the greatest individual slalom canoe paddler of all time, and has four Olympic medals under her belt. Now she’s getting another honor: flag bearer for her country in Friday’s opening ceremony at the 2024 Paris Games.
Fox, who was born in Marseille, France but moved to Australia at four years old, said earning the role was “probably the greatest moment of my career.” She will be joined by Australian field hockey player and five-time Olympian Eddie Ockenden.
“Obviously that French connection is very strong and it’s such a wonderful, special, unique moment to be able to bring my two cultures together: the French, the Australian,” Fox said, according to Australia’s ABC News.
Fox, 30, is returning for her fourth Olympics. She won a silver medal in 2012, a bronze in 2016 and a bronze and a gold at the last Olympics. Fox had been among the athletes advocating for the canoe slalom event to be opened for women, and it was added at the most recent games in Tokyo. She then won her gold medal in that event.
Paddling runs in the Fox family. Noemi Fox, 27, is joining her older sister in Paris as she makes her Olympics debut in the women’s kayak cross event. Their mother Myriam Jerusalmi, who is Jewish and coaches Jessica, won bronze for France at the 1996 Olympics, and their father Richard paddled for Britain at the 1992 Games.
For Israel, judoka Peter Paltchik and swimmer Andi Murez will serve as flag bearers. Retired basketball legend and five-time Olympian Sue Bird, who is Jewish, served as one of Team USA’s flag bearers in Tokyo in 2021. This year, the American flag will be waved by tennis star Coco Gauff and basketball great LeBron James.
The opening ceremony, which will be held as a boat parade on Paris’ Seine River, begins at 1:30 p.m. ET on Friday and is expected to last more than three hours. NBC will re-air the broadcast in primetime at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday night.
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