Before the 2024 Olympic Games began, Connecticut Sun assistant coach Abi Olajuwon had no expectations of the Nigeria women’s basketball team making it out of the group stage. Serving as an assistant coach in Paris for her father Hakeem’s home country, Olajuwon knew Nigeria could be competitive, but she also understood their draw would make it an uphill battle.“I’m not saying we won’t (advance), but it’s going to take a lot,” Olajuwon said before the Games. “I think it’s going to be a really fun experience, and it’s one of those things where we’re going in there to compete and win, but we’re setting a standard and we’re playing against the best. If we get there, it’ll be like we already won.”On Sunday, Nigeria beat Canada — which has three active WNBA players on its roster — 79-70 to secure the first-ever spot in an Olympic quarterfinal for any African team, men’s or women’s. Nigeria also upset Australia, the reigning FIBA World Cup bronze medalists, in its first game of the tournament 75-62. African women’s basketball teams had previously won one of 37 games they had appeared in at the Olympics, and Nigeria now accounts for two-thirds of the continent’s all-time victories.Olajuwon is just one of the many athletes and coaches with ties to Connecticut who have already been part of historic moments at these Olympic Games. From local rowers ending decades-long medal droughts for Team USA to the TikTok star from Quinnipiac becoming the face of women’s rugby, the state has been well represented on the biggest stage in sports.Tiffany Hayes leads Azerbaijan in first 3-on-3 basketball appearanceFormer UConn star Tiffany Hayes also led a nation to new heights representing Azerbaijan in 3-on-3 women’s basketball. The squad was eliminated from the Olympics with a heartbreaking 21-19 loss in its final game of pool play Saturday, but Hayes led the entire tournament in scoring and rebounds per game averaging 7.7 points and 6.3 boards.2024 Paris Olympics: Your ultimate guide to the athletes with Connecticut tiesAzerbaijan has never qualified for any basketball event at the Olympic games before this year, much less won a game. The team made history with a buzzer-beating victory in its first matchup against Spain, then followed it up with a shocking upset of reigning 3-on-3 gold medalist Team USA 20-17, behind 11 points from Hayes.Breanna Stewart is half of legendary Team USA duo with A’ja WilsonThe former Huskies representing Team USA in 5-on-5 women’s basketball are chasing a different kind of history, striving to continue their dynasty with an eighth consecutive gold medal. The Americans are heavy favorites after going undefeated in group play, and the tandem of UConn legend Stewart and Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson has been borderline unstoppable.Stewart and Wilson combined for 40-plus points in each of the U.S.’s first two games, becoming the first teammates to do so at the Olympics since 2004. They are also the first pair to average at least 20 points apiece through three group stage games.Liam Corrigan, Team USA four boat win first medal since 1960Old Lyme native Liam Corrigan learned the sting of a fourth-place finish at the Olympics after he and the U.S. men’s eight boat left the Tokyo Games empty-handed. Corrigan switched into the American four boat during the lead-up to 2024 with eight boat teammate Nick Mead, joining Justin Best and Michael Grady to chase the elusive podium finish.The men’s four did more than make the podium, securing the gold medal in a time of 5:49.03, beating out second-place New Zealand by less than a second. It was Team USA’s first medal in the event since 1960 and its first gold medal in a rowing event since 2016.Nick Mead, Justin Best, Michael Grady and Liam Corrigan of Team United States celebrate winning the gold medals after competing in the Rowing Men’s Four Final A on day six of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Vaires-Sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on August 01, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)Ilona Maher’s star on the rise as USA Rugby earns bronze medalFormer Quinnipiac star Ilona Maher is no stranger to Internet fame with more than 5.2 million followers combined across TikTok and Instagram, but a viral clip of her stiff-arming a defender at the Olympics has skyrocketed her to another level of popularity. Maher scored tries in all three of Team USA’s group stage games, helping the women’s rugby sevens team to its first-ever semifinal appearance. The Americans dropped their semi matchup with eventual gold medalist New Zealand, but they scored a walk-off try with less than 30 seconds on the clock to beat Australia in the third-place game.Beyond the field, Maher was dedicated to converting former Philadelphia Eagles star Jason Kelce into a women’s rugby fan, and the eight-time NFL All-Pro wore a Hawaiian shirt with her face on it to events on the day of the bronze medal game. She also tracked down U.S. gymnastics icon Simone Biles to exchange her custom Olympic pin for Biles’s.Ilona Maher, center, celebrates with her bronze medal during the Rugby Sevens presentation ceremony at Summer Olympics in Saint-Denis, France on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)Jennifer Rizzotti leads USA 3×3 basketball to unlikely semifinal berthThe U.S. women’s 3-on-3 team had high expectations in 2024 after winning gold in the debut of the event at the Tokyo Olympics, but the squad coached by UConn alum Jennifer Rizzotti has faced near-constant adversity since long before it arrived in Paris. Los Angeles Sparks rookie Cameron Brink was initially named to the initial team, but an ACL tear ended her season just days after the announcement. Atlanta Dream star Rhyne Howard also grappled with an injury in the weeks leading up to the Olympics, and the group got precious little practice time together between the WNBA All-Star game July 20 and their Paris opener against Germany on July 30.The Americans opened the tournament 0-3, but they rebounded with four straight victories in must-win games to advance to the semifinals for the second straight Olympics. Team USA will face Spain — who it beat 17-11 in pool play — on Aug. 5 with the chance to defend its gold medal on the line.Jen Rizzotti is all in, getting USA Basketball’s 3-on-3 basketball team ready for the Paris Olympics. The UConn grad is in the process of evaluating an impressive roster in Springfield this week. (Dom Amore/Hartford Courant)Three Yale athletes bringing home Olympic hardwareYale alum Ian Barrows and partner Hans Henken became the first American medalists in sailing since 2016 on Friday with a third-place finish in the men’s skiff. Barrows and Henken entered the medal race in fourth place overall but managed to surpass Ireland with a fourth-place finish in the medal race to Ireland’s ninth. Barrows was also upholding a family legacy making his Olympic debut in Paris: His older brother Thomas, now an assistant coach at Yale, was a two-time Olympian in 2008 and 2016.The Bulldogs had six former and current athletes represented across the rowing events, and the program can claim medalists in both the men’s and women’s races. Nick Rusher, a 2023 graduate, won bronze in his Olympic debut with the men’s eight boat. Rusher’s parents met while competing for Team USA and were both Olympic medalists in rowing, mother Cindy in 1992 and father Jack in 1988. Rising senior Maya Meschkuleit, representing Canada, earned a silver medal in the women’s eight.NICK RUSHER, YALE — United States’ Chris Carlson, Clark Dean, Peter Chatain, Rielly Milne, Henry Hollingsworth, Christian Tabash, Nick Rusher, Evan Olson and Pieter Quinton pose with their bronze medal in the men’s eight rowing final at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024, in Vaires-sur-Marne, France. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Originally Published: August 4, 2024 at 6:25 p.m.
