Latin America and Iberia at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Latin America and Iberia at the 2024 Paris Olympics

The 2024 Olympic Games came to a close at the Stade de France in Paris on Sunday 11 August.

Over two and a half weeks, athletes from around the world gathered in the French capital, competing at the very highest level and completing incredible feats, setting new personal and world bests, and amazing audiences watching in Paris and at home.

Here, Canning House recalls some of the standout stories of these Games from the nations of Latin America and Iberia.

Brazil was the Latin American country to secure the greatest medal tally, winning three Gold, seven Silver and 10 Bronze, for a total of 20. Brazil placed 20th overall.

The country’s three Golds came across artistic gymnastics, beach volleyball and judo.

In the gymnastics, Rebeca Andrade overcame Simone Biles, widely considered the world’s greatest ever gymnast, in the women’s Floor final. In one of the Games’ most memorable images, Biles and then-third-placed Jordan Chiles (USA, later revised to fifth place) bowed in praise of Andrade on the podium in a great display of respect and sportsmanship. It was Andrade’s second Olympic Gold, having won the women’s Vault at Tokyo 2020, and made her Brazil's most decorated Olympian in history.

At the Eiffel Tower Stadium, in a back-and-forth final against Canada, Ana Patrícia and Duda won over three sets in the women’s Beach Volleyball. The World No.1 pairing thus lived up to expectations, arriving as tournament favourites, winning Brazil’s first Olympic Gold in the event since 1996 in the process.

Brazil’s first gold of the games was Beatriz Souza’s in the women’s 78+kg Judo. At what was her first Olympic games, Brazil’s judoka added her individual Gold and team Bronze medals to a list of major tournament wins including several editions of the Pan American Judo Championships, and podium places at the World Judo Championships.

Spain won five Gold medals, four Silver and nine Bronze for a total of 18, placing 15th overall, with wins in athletics, sailing, water polo and football.

Spain’s men’s Olympic football team followed up resoundingly on the country’s victory in the 2024 UEFA European Championships, winning a high-scoring final against France by five goals to three, and rounding out a summer of immense footballing success for the nation.

In the athletics, Jordan Díaz narrowly beat Pedro Pichardo (Portugal) in the men’s Triple Jump, securing Gold with a jump of 17.86m. On the road, Álvaro Martín and María Pérez overcame Ecuador’s Brian Pintado and Glenda Morejón to win Gold in the marathon race walk mixed relay.

Elsewhere, Spain’s women’s Water Polo squad won Gold in the pool, and Diego Botín and Florian Trittel won in the men’s Skiff out at sea.

Moving down the medal table, Cuba placed 32nd with nine medals, including two Golds, one Silver and six Bronzes.

In the Men’s Greco-Roman Wrestling, Mijaín López became the first ever individual athlete to win the same event at five consecutive Olympics – first taking Gold in Beijing in 2008, and winning at every time of asking since. Following his victory, he symbolically announced his retirement by leaving his shoes in the centre of the wrestling ring.

Meanwhile, on his Olympic debut, Erislandy Álvarez took Gold in the Men’s Lightweight Boxing.

For Ecuador, Brian Pintado’s performance in the men’s 20km Race Walk meant he went one better than in the aforementioned marathon relay, securing the country’s one Gold medal – its first Olympic Gold in athletics since the 1996 games in Atlanta. Ecuador also won two Silver and two Bronze medals, finishing 49th.

Portugal came next, finishing 50th, with Rui Oliveira and Iúri Leitão winning Gold in the men’s Madison after 200 laps of the velodrome, clinching the country’s first ever track cycling Olympic Gold, as well as two Silvers and one Bronze medal elsewhere.

Argentina finished joint-52nd as José Torres Gil took home Gold in the men’s BMX Park, alongside one Silver and one Bronze medal in Sailing and Hockey respectively. It was Argentina’s first-ever individual cycling Gold.

Chile’s one Gold came in the women’s Skeet Shooting, with Francisca Crovetto becoming the first-ever Chilean woman to win an Olympic Gold, and achieving the third Olympic victory in the country’s history. Chile came joint-55th, also winning a Silver in the Wrestling.

The Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino won Gold in the women’s 400m, upgrading her Silver from Tokyo 2020 and becoming the country’s third-ever Olympic Gold medallist, and two Bronze medals elsewhere, with the country ending in 59th place.

Guatemala won its first-ever Olympic Gold thanks to Adriana Ruano in the women’s Trap Shooting. Ruano set a new Olympic record in the process. With one additional Bronze, Guatemala finished joint-60th.

Below, we summarise the remaining medals from Latin America.

Mexico, 65th: three Silver, two Bronze.

Colombia, joint 66th: three Silver, one Bronze.

Panama, 74th: one Silver.

Peru, joint 84th: one Bronze.

Canning House commends the great achievements of these Olympic athletes from across Latin America and Iberia.