Paris Olympics 2024: The best athletes to look out for in each sport

While some may head home in the middle of August simply beaming with pride at the OLY next to their name, plenty have medal aspirations in mind, and superstars at both ends of the experience scale will be out to write their own headlines across all disciplines.

Here, Sports Mole picks out some of the best athletes to look out for in each of the 32 different sports at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

AQUATICS

Sixteen years on from his Olympic baptism as a baby-faced 14-year-old, Great Britain's diving icon Tom Daley partners Noah Williams in the men's 10m synchronised platform, and let us also not forget breaststroke master Adam Peaty, a three-time Games champion.

The USA's Caeleb Dressel also returns on the back of breaking a staggering six world records at Tokyo 2020, where he won no fewer than five golds, as well as compatriot Katie Ledecky, who has seven Olympic titles to her name.

ARCHERY

In the men's individual competition, Turkey's Mete Gazoz bids to defend his title from Tokyo 2020, but reigning women's individual champion An San of South Korea will not be present after a failed trial period.

In her absence, Great Britain trio Penny Healey, Bryony Pitman and Megan Havers will look to make their mark; Pitman won the individual silver at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham.

ATHLETICS

Still going strong at the age of 37, Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce seeks to add to her haul of eight medals from her previous four Olympic appearances, including the 4x100m relay title at Tokyo 2020.

Also keep an eye out for the gravity-defying feats of Swedish pole vault world-record holder Armand Duplantis, while Eliud Kipchoge aims for a three-peat in the men's marathon.

BADMINTON

The Tokyo 2020 men's gold medallist and current world number two, Denmark's Viktor Axelsen is the man to beat in Paris, although the top-ranked player on the planet - Shi Yuqi - will have a thing or two to say about that.

The latter's fellow Chinese representative Chen Yufei is intent on retaining her crown in the women's singles, where Kirsty Gilmour flies the flag high for Great Britain.

BASKETBALL

Only some of the NBA's most celebrated talents will be on show in the men's tournament. LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama - take your pick.

The USA's Brittney Griner - who stands at 6ft 9in tall - headlines the women's roster, along with 42-year-old Diana Taurasi and Breanna Stewart, the Tokyo 2020 MVP.

BOXING

Diving down into amateur territory - at least that is how it is defined at the Games - Great Britain's Delicious Orie competes in the men's +92kg division boasting gold medals from the Commonwealth and European Games.

Also watch out for Rosie Eccles, competing in the women's 66kg tournament, and the USA's Jahmal Harvey, the 2021 world champion in the featherweight division.

BREAKING

Making its official debut at the Olympics, a total of 32 breakers will compete for gold in Paris - 16 in the B-Boys and 16 in the B-Girls - and in the former, the USA are represented by 30-year-old Victor Montalvo, the 2022 World Games champion and 2023 World Championships gold medallist.

In the B-Girls section, Lithuanian representative Dominika Banevic - also known by her alias B-Girl Nicka and just 17 years of age - is the undoubted one to watch, having also become world champion in Belgium last year.

CANOEING

The most successful New Zealander to ever do it at the Olympics, Lisa Carrington won a trio of canoeing golds at the 2020 Olympic Games, while Nevin Harrison of the USA took the C-1 200 metres crown three years ago.

Thirty-four-year-old Casey Eichfeld will also be competing at his fourth Olympics this summer, while Joe Clarke MBE of Great Britain - a gold medallist at Rio - returns after missing the 2021 event.

CYCLING

Boasting enviable Tour de France-winning know-how, Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia is the one to watch in the road events, as defending men's champion Primoz Roglic is not involved this time around.

Also watch out for Great Britain's BMX queen Beth Shriever, who took home the Olympic title from the Tokyo Games and has just made a full recovery from a collarbone injury.

EQUESTRIAN

A team jumping gold medallist at London 2012 and individual champion from 2020, 41-year-old Ben Maher is gunning for more glory with Great Britain, as are fellow Tokyo winners Laura Collett, Tom McEwen, Charlotte Dujardin and 57-year-old Carl Hester.

Jessica von Bredow-Werndl of Germany also has two crowns to defend, having taken the gold in both the individual and team dressage events three years ago.

FENCING

World and Olympic champion Romain Cannone of France has a men's individual epee title to defend in his homeland, while Hong Kong's Cheung Ka Long and Hungary's Aron Szilagyi are the reigning foil and sabre champions.

The women's tournament is headlined by the USA's foil gold medallist Lee Kiefer, while China's Sun Yiwen took epee gold three years ago, and home favourite Manon Brunet seeks to improve on her third-placed sabre finish from Tokyo.

FIELD HOCKEY

A multitude of global superstars will be on show in the men's hockey competition, including Indian trio Hardik Singh, Harmanpreet Singh and Manpreet Singh, the last three winners of the FIH Player of the Year award.

Dutchwoman Xan de Waard - the winner of the corresponding women's prize last year - captains the Netherlands after their run to Tokyo glory, while Laura Roper is the most-capped GB women's player with 350 appearances.

FOOTBALL

With Euro 2024 and the Copa America both taking place in an Olympic year, several managers have been left frustrated in their efforts to prise big names away from their clubs, who are under no obligation to release them.

However, Argentina's men's ranks will be headlined by Manchester City past and present - Julian Alvarez and Nicolas Otamendi - while Paris Saint-Germain's Achraf Hakimi captains Morocco in the same section.

Michael Olise will also don the France strip following his move from Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich, and many will also be running the rule over 17-year-old Barcelona and Spain defender Pau Cubarsi.

While the men's teams can only name three over-23 players, there are no such restrictions in the women's tournament, where 38-year-old Brazil legend Marta - regarded as one of, if not the best female footballer of all time - makes her sixth Olympics appearance.

Current Ballon d'Or Feminin holder Aitana Bonmati and two-time winner Alexia Putellas star in Spain's squad, which is brimming with world champions, while France veterans Eugenie Le Sommer and Wendie Renard are still going strong too.

GOLF

Well, where do we begin? Perhaps with the two reigning Olympic champions - Xander Schauffele and Nelly Korda - who enter the Paris Games ranked third and first in the world respectively.

Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler - a few months on from his shocking arrest - arrive in France as the only two players ranked higher than Schauffele.

GYMNASTICS

Set to grace the Olympic scene with his phenomenal pommel horse work for the final time, Max Whitlock - a three-time Olympic champion - will endeavour to retain his title in that discipline for the third year running before hanging up his leotard.

Look out for Jake Jarman's gravity-defying acrobatic feats too, and the same also applies to the jewel in the USA's crown, Simone Biles, who experienced a severe case of the 'twisties' at Tokyo 2020 but touches down in Paris with an astonishing collection of tricks in her locker.

HANDBALL

Champions in both the men's and women's handball tournaments at Tokyo 2020, the weight of expectation is on the French whose men's team is headlined by Paris Saint-Germain's Nikola Karabatic. Regarded as one of the best players of all time, the 40-year-old - who retires after the Games - boasts an outrageous 1277 goals from 348 matches.

Hungary-based Estelle Nze Minko - who has 454 goals under her belt from 187 appearances - leads France's female champions, while Camilla Herrem has scored 898 times for Norway.

JUDO

Among a Japanese-dominated field, France's home favourite Teddy Riner carries the hosts' hopes on his shoulders, having won two golds at the Games in addition to an outstanding 11 World Championship titles.

Great Britain's hopes of a podium placement may rest on Chelsie Giles, a Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist in the women's 52kg before becoming European champion one year later.

MODERN PENTATHLON

Great Britain enjoyed a double triumph at the Modern Pentathlon at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, and both reigning champions - Joe Choong and Kate French - will have the opportunities to defend their titles in Paris.

Hungary's Csaba Bohm and South Korea's Seong Seung-min - the reigning world men's and women's individual champions - will be regarded as the principle threats for the Briton's titles this summer.

ROWING

Greece's Stefanos Ntouskos is eyeing back-to-back triumphs in the men's single sculls, but the favourites tag arguably belongs to Germany's Oliver Zeidler, who became world champion for the third time in 2023.

Similarly, New Zealand's Emma Twigg may be up against it when it comes to defending her women's single sculls title, having finished five seconds behind world champion Karolien Florijn in last year's global finals.

RUGBY SEVENS

The 2021 World Player of the Year and one of the finest scrum-halfs on the planet, France's Antoine Dupont opted to skip this year's Six Nations in order to prioritise this year's Rugby Sevens Olympic tournament in his beloved homeland.

Meanwhile, New Zealand women's captain Sarah Hirini boards the plane with a plethora of medals to shout about already, including Games gold in 2020 and a silver at Rio in 2016, not to mention two Rugby Women's World Cup titles.

SAILING

Continuing GB's legacy of producing star sailor after star sailor, Emma Wilson, John Gimson and Anna Burnet - three athletes who already have Olympic medals in their locker - were announced as part of the first GB troupe confirmed for the Olympics.