ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
The 2024 Summer Olympics are over. The Games in Paris came to an end last night with a closing ceremony that featured music, acrobats and Tom Cruise rappelling into the stadium, among many other elements. Our cohost Juana Summers has been part of the NPR team covering the Games for the last 2 1/2 weeks. And, Juana, I am so happy to have you on the line for your exit interview.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
Hey, Ari. It's nice to talk to you.
SHAPIRO: What was it like at the closing ceremony? You were there in the stadium.
SUMMERS: I was, and I've got to say it was part-theatrical spectacle and part-rock show. I mean, this was grandiose, as you might imagine in Paris - highly choreographed. There was this golden character who was rappelling from the top of the stadium. There were these intricate, shining light displays, tons of acrobatics and, of course, a lot of fireworks. And I have to say from where I was sitting with a lot of other reporters, we could see a bunch of the Team USA athletes who seemed to be really having a great time. They formed a pit around the French band Phoenix as they were performing some songs - I've got to tell you, really just took me back to my college days.
SHAPIRO: (Laughter).
SUMMERS: And, of course, part of this closing ceremony was the handoff from Paris to Los Angeles that included LA mayor Karen Bass and Simone Biles standing there with the Olympic flag. And then Tom Cruise performed an aerial stunt, descended down from on high and ended up carrying that Olympic flag off on his motorcycle. So that was a thing.
SHAPIRO: What could be more American than Tom Cruise on a motorcycle and Billie Eilish singing?
SUMMERS: Absolutely.
SHAPIRO: OK, let's talk about the medals, though. The U.S. and China tied for the most gold, 40 each. And the U.S. won the most medals overall. But that's just one way to sum up the Games. Was there a moment that stood out to you, something that was especially meaningful to you personally?
SUMMERS: Yes, Ari. This is a gold medal moment, but it's one that didn't get as much attention as a lot of those that happened here at the games for Team USA. Earlier in the games, we introduced our audience to a 21-year-old weightlifter named Olivia Reeves from Chattanooga, Tenn. Producer Vincent Acovino and I actually got to meet her and her coach in Tennessee and to learn a little bit about her story. She is a well-decorated weightlifter who kept just smashing records in international competitions - super-consistent, super-strong. And I had the opportunity to be there at the South Paris Arena when she clinched her gold medal victory, winning the United States' first Olympic gold in weightlifting in 24 years.
SHAPIRO: Wow.
SUMMERS: And, Ari, I just want to give you a sense of how strong this woman is. Her total, which is the combined weight of two lifts - the snatch and the clean and jerk - was 577 pounds, and she just made it look so easy.
SHAPIRO: Wow.
SUMMERS: And then she gets up on the podium after just nailing these lifts, and she's clearly emotional as she stood there. The U.S. anthem is playing. The flag is going up. Take a listen to what Olivia Reeves had to say after the medal ceremony.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
OLIVIA REEVES: Feeling the weight of this competition is different than the others, even though it's the same. You get your three attempts, your six minutes. It's the same, but it feels different in there. There's - just the environment. So I kind of knew there were going to be tears, good or bad. I kind of knew when I got here.
SUMMERS: And for Olivia, it was good tears. This was her Olympic debut. But I got to say I expect this will not be the last time that we're going to be seeing her standing on that podium. So I'm really excited to keep following her career.
SHAPIRO: Wow. You know, one thing we kept hearing in the run up to the games was that organizers wanted these Olympics to be open to the city of Paris. How'd that go?
SUMMERS: I mean, it was a part of the plans from the first moments of the Olympics, thinking back to the opening ceremony, where we saw those delegations on boats with athletes waving to all the spectators as they cruised down the Seine River. I remember standing there even seeing people leaning out of apartment windows, just wanting to get in on the action even if they didn't have tickets. And then as competition progressed, there were - all of these venues were really integrated into the city of Paris and the surrounding areas.
Just one example - the beach volleyball court just in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower was absolutely incredible to see. If you were lucky enough to have a ticket or the opportunity to be there at night, you could actually see the Eiffel Tower sparkle and be lit up as it is in the evening. And then you can't forget the marathon route as well, where runners race from Paris' Hotel de Ville past some of the city's most iconic sites, winding through the city all the way out west to Versailles before heading back into the city again.
SHAPIRO: Juana, I know you are yourself a runner. In between all of the reporting you've been doing, did you get in any good Paris runs?
SUMMERS: Often at the sacrifice of sleep, but I definitely did. I mean, this is just an incredibly beautiful city to run in. From where we were staying, I was able to run along the Seine, past the Louvre. The views just don't get old. And I've got to tell you I am clearly not the only person who wanted to have some of those iconic, beautiful Paris runs.
Organizers here introduced something new at this Olympics. It's called the Marathon for All, kind of a cool thing that gave more than 20,000 people the opportunity to run the exact same course the marathoners did. It's beautiful, but it's also a very hard and hilly course. And, you know, I had to get out there, check it out myself, talk to some of these awesome runners. And I want to introduce you to just one woman I met. Her name is Rosemary Dooley. She lives in New York, and she was getting ready to run her 20th marathon.
ROSEMARY DOOLEY: I mean, I think it's an unbelievable privilege. It's, like, a totally unique experience to get to run the exact same course. Looking at the hills, some of them are really challenging. I've run the Boston Marathon, which is a lot of hills, but this has, like, double the elevation. So it's going to be really, really challenging, but I'll walk if I have to. Whatever I have to do to finish, I don't mind.
SUMMERS: And, Ari, I'll just quickly note this race started late, but Paris was an absolute party. There was a light show. There was live music. The mascot of the games was there at the finish line, giving out hugs and high-fives. And I definitely stayed up entirely too late myself watching all of these awesome runners.
SHAPIRO: That is our cohost Juana Summers wrapping up her time in Paris covering the Summer Olympics. It's been so fun listening to your coverage these last couple of weeks. Thanks, Juana.
SUMMERS: Thank you, Ari. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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