Update: January 17, 2025: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled to , which will go into effect on January 19 if the social media’s parent company does not sell the platform.

In 2023, Tatiana O’Hara, a content creator in Atlanta, Georgia, began to document her running journey on TikTok. She , and soon attracted a dedicated following of other beginnerÌęrunners. By the end of 2024, she had . “When people are looking for a run club for slower runners, they find me,”ÌęO’Hara said.

Now, what she has built is in jeopardy as a ban on the app goes into effect on January 19, 2025, unless the Supreme Court intervenes. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to get that same searchability on other apps,” O’Hara said.

O’Hara is just one of thousands of creators and small business owners grappling with the impending TikTok ban.

In April, Congress passed a law banning the app beginning on January 19 of this year. The government says that TikTok . Outrage by many lawmakers and users of the app over followed. TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, a Chinese technology company, challenged the law, and the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on January 10, to determine its constitutionality.

As of now, TikTok continues to operate in the U.S., pending the Supreme Court’s decision, which will decide whether the ban will proceed. President-elect Donald Trump, who had previously sought to ban the app in 2020, has reversed his position and is now . Last month, he filed a brief with the Supreme Court requesting a delay in the ban to allow his incoming administration to negotiate a resolution.

Social media professionals and creator economy analysts have called the ban an “” for creators, and many users fear that the communities they’ve participated in will disappear overnight with no replacement.

TikTok’s Impact on Outdoor Access

The ban is set to have unanticipated ripple effects in the outdoors community. Though TikTok is seen as a hyper-online platform, built to maximize screen time, the app actually does more than other major social platforms to encourage people to get outside and explore nature, some users said. “TikTok lowers the barrier of entry to outdoorsy activities because the information is so accessible,” O’Hara said.

John Facey, a web and graphic designer in Queens, New York, credits TikTok with helping him discover a love of horticulture and environmentalism. Through his page on TikTok, he said, he met a lot of people who were interested in environmental science, local ecology, and issues affecting the environment. Facey even got tips for identifying plants along his hikes.

Andy Neal, an outdoor content creator who posts under the handle @andyfilmsandhikes, said that, “TikTok has played a significant role in democratizing the outdoors.”

While traditional media often depicts those hiking, biking and engaging in other outdoor sports as young, fit, and conventionally attractive, Neal said that TikTok, more than any other platform, has helped change those perceptions. “TikTok has given visibility to people of all body types, genders, and backgrounds who love spending time outside,” he said. “Compared to other platforms, TikTok has done a better job of making the outdoors feel inclusive
I’ve learned more about outdoor gear and educationÌęon TikTok than anywhere else because the platform encourages real conversations and storytelling, rather than focusing solely on aesthetics.”

Activism at Risk

TikTok’s hyper-curated algorithm and community-first approach have inspired millions to explore the natural world and to develop a deeper appreciation for nature. The app remains a hub for Gen Z climate activism, with creators like Elise Joshi and sound the alarm on climate change.

Jessie Dickson, a TikTok creator with 215,000 followers in Sacramento, California, said that TikTok’s capacity to mobilize people to action is unmatched. “Think of all the campaigns to or that only succeeded because of young people on TikTok,”ÌęDickson said. “Think of all the young people who on hikes is important.”

Dickson said that as an environmentalist and scientist, the ban terrifies him. “We are muting millions of young voices
 so many areas of conservation are going to suffer without TikTok.”

TikTok’s short-form video format has also made information about outdoor adventures more accessible and appealing, especially to younger generations. Creators share , , and , lowering the barrier to entry for those looking to spend more time outside.

This content has translated into real-world action. Thousands of users have they discovered through the app. The platform has been credited with motivating people to take up hiking and nature walks, with users and the mental health benefits of spending time outside. Without the platform’s influence, some users will be pushed toward more solitary apps that are less about community and more about consumption. Creators said that people would have a harder time discovering outdoors activities and meetups around them.

The Business Repercussions

The ban will also affect thousands of small businesses, including many sellers of outdoor and sports equipment. “If I was interested in taking up kayaking, it is so easy to go on TikTok, follow ten people posting about kayaking, and see their Amazon storefronts,” O’Hara said. This seamless integration of content and commerce has been a boon for small businesses looking to tap into niche outdoor activity related markets.

Creators face financial peril as a major source of theirÌęincome may dry up with no real alternative. “The money I made on TikTok helped pay for my son’s daycare,” O’Hara said.

The platform has enabled influencers to monetize content through brand deals, live streams, and affiliate marketing. These income streams will disappear if the ban is enacted. “TikTok isn’t just another social media platform, it’s a launchpad for creators,” said Jasmine Enberg, vice president and principal analyst at eMarketer.

While other platforms feature their own versions of live streaming and business opportunitites, Instagram and YouTube, TikTok’s primary competitors, just don’t offer the same ecommerce integration, monetization options, and discovery systems as TikTok, creators said. “One unique aspect of TikTok that I’ll miss is the live-streaming feature,” Neal said. “I’ve had incredible live streams while out on hikes, showing people beautiful spaces and having meaningful conversations in real-time. Other platforms don’t foster that same kind of live engagement.”

In response to the fast-approaching ban, some TikTok users which translates loosely into “little red book,” named after a propaganda book written by . ÌęThe app is lifestyle-centric and more similar to Instagram than TikTok. However, it shot to the top of Apple’s app store on January 14 as TikTok users desperately searched for alternatives to the platform.

“Do the great people of China like nature?” one new Xiaohongshu alongside a video of the view from a mountain top. “I’m an American TikTok refugee that posts simple nature content that highlights the greatness of the outdoors,” he .

Within hours of posting, he had gotten a reply from another Xiaohongshu user, who posts videos of their hikes. “Deep love of nature,” they replied.

Taylor Lorenz has reported on the content creator industry for 15 years. She has covered TikTok for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Atlantic. She has also amassed over 542,000 followers on the app.

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On November 14, Jenni Lowe, president of the Alex Lowe Charitable Foundation (ALCF) and widow of climbing legend Alex Lowe, announced that the nonprofit she founded in his name will officially dissolve before the end of 2025. The nonprofit’s assets—including the iconic Khumbu Climbing Center—will go to the Juniper Fund, a Nepal-based charity helmed by celebrity mountaineers Melissa Arnot Reid and David Morton. Jenni Lowe first initiated the handoff process about a year ago.

“It just felt like time,” she told șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű. “I’m approaching 70 years old, and I feel as though I’m ready to change direction in my life.”

The ACLF has been a force of change in the Khumbu region of Nepal since its founding 25 years ago. Jenni Lowe initially launched the ALCF alongside leading alpinist Conrad Anker to help indigenous mountain communities and to honor her late husband, Alex Lowe, after he was killed in an avalanche on Shishapangma in 1999. At the time, Alex Lowe was considered one of the best alpinists of his generation, establishing bold first ascents in Antarctica, Baffin Island, and in the Himalaya. He was only 40 when he died, and he left three young sons behind.

The cornerstone of the ALCF’s work was The Khumbu Climbing Center, a facility that helps provide safety education to Sherpa guides and other members of indigenous climbing community. Together with Anker, Jenni Lowe helped build the KCC from the ground up. Since its launch in 2003, the facility has provided life-saving training to hundreds of climbers.

From here on out, the KCC will continue under the umbrella of the Juniper Fund, a well-regarded nonprofit that has worked alongside the ALCF for more than a decade. The Juniper Fund’s mission to support the families of Himalayan high-altitude workers, especially those grieving loved ones killed in the mountains, dovetails with that of the ALCF. That made the hand-off an easy decision, Lowe told șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű.

“The Juniper Fund does amazing work,” Lowe said. “When I started the ALCF, I was this young widow, and I had deep compassion for the women over there who I saw as in my shoes. The Juniper Fund stepped in to provide support to those families in a beautiful way.”

Lowe hopes the transfer of assets from the ALCF to the Juniper Fund will be complete by the end of 2025. That includes all monetary assets, the building that houses the KCC, and other resources. The ALCF’s board of directors will continue to be involved throughout this process, Lowe said.

Arnot Reid described the transfer as an opportunity to build on the Juniper Fund’s existing mission. But, she said, it’s important to emphasize that the KCC isn’t getting passed off, per se; it’s a powerful organization in its own right, and it’s simply getting a new financial backer.

“The KCC is run in Nepal by Nepalis, and it’s an incredibly successful and really well-run organization,” Arnot Reid said. “They don’t need our intervention to run the incredible programs they already have; they just need our support financially and awareness-wise to continue to bring their mission to people who aren’t aware of it.”

Arnot Reid said the Juniper fund is committed to supporting the KCC’s existing work and has no plans to alter or add to it at this time. Instead, the Juniper fund will work closely with the organization’s Nepali representatives and follow their lead.

But while the work will remain the same, Arnot Reid says Jenni Lowe’s leadership will certainly be missed.

“Jenni is a role model for me,” Arnot Reid said. “She worked really hard to make things happen in a space where people said it wasn’t possible, or ‘We can’t do that,’ and she did it with grit.”

That’s something Lowe is equally proud of: she said in her time at ALCF, the nonprofit accomplished more than she could have ever dreamed of.

“In the beginning, it was just a way for me to walk through the grief of losing Alex. I had no idea what I was getting into when I first started the foundation, but it was a huge gift to my life,” Lowe told șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű. “I love that community and I’ll miss them. But I feel satisfied and happy with what we’ve done. It’s time to make my world a little smaller.”

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On November 4, federal authorities issued misdemeanor charges against two Colorado residents for allegedly stealing historic artifacts from a roped-off area within Utah’s Canyonlands National Park this past March.The residents, identified as Roxanne McKnight, 39, and Dusty Spencer, 43, both of Pagosa Springs, allegedly entered the signed closure area around Cave Spring Cowboy Camp on March 23. According to a from the U.S. attorney’s office in Utah, the two then “handled and stole numerous historic artifacts.”

Cave Spring Cowboy Camp sits at the end of a popular, 0.6-mile hiking loop within Canyonlands National Park’s Needles District. The sandstone cavern houses a historic campsite that cowboys used during cross-country cattle drives in the early Twentieth Century. Some of the artifacts displayed there include nails, coffee cans, and bits of horse tack that are more than 100 years old.

Park officials didn’t learn of the incident until later in the spring, when rangers conducted a review of the cave’s trail-camera footage.

“The trail cam footage shows individuals clearly within the site, and the site is fenced off and signed,” Karen Henker, a public affairs specialist for Canyonlands National Park, told șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű.

On May 15, the park alongside images from the footage and asked the public to help identify the man and woman in the video. One photo shows a woman sitting down on one of the artifacts. Another shows a goateed man with a beer in his hand. The request for public input worked.

“I can confirm that the identification was the result of contributions from that tip line,” Henker said.

In a , McKnight claimed she first heard of the charges when they were released online on Monday, November 4, and that they came as a surprise. She confirmed that she was in the desert in March but denied stealing or intentionally harming any artifacts.

She also saidÌęshe had not been in touch with Spencer for several months. Their court case is currently set for November 27, 2024 in Salt Lake City.

șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű was unable to reach Spencer for comment.

Since the initial news release and subsequent charges, the story of the alleged theft has appeared in a number of major news outlets including and . The story’s popularity is no surprise, Henker told șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű. “National parks are known to preserve important stories from our country’s past, and a lot of people feel strongly about that preservation,” she said.

Artifact theft and desecration are surprisingly common in national parks. According to a , the National Park Service records hundreds of incidences of archaeological theft each year. Only about 16 percent of these cases are ever solved.

When asked how it feels to see this case get some traction, Henker emphasized that all suspects in the case are considered innocent until proven guilty.

“But we’re very grateful for the contributions and involvement from the public,” she told șÚÁÏłÔčÏÍű. “To us, it shows just how much the public cares about these places.”

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What should have been one of the biggest triathlon celebrations of the year was marred by tragedy yesterday as two athletes died during the World Triathlon age-group sprint world championship in southern Spain, according to officials.

A Mexican athlete lost his life after suffering difficulties in the swim and another male competitor from Great Britain died on the run course in Torremolinos on October 17. An investigation is underway over both incidents amid allegations of poor organization and lax medical procedures from participants.

A World Triathlon statement confirmed the news, saying: “Our deepest condolences go to the respective family, friends, National Federations and all the triathlon family. World Triathlon, the Spanish Federation and the LOC [local organizing committee] are in contact with their families and NFs [national federations] to provide all the support needed in these difficult and sad times.”

British Triathlon also confirmed that the family of a member of its age-group team had been notified and were being supported, adding: “British Triathlon and the Age-Group Team send their condolences and we request that their privacy be respected at this time.” World Triathlon said both families had requested the names of the deceased to be kept private.

, a professional triathlete and coach from Colorado, who was at the venue and witnessed the incident in the swim raised organizational shortcomings on social media in the hours following.

“I’ve just got back from the sprint distance,” he said. “I just want to say, World Triathlon, that was some of the worst lifeguarding, the worst awareness, the worst communication I’ve seen at an event ever.

“There was an older man that was clearly signaling for help a few hundred yards out from the finish. Everyone on shore saw it, everyone was yelling for somebody to go there. [The] kayaker is completely oblivious, paddling away.”

 

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World Triathlon responded by rejecting the claim that swim conditions were poor and told Triathlete that swim conditions were classed as “optimal” for the event by the local marine authorities. It also added that there were more dedicated water safety resources deployed than legally required.

Triathlete subsequently contacted another individual working in an official capacity at the venue who wished to remain anonymous but said: “To be honest, racing conditions were horrendous. [It was] too late in the day, so loads of wind, making it impossible to sight on the swim. People [were] swimming every way, taking ages. And after a week of rain, today was pretty warm while they were running.”

from the UK Meteorological Office show the average high temperature on race day in Torremolinos was 74 degrees Fahrenheit with humidity between 50 and 60 percent over the course of the day. Hourly average wind speeds were reported between 12 and 18 mph during the race.

To compound the allegations, a further undisclosed source working at the venue said that attempts to resuscitate the British participant, who had collapsed during the 5-kilometer run leg, were delayed by an absence of medical staff who had rushed to the swim incident, leaving the individual on the run without any medical expertise for almost 20 minutes.

World Triathlon said it is working with local authorities, including the police, to investigate both incidents and could offer no further comment at this time. When asked directly about allegations of poor organization, it reconfirmed that position.

The deaths follow a further recent tragedy in Ironman Calella-Barcelona less than two weeks ago, when Elena Smirnova, a 41-year-old Russian, was pulled from the water and died en route to hospital.

Another participant died after a medical emergency in the swim leg in Ironman 70.3 Oregon in July and two triathletes also passed while taking part in Ironman Ireland last year.

The event in Torremolinos near Malaga is the climax of the World Triathlon season. Running from October 17-20, more than 5,500 triathletes from over 80 countries are set to compete in categories running from amateur to elite competition as well as junior, under-23, and paratriathletes.

RELATED:Ìę

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Lindsey Vonn, the legendary ski racer with 2.4 million Instagram followers, has been dropping hints that have fans buzzing: Could a return to World Cup racing be in the works?

“It’s been an incredible past few weeks,” she posted recently. “Being back in the mountains is where I find so much joy. It’s my natural habitat
even if I hate being cold lol.”

Then she added, “Excited to share more .”

The ski legend, who turns 40 on Friday, had a knee replacement last spring and can finally live without ever-present pain. In a recent post from the gym, she shared, “Leveled up this summer and it’s paying off
 can’t wait to get back to my happy place on the mountain.”

With posts like these, Vonn has sparked rumors. Is she planning a return to World Cup racing? Like Marcel Hirscher, Vonn could apply for a World Cup “Wild Card” spot. (Hirscher, 35, holds a record eight overall World Cup titles and retired in 2019.)

Why Lindsey Vonn Might Return to World Cup Ski Racing

According to FIS’s rulebook, a wild card can be granted to athletes who have won either a World Cup overall globe, an event globe (under the condition of a minimum of five World Cup victories), or an individual Olympic or world championship gold medal. Vonn certainly meets all those qualifications. Additionally, the wild card rule states, “The athlete who requests a Wild Card must be retired from the World Cup Tour for two or more years (Official FIS Retirement form and WADA date record), but not more than ten years.”

Once again, Vonn checks all the boxes.

Her team will only confirm that she “underwent a partial knee replacement in April. She has been recovering well since then and her knee feels incredible. She was cleared to ski and has begun a return to skiing progression.”

But is Vonn truly considering a World Cup return?

Vonn’s Knee: A Game Changer?

Before we dive into the possibility of a comeback, it’s essential to understand how Vonn’s knee surgery has transformed her ability to ski pain-free. Bedeviled by crashes and injuries during her 19-year-long World Cup career, Vonn’s knees took the brunt of the damage. She had “severe tri-compartment degeneration” in her right knee, with the lateral compartment causing the most pain. In July 2023, she had surgery in an attempt to hold off knee replacement.

“But I got to the point where it was too much, and my knee could not handle doing the things I love to do,” she wrote on Instagram on April 9, 2024, the day of her knee replacement surgery.

Vonn soon rehabbed her new knee and was back in the gym, ramping up her workouts. This fall, she was back on snow, skiing in New Zealand.

Why a Comeback Might Appeal to Vonn

Vonn retired from ski racing after the 2019 world championships, not because she wanted to, but because she was constantly in pain.

“It’s been an emotional two weeks making the hardest decision of my life, but I have accepted that I cannot continue ski racing,” she posted on Instagram at the time.

She wasn’t upset about retiring, but what troubled her was not reaching her goal of equaling or surpassing Ingemar Stenmark’s record of 86 World Cup wins.

“However, I can look back at 82 World Cup wins, 20 World Cup titles, 3 Olympic medals, 7 World Championship medals and say that I have accomplished something that no other woman in HISTORY has ever done, and that is something that I will be proud of FOREVER!” she added in the same Instagram post.

Since then, Mikaela Shiffrin has raised the World Cup win record to 97 (and counting). While Vonn would be hard-pressed to catch Shiffrin, returning to the World Cup to retire on her terms would give Vonn some closure.

Even more enticing, the women finally get to race a World Cup downhill and super-G on Beaver Creek’s Birds of Prey course—where Vonn won bronze in super-G at the 2015 world championships. And next winter, Cortina is hosting the women’s alpine events at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games. Vonn scored her first World Cup podium on Cortina’s Tofana downhill course and broke the women’s World Cup win record there in 2017. Over her career, Vonn won 12 downhills and super-G races at Cortina.

As Vonn wrote in her book Rise, she has always been motivated by doubters. A return to World Cup racing would not be a complete surprise.

Is Lindsey Vonn Just Enjoying Skiing Without Pain?

Or is it more likely that Vonn is simply happy to be back enjoying the slopes without pain in her knee?

If we closely follow her Instagram posts from the summer, Vonn is thrilled to be leading the active lifestyle that she has always dreamed about—playing tennis, riding her bike, and even surf foiling without debilitating pain. And in late August, she announced that she would be skiing with guests at the private Three Forks Ranch resort in Wyoming for two weeks in late February and early March—not exactly the kind of commitment someone would make if the World Cup tour were on her radar.

Earlier this week, Vonn posted from New Zealand: “With this new knee that is now a part of me
 I feel like a whole new chapter of my life is unfolding before my eyes. My adventurous spirit feels full of gratitude. To do the things you love to do is truly a blessing and I don’t take it for granted.”

While we may be reading too much into her posts, she concluded, “I don’t know exactly what lies ahead, but I know I’m healthy, happy, and grateful.”

The Verdict

Though Vonn certainly has the credentials to qualify for a World Cup wild card, returning to the circuit after five years would present significant challenges. Not only would she face competition from younger racers, but regaining top-level fitness after multiple knee surgeries could be a hurdle. Still, if anyone has the determination and grit to do it, it’s Lindsey Vonn.

What do you think? Could Lindsey Vonn be gearing up for one last World Cup race? Stay tuned for more updates from SKI.

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No one expected breakdancing—the street dancing style that incorporates head spins and freeze moves—to ever become an Olympic sport. Even members of the World DanceSport Federation, the governing body of competitive dancing, were surprised to learn in 2020 that “breaking,” as it is called, had been added to the lineup for the 2024 Games in Paris.

“It was a shock to everybody,” says Martin Gilian, a member of the World DanceSport Federation, and one of nine judges who will score the Olympic breaking competition on August 9 and 10. “We had no idea how we got into the Youth Olympics in 2018 and suddenly we were finding out we’d be in Paris.”

The truth is that breaking has resonated with younger audiences since it was born on the streets of New York City’s South Bronx more than 50 years ago. In fact, as an original element of hip-hop—alongside deejaying, emceeing, and graffiti—breaking has never stopped pushing boundaries. Is it an art form or a sport? Debate it all you want, but to me, it’s clear that breaking is both.

Breaking’s inclusion in the 2024 Summer Games is nod to the graffiti we see in Europe’s first collection of modern and contemporary art at Centre Pompidou in Paris; and to the rap of this year’s Olympic hype men Snoop Dogg and MC Solaar of France. I’m pretty much obsessed with breaking’s Olympic debut. Drawn to its combination of history, physical strength, and creative expression, I’ll be in the stands at the Paris Olympics on August 9, cheering on the athletes, which fans call “B-Girls” and “B-Boys.” On La Concorde in the heart of Paris, next to BMX freestyle, skateboarding, and 3X3 basketball, in one big “hip hop celebration” breaking will take place outdoors in an urban park. Here’s what to know about the newest Olympic event:

How the Competition Works

Breaking’s top athletes draw from thousands of tricks, and they improvise signature moves never performed by anyone in competition until the Olympics. Athletes will be judged on their technique, dance vocabulary, execution, musicality, and originality, with each category counting for 20 percent of overall score.

On August 9, 17 B-Girls will face off in one-on-one 60-second dance battles. Among them will be 35-year-old American Grace Sun “Sunny” Choi, who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s business school. Also in the lineup is 21-year-old Manizha “Jawad” Talash, a refugee and Afghanistan’s first female breaker who fled the Taliban, as well as Italian Antilai Sandrini, who goes by the name “B-Girl Anti,” and is an artistic gymnast and cheerleader-turned breaker who is also a competitive Kung Fu athlete.

Then, on August 10, 16 B-Boys will follow the same format, laying down flips and flares. According to Gilian, the event borrows some DNA from martial arts and gymnastics. “Breakers are always trying to evolve and make their own signature moves,” he says. In this evolving and improvisational sport, breakers introduce personalized moves from the main elements of standing moves, called “top rock,” floor moves, called “down rock,” and freeze, which is holding a pose in an unusual position.

“It’s about improvisational storytelling, following a concept throughout the entire round. For example, a dancer could hold his chin the entire round, even while going down on the floor in a power move (a twist and spin)” says Gilian. “Or he might hear the sound of a bird that inspires him to express the sound throughout the dance. It’s as creative as possible.”

In a round robin, the top two from each of the four men’s and women’s groups will advance to the quarterfinals, then semis, and a best-of-three final for the medals, putting on a show for the Olympic audience while they can. Sadly, breaking is expected to be left off the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

Getting fired up is necessary at this new Olympic sport that relies more on audience participation than other Olympic events.“One of the most important things to the sport is creating an atmosphere so the dancers can interact with the audience,” says Gilian “We don’t want you to just come and watch. You really need to be involved if you’re there and make some noise because the better the atmosphere, the better the performance.”

Breaking is also the only Olympic event where the judges get to perform. “We’re paying a tribute to hip-hop culture, so at the end we’ll dance to a live rapper, while the DJ spins the music,” says Gilian, who goes by the breaking name B-Boy MG—all the judges double as breakers and Gilian, who used to compete, is also a rapper.

The Hip-Hop History

Gilian first witnessed breaking in 2004 in a Run DMC MTV music video as a student at Florida International University (Florida, a breaking hub, is also home of Olympic medal hopeful B-Boy “Victor” Montalvo). But of course breaking dates back to the 1969 gang activity in the South Bronx, when instead of taking a swing at each other, each side would pretend to fight in a dance battle.

As the story goes, on August 11, 1973, a Jamaican immigrant who went by DJ Kool Herc—the godfather of hip hop culture—was performing at an apartment and invited party goers to dance during percussive “breaks’ in his music. From the Black and Latino neighborhood street culture in New York City in the 1980s, the term “breaking” evolved in the media into “breakdancing” after the popular Rock Steady B-Boys and the B-Girls rose up in pop culture while touring the world stage. And as breaking faded from urban America in the 1990s, it was picking up in its first organized competitive world circuit heavily centered around Europe—with the first major global “Battle of the Year” in Germany in 1990, followed by the first Red Bull breaking competition in 2001.

An Olympic Underdog

In 2016, the World DanceSport Federation proposed several competitive dancing styles to organizers of the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The federation hoped that one would be chosen, and Gilian and others believed that Latin dancing might be singled out. When the International Olympics Committee, which oversaw the event, chose breaking “it came as a surprise, but was extremely popular for some reason,” Gilian remembers.

In 2020, when breaking was officially added to the 2024 Paris Games, the decision drew some pushback. Critics argued that dancing wasn’t a sport. It wasn’t the first time the Olympics had to consider art as competition. Between 1912 and 1948, the Olympics included competitive events in the artistic categories of architecture, literature, music, painting, and sculpture.

Officials with the IOC and World DanceSport Federation faced plenty of hurdles to get breaking ready for the Olympics: standardizing rules and judging while maintaining the sport’s artistic side. Rules require DJs to pick the same song at random for both dancers. The hosts, who narrate the competition on the mic, maintain a central role as physically close to the breakers on the dance floor as possible.

“We made sure that the audience could get as close as possible, so they could feed off the energy of the crowd and maintain the true essence of breaking. The IOC really came through and we’ve accomplished that,” says Gilian. He says that breaking has experienced a resurgence in popularity since it was announced as an Olympic sport.

“We’re seeing all around the world that parents are more motivated to get their kids into the breaking—and nine and 10 year olds are learning basic moves in as little as two days that took me 10 or 11 months to master,” says Gilian. “There’s been a huge growth in the last few years all around the world, especially in Asia, Europe, and Latin America.”

Breakers to Watch in Paris

The B-Girls

B-Girl Sunny: Grace Sunny Choi is a former gymnast who picked up breaking as a student at the prestigious University of Pennsylvania Wharton School. After graduating, she began battling in world-wide competitions, going on to win silver at the 2022 World Games.

B-Girl Ayumi: With a recent win at the Olympic Qualifier in Shanghai, 2021 world champion Fukushima Ayumi of Japan is one to watch out for. At age 41, this veteran has the dynamics (transitions between down and up rock) and the experience to go far.

B-Girl Ami: Ami Yuasa, of Japan, was introduced to hip-hop at age six. Today, the 25 year old is known for her footwork and flow (the art of combining moves in a creative and rhythmic way), after taking world championship titles in 2019 and 2022 and making the Red Bull BBC One World Final in 2023.

B-Girl India: India Sardjoe, of the Netherlands, has been breaking since age 7—while also playing football as the only girl on an all-boys’ team. Today, she’s fearlessly competing at age 16 as one of the youngest Olympic Athletes, after winning gold in the 2023 European Games.

B-Girl Nicka: This Lithuanian breakdancer is only 17 years old yet she’s the current world champion. Dominika Banevic has it all–vocabulary, dynamics, flavor, and form and could take the win.

The B-Boys

B-Boy Victor: Victor Montalvo, 30, is living the dream of his father Victor Bermudez and his uncle Hector Bermudez—twin-brother breaking pioneers who helped popularize the sport in Mexico in the 1980s. After growing up in Florida, he’s the current world champion. Expect traditional style with loads of signature moves.

B-Boy Hong 10: Born and raised in Seoul, South Korea, Kim Hong-Yul, 40, is a three-time Red Bull BC One champion with experience on his side. Loaded with an arsenal of innovative moves—arguably the most original in the game—he’s one to watch.

B-Boy Shigekix: This Olympic flag carrier from Japan is a Red Bull BC One All Star and the 2020 Red Bull BC One champion. Shigeyuki Nakarai is a former freestyle dancer known for his control and fast power moves (using the whole body in a rotational move while balancing on the hands, elbows, head, or shoulders).

B-Boy Phil Wizard: Canada’s Philip Kim was once a kid watching breaking in the street shows of downtown Vancouver. He took up the sport and went on to win gold at the 2022 World Championships and the 2023 Pan American Breaking Championships, also taking silver in the 2023 World Championships.

B-Boy Lithe-ing: China’s Qi Xiangyu, 19, is the new kid on the block coming up quickly after becoming runner up at the Olympic Qualifier Series in Shanghai and taking fourth at the 2023 World Championships.

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The marathon is an arduous, complex physical and mental test—one that has never ceased to fascinate me even after I’ve run 26 of them. But I admit that actually watching a marathon isn’t that fun, even at the Olympics.

We see a group of runners go stride-for-stride for a little over two hours as the lead pack dwindles under the painful pace. Runners who fall off the front seem to disappear entirely. It matters little, except for personal pride, if they drop out, or hang on for 13th or 25th place.

Equally out of sight are the dozens of runners who make up the middle and back of the pack, and are never in contention to win. We see these athletes only as they straggle across the finish line during the anticlimactic half hour after the medals are settled. All of the attention is on the few athletes battling for medals.

I have a plan to make every participant in a marathon count, to make every position change significant and interesting, to make every runner a hero. It’s an idea that’s already widely used in running. My plan to fix the marathon is to transform it into a team event that employs the meets.

In cross country—that fall sport where gangly high schoolers run 3.1 miles around golf courses or rural parks—seven runners from each school represent their team. When the gun goes off, everyone starts together. Runners finishing in the top 10 or 15 (depending on the size of the meet) earn individual medals. But these awards are secondary to the team competition. To determine team placings, officials add up the finish position of the top five runners from each school, and the school with the lowest cumulative number wins.

Under this competition format, every runner matters. It’s just as important if the slowest runner on a team moves up two places from 45th to 43rd, as it is if the fastest one advances from third to first. No team can win due to the merits of its star runner. Every participant, from first to last, has to perform well for the team to succeed.

Runners back in the pack, in fact, often have the chance for much larger point swings: a top-10 finisher may get passed by three or four if she slows by 20 seconds, a mid-pack runner could easily slip back, or pass, 15 to 20 places in the same time.

Here’s my plan: we create a national team score for the Olympic marathon. Sure, we still award medals to the three individuals who cross the line at the front. But we also pay attention to how the runners behind them fare, by offering medals to the nations with the cumulative lowest score determined by each runner’s number placing.

Runners who fell off the lead would need to gut it out all the way to the finish—they wouldn’t dare abandon the race and jeopardize a team medal. Team scores—which would be displayed as current standings throughout the race as runners pass checkpoints—would become more competitive as the race went along, bringing the importance of slower runners into focus.

I’d love to see the field expand to seven from each country, or at least five; currently there are just three. But even with three runners per country you could organize a dramatic team competition. I recently re-watched the 2020Tokyo Olympics women’s race and applied my competition concept to the event. Only five points separated the top-three nations: Germany, Australia, and Japan.

Kenya, meanwhile, did not reach the podium.Sure, Kenya’s runners placed first and second, respectively, but its third runner dropped out, eliminating the country from contention. Alas, it was the same fate for the U.S. team—our runners were third, 17th, and DNF.

The Tokyo Olympic Marathon would have produced an edge-of-your-seat team competition. Germany’s first runner placed sixth, Japan’s eighth, Australia’s tenth. Each nation’s second runners were similarly close: Germany’s 18th, Japan’s 19th, Australia’s 23rd. With team totals standing at Germany 24, Japan 27, and Australia 33, the third runner from Australia crossed in 26th for a total score of 59.

As I tallied the score, I realized that a really compelling battle was brewing between each nation’s final runner. This was going on long after the Kenyans had finished first and second. Germany and Japan’s third runners were running two places apart in 31st and 33rd, respectively. Germany, in the lead after the first two runners, just needed to hang on to get gold with 55 points. If Japan’s runner could have passed one competitor, the team would have tied with Australia for silver. If she could have passed four runners, including the German, Japan would have won gold. In the end, the gold medals would have been decided by who finished in 30th place.

In a normal Olympic marathon, whomever finishes 30th is totally inconsequential, just a blurry face in the background as TV cameras focus on the winner. But with my Olympic marathon concept, running fans would need to cheer on every runner and fixate on every position change. We’d yell and scream during each dramatic moment when a runner crossed the line and hugged his or her teammates.

Just imagine this scenario. In my opinion, this would make the Olympic marathon as exciting as a high school cross country meet, which if you’ve ever attended one, you know is an edge-of-your-seat affair. And it might transform the Olympic marathon into a race you need to follow, from the first finisher to the last.

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By now you’ve probably seen the image of Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina suspended in midair like a superhero, his surfboard floating behind him instead of a cape. The viral photo, which was snapped on Monday at Teahupo’o, the Olympic surfing venue in Tahiti, is already being called the defining image of the 2024 Summer Games.

Whether you surf or not, it’s hard to look away from this photograph. The composition of the shot is freakishly perfect. Medina and his board hover in the air, both vertical and nearly parallel. The leash that connects them is suspended across the diamond blue ocean, and the backdrop of fluffy white clouds makes the surfer and his board stand out almost like they were in a painting. Medina’s finger raised in the air is so symbolic that you don’t need to have seen his ride to know that he was victorious.

But I did want to see the wave. Don’t get me wrong, the gravity-defying shot is unreal. But so was Medina’s ride prior to the shot. The three-time world champion dropped into a ten-foot wave at Teahupo’o, got deep into the barrel, and then skyrocketed into the air, his index finger raised, declaring himself number one.

O mega tubo que o Gabriel Medina pegou na eliminatĂłria do surf nos de

— Jeff Nascimento (@jnascim)

As a lifelong surf fanatic, I’m typically thrilled to see the sport captivate a global and mainstream audience. Wave conditions for Monday’s third round of the men’s surfing finals were all-time.Ìę In fact, photographers snapped plenty of epic images of surfers actually riding—and in some cases wiping out—on barreling waves: Local Tahitian surfer Kauli Vaast flexed as he got spit out of a super deep tube ride; Aussie Ethan Ewing went head first over the falls in terrifying fashion; and Medina sped on his tippy toes down the face of the wave he so theatrically kicked out of.

After seeing the Medina photo, one friend actually asked me if surfers are scored on their “dismounts” similarly to gymnasts. No, I told her, Medina’s 9.90 score—the highest single-wave mark awarded since surfing became an Olympic sport in Tokyo in 2020—had nothing to do with how he exited the wave at the end of his run, a maneuver called a “kickout.” Her question made me realize that the majority of people to see the photograph probably know very little about surfing, and the image certainly isn’t helping educate them on the skill and athleticism required to not just survive a wave as heavy as Teahupo’o, but to ride it with style.

I felt somewhat disappointed when I realized that this iconic photograph will forever be linked to Olympic surfing. Why? This year’s Olympic surfing competition is being held at a world-class break that was miraculously blessed with good conditions for the event. Tom Servais, a photographer who has spent decades shooting the world’s best surfers at the most exciting breaks, described the waves on MondayÌęmorning as “a gift.” In surfing, unlike most Olympic sports, the athlete isn’t the only one who has a say in the effort, risk, and difficulty of their performance. Conditions are dictated by Mother Nature. And on Monday, Teahupo’o, one of the most dangerous waves in the world, put on an awesome and unexpected display of raw power. Solid ten-foot sets unloaded deep, throaty barrels onto shallow sharp reef.

Perhaps that’s why the surf world has been quick to mock the Medina shot—I’ll admit, the is pretty hilarious. But we shouldn’t write off the significance of the mesmerizing moment snapped by JĂ©rĂŽme Brouillet, a photographer for Agence France-Presse. Servais said he wished he took that shot. “It won’t be iconic in the hardcore surfing world, but I think it is iconic,” he said. While it may not represent the immaculate conditionsÌęof Teahupo’o on that day, it does capture the competitive spirit that fuels the Olympics and the elation an athlete feels when they deliver a near flawless performance. If you were watching that round live, you would have seen Medina come out of the barrel flashing his hands wide open to communicate a perfect 10 score (two of the five judges agreed). When Medina followed that gesture with the Number 1, my initial reaction was to pass it off as cockiness. But after talking to some surfing industry veterans, I now view Medina’s reaction differently.

Servais, who has been shooting greats like Tom Curran and the late Andy Irons since the seventies, pointed out that in the early days before social media, the Brazilian surfers always made claims—colorful gestures similar to an NFL player’s end zone dance or a tennis player’s fist pump—after a great ride. “In the old days, before social media, it was uncool to claim,” he says. “But the Brazilians are super passionate and now, with social media, it’s a way to broadcast your national pride.”

If you flip through other images taken on Monday, you see a lot of athletes with their arms raised, gaze to the heavens, or hands pressed together, heads bowed in prayer. “Celebrating a good score could be interpreted not just as an athletic achievement but also, or more so, as the athlete being thankful that nature provided them with a wave that could be executed properly,” said surf photographer Matt Paul Catalano.

Ross Phillips, an Australian surf coach and founder of travel company Tropicsurf, confirmed I wasn’t alone in my initial reaction. “The photo is almost Christ-like,” he said. “A lot of people hate him because he’s so confident and cocky, but he is a competitive animal and has the best record of anyone at Teahupo’o. That gesture in the photo shows his level of self-belief and that’s really important to win a medal in those conditions.”

Former pro American surfer CJ Hobgood drove it home for me when he reminded me of Medina’s Olympic backstory. “This photo is about how Gabriel had to get to the Olympics,” he said. The Brazilian narrowly missed medaling in the inaugural men’s Olympics surfing contest in Tokyo four years ago, to Japan’s Kanoa Igarashi, who he faced off with, and defeated, in this year’s round three.

Hobgood reminded me that Medina had to work hard to even qualify for the 2024 Games. He had to travel to the ISA World Surfing Games in Puerto Rico in February—the swell was not ideal—and then win the event to earn Brazil a third men’s spot for the Olympics—the spot that he took.

“This photo shows a full manifestation of the road less traveled, the long way home, and he’s running off fuel very few are running off in the entire Paris 2024 Olympics,” Hobgood said.

When you use that as context, you can’t help but cheer “Go Medina!”

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I was nine years old during the summer of 1984, and the last thing I wanted to do was watch the opening ceremony for the Los Angeles Olympics on television. My family had one 29-inch Zenith Color TV set. The pageantry was on, and that’s what we were going to watch.

The Olympics that year were especially political, boycotted by the Soviet Union and 13 other Eastern Bloc countries and allies. The Games presented an opportunity for Ronald Reagan’s patriotic, sunlight-dappled America to show the world what democracy and capitalism could achieve. Over 90,000 people crammed into the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on July 28th, and right as the opening ceremony was about to kick off, a man wearing a jet pack flew over the crowd for 20 seconds, wowing those in attendance and tens of millions of viewers.

That man was test pilot Bill Suitor, and he wore a high-tech-looking hydrogen peroxide-fueled device called the “rocket belt,” which was made by Bell Aerosystems. At that moment in human history, he was the coolest person who ever lived—or at least, that was the opinion of nine-year-old me. Once Suitor landed safely, I became forever hooked on the Olympic opening ceremony.

The rest of the event was pure Hollywood glitz, with thousands of dancers, dozens of grand pianos, and even Diana Ross. That was the year legendary movie composer John Williams wrote the Olympic Fanfare and Theme, a catchy piece of triumphant and elegant music. The Olympics still use it, and I’m seriously considering it as the processional music for my upcoming wedding.

The 2024 Summer Olympics will take place between July 26th and August 11th in Paris, France. Over those 16 days, 10,500 athletes will compete in 32 sports for 329 medals. All of it will be breathlessly broadcast by NBC over traditional TV and streaming.

All the classic sports will be represented at this year’s games: gymnastics, swimming, track and field. There are new sports, too, like kiteboarding and something called Kayakcross—where four kayakers elbow and jostle down a whitewater course for the gold medal.

But all I care about is the opening ceremony, which will air live at 1:30 P.M. EST on Friday, and will be rebroadcast on NBC at 7:30 P.M. EST that night. Every four years, this event gives me the chance to pump my fist and shout USA! USA! as I watch dozens of athletes, from all backgrounds and ethnicities and religions, sexual orientations and genders, wave little flags on their way to kick international ass.

I can’t wait. I want host nation France to show off its cultural and artistic side: mimes juggling baguettes, Moulin Rouge dancers to techno covers of Offenbach’s Infernal Galop, a giant, inflatable Jean-Paul Sartre balloon. For the first time in history, boats will carry the world’s athletes down the Seine and towards the lighting of the Olympic Flame. I plan to watch every second.

The last few Summer Olympic ceremonies have been wonderful. In 2008, the Chinese pulled out all the stops: thousands of dancers, drummers, and martial artists performed underneath high-tech LED screens and firework displays.

Directed by Hollywood filmmaker Danny Boyle, the 2012 London Olympic Opening Ceremonies celebrated the UK’s history, as well as James Bond, The Rolling Stones, and the Queen. The country of Shakespeare put on a great show. It was Rio De Janeiro’s turn in 2016, and the Brazilian city embraced the Amazon, Favela music and dance, and supermodel Gisele BĂŒndchen.

The most recent Olympic Opening Ceremonies, the 2020 games, were held in Tokyo a year later, in 2021, due to COVID-19. No spectators were present, but Japan and the athletes still gave it their all. The Opening Ceremonies were muted but defiant, celebrating Japan’s cultural heritage. Spectacles included a massive armada of drones forming a unified globe above the stadium to John Lennon’sÌęImagine.

The Olympics is high-stakes stuff, a global mega-event that combines peak human physical and mental achievement with geopolitics. Since the first modern Olympics in 1896, in Athens, where the ancient games were born, the world has, more or less, paused to play instead of killing each other. There were years the games didn’t happen, and, as I mentioned, boycotts, but for the most part, every four years for 128 years, give or take, the nations of the world have agreed to settle their differences on the tennis court, or at the pommel horse, or in the boxing ring.

But the opening ceremony, to me, is the true spectacle:Ìęan emotional carnival that combines Cirque du Soleil with Broadway and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

It is a way for the host country to flex its cultural muscles and give the very best theater kids an opportunity to shine before the jocks step in and steal the spotlight. The Olympic Opening Ceremonies balance the intimacy of television with the stadium-sized pageantry of a Super Bowl Halftime show, the cheesiest possible “We Are The World’ pablum with a distinctly nationalist vibe.

When the U.S. athletes emerge to cheering crowds behind hundreds of other hopefuls from other countries, I get choked up. This year, as the Parade of Nations will consist of boats sailing down the river Seine in Paris. I love boats. I love the story the ceremony tells: no matter who you are, we all love a parade.

I will watch and pray fervently for someone with a jetpack to soar through the air. I know that won’t happen because I’ll never be nine years old again. And when John William’s rousing score blares, I will stand with my hand over my heart.

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The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris officially kick off this Friday, July 26, with the opening ceremonies in Paris. Across the country, millions of Americans—myself included—are preparing to glue ourselves to the television to watch every javelin throw, ping pong smash, and tear of joy or disappointment between now and the closing ceremonies on August 11.

But oh, what a dizzying amount of events to watch! Throughout the Paris Games, there will be 39 sports to follow and 329 different competitions to watch—that equates to approximately 7,000 hours of live coverage across 17 days. Every single event will be televised in some way by the the Olympics’ American broadcaster, NBC, which will show a glut of coverage across network TV, cable channels and online streaming.

Catching every minute of the action is a tall order, even for the most diehard Olympics aficionado. So, to help you figure out your viewing strategy, I have created a helpful guide below.

I Want to Watch Everything Live. What Platform Should I Choose?

If you’re an Olympics diehard who wants to have live access to each and every single sport, you’re going to have to stream the action online.ÌęThere are two ways to do this. If you already pay for a cable TV subscription, you can login to NBCOlympics.com or NBC.com (or download the NBC app or the NBC Olympics app) with your account information and simply stream via your web browser, or via your phone, tablet,Ìęor connected TV.

If you don’t have a cable TV subscription, you will need to download the . It’s also your cheapest option—the monthly plan starts at $7.99, or you can update to $13.99 if you don’t want to see advertisements. The annual plan gives you greater savings. Those of us who follow the Tour de France already know and loveÌęthe app.

Peacock will beam 5,000 hours of Olympics coverage. Yep, that equates to every single Olympic live event, and it will also allow you to watch replays of competitions after they’ve happened. There willÌębe curated highlight videos, plus three different studio shows. One program, called Olympic Highlights with Kevin Hart & Kenan Thompson,Ìęwill blend comedy and recaps. The other,ÌęGold Zone,Ìęis described by NBC’s PR department as a “whip-around show that guides viewers to the best and most exciting live moments throughout the games.” The final show,ÌęWatch with Alex Cooper,Ìęis hosted by host of the popular podcast, Call Her Daddy, who will offer her own take on the action.

Long story short: If you’re the hardest of hardcore Olympics fans, Peacock is your best bet.

I Want to Watch the Big Events Live

If streaming isn’t your jam, you can still watch an abundance of live Olympics coverage on TV and cable—but you’re going to have to wake up early. Since Paris is six hours ahead of the United States’ Eastern time zone, the television coverage for live events will kick off in the mornings. NBC will broadcast nine hours of daily coverage of the Olympics—including live broadcast of finals for popular sports like swimming, track and field, and gymnastics—on NBC Network starting at 7 A.M. EST on weekdays. On weekends the coverage will begin as early as 5 A.M. EST.

NBCUniversal, NBC’s parent company, will also air coverage of preliminary rounds and finals of less-popular sports on its cable networks USA Network, E!, CNBC, Golf Channel, and Spanish language networks Telemundo, and Universo.

Give Me the Traditional Primetime TV Coverage

For those Olympics viewers who still love the traditional coverage from yesteryear—you know, highlights mixed with heartstrings-pulling athlete profiles—don’t worry, NBC Network (you know, the free TV channel) has you covered. NBC will again beam its primetime coverage called Primetime in Paris every night starting on Saturday, July 27 at 8 P.M. EST. In a press release, the network described the show as “enhanced storytelling” around the Games. This is where you can see the medal ceremonies, athlete interviews, and analysis of the biggest moments of the 2024 Summer Olympics.

There’s also a pretty fun collection of hosts forÌęPrimetime in Paris: veteran sports broadcaster Mike Tirico will lead the show, and the cast includes singer Kelly Clarkson, retired NFL great Peyton Manning, comedians Leslie Jones and Kevin Hart, and rapper Snoop Dogg, among others.ÌęSaturday Night Live starsÌęKenan Thompson and Colin Jost will also be on air.

How Can I Find My Sport to Watch?

NBC has that provides viewing options for every day of the 2024 Olympics in Paris. This should help you identify the sport you want to watch and the viewing options across television, cable, and streaming.

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