How many 2024 Olympians were born in WA? This map shows where they were born, medals won

The Summer Olympics kicked off this past weekend as more than 10,000 athletes from around the world compete for gold, including nearly 600 on the U.S. Olympic team.

The games officially started on Friday in Paris and will go on until Sunday, Aug. 11. This will be the third time the French capital has hosted the Summer Games.

Historically, the United States has performed best in track and field, swimming, and shooting, with more gold medals in these categories than any other. The following graph shows the top 15 sports for the U.S. at the Summer Olympics since the first modern Olympic games in 1896.

Olympians come from almost every state in the U.S. this year. However, Colorado, Vermont, and Hawaii have the most Olympians per capita.

See where Olympians are from in your state. Click on a dot to see which Olympian is from your area.

Who are Washington’s native-born Olympians?

The Evergreen State has no shortage of Olympic athletes, with 13 Olympians having the distinction of calling Washington their birthplace. The number of Olympians increases even higher when you include athletes not born in the state but now live here.

Of the 13 Washington-born Olympians representing Team USA this summer, there’s a heavy emphasis on water-based sports; eight of the 13 athletes compete in a sport that involves water.

So, who are these Olympians, and what sports can we expect to see them in?

Jordan Chiles: Vancouver - Gymnastics

Chiles is one of the brightest U.S. stars in Paris this summer. She’ll feature heavily on Team USA’s highly successful women’s gymnastics team. She won a team silver medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo and one gold and two silver medals at the 2022 World Championships.

Kenneth Rooks: College Place - Track & Field

First-time Olympian Rooks will compete in the 3000m steeplechase. He was ranked high enough in the worldwide rankings to qualify for the Olympic Games despite his qualifying time falling short of the Olympic standard.

Rooks’ high ranking comes partly from his 2023 NCAA collegiate championship in the 3000m steeplechase while attending and competing for BYU.

Hailey Van Lith: Wenatchee - 3x3 Basketball

Over the past few years, Van Lith has made a name for herself in the college basketball scene. The 22-year-old was a star for Louisville for three years before transferring to Louisiana State ahead of the 2023 season. After one year with LSU, she announced that she would transfer to Texas Christian for her final collegiate season.

Van Lith arrives at her first Olympics with plenty of 3x3 basketball experience, having won gold in the event at the 2022 and 2023 3x3 World Cup.

Jacob Plihal: Vashon Island - Rowing

Plihal is competing in his first Olympic Games after being featured five times for the USA between the Pan American Games and World Championships.

The 6-foot-10 rower is setting his sights on Olympic gold in the men’s single sculls.

Keana Hunter: Seattle - Artistic Swimming

An Issaquah High School graduate, 20-year-old Hunter is competing in her first Olympics after nearly a decade of success on the youth circuit. From 2022 to 2024, she competed in three straight World Championships, winning silver in 2023 and bronze in 2024 in the acrobatic team.

Nevin Harrison: Seattle - Canoe/Kayak

Harrison arrives in Paris with the goal of defending the gold medal she won at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. The Roosevelt High School Grad competes in the canoeing C1 200-meter and won’t compete until the heats begin on Aug. 8.

Aaron Small: Seattle - Canoe/Kayak

Small has competed in two Pan America games for the United States, winning bronze in the K1 500-meter in 2023 and solver in the K2 500-meter in 2024. The University of Washington attendee will compete for Team USA alongside Bellingham native Jonas Ecker in the K2 500-meter event.

Evan Olson: Seattle - Rowing

Olson only started rowing in 2014, but a decade later, he’s ready to compete in his first Olympics. Olson finished 5th at the 2023 World Championships in the Men’s Pair and was part of the eight-boat that won its heat on Monday and advanced to the finals in Paris.

Rielly Milne: Woodinville - Rowing

Milne is on the same eight-boat team as Olson, which qualified for the final, which will take place on Aug. 3. Milne is the coxswain for Team USA’s boat and recorded two medal finishes at the Under-23 World Rowing Championships in 2017 and 2018.

Matt King: Snohomish - Swimming

King wasted no time at his first Olympics, helping Team USA pick up gold in the 4x100 freestyle relay over the weekend.

Jonas Ecker: Bellingham - Canoe/Kayak

Ecker will continue his multi-year-long partnership with Aaron Small at the Paris Olympic Games. The University of Washington student and Sehome High School grad will compete with Small in the men’s K2 500-meter and K2 1,000-meter races.

Marisa Howard: Pasco - Track & Field

Long-distance veteran and Pasco High School grad Howard has been around Team USA for a while but is competing in her first Olympics in Paris. She’ll represent her country in the 3,000-meter women’s steeplechase, most recently having competed in the same event for USA in the 2023 Pan America Games in Santiago, Chile.

CJ Allen: Bremerton - Track & Field

Born in Bremerton, Allen now lists his hometown as Pullman. The 29-year-old hurdler enjoyed an all-American collegiate career at Washington State and will compete in the 400m hurdles in Paris.

His most recent 400m hurdles performance resulted in a 10th place finish at the 2023 World Championships.

Other athletes with roots in Washington

In addition to the athletes listed above, some athletes were born in Washington but listed their hometowns as elsewhere in the U.S. or were born elsewhere but lived most of their lives in Washington:

Adrienne Lyle: Coupeville - Equestrian/Dressage

Lyle lists her hometown as Wellington, Florida, but according to her US Equestrian profile, she was born and raised on Whidbey Island in northwest Washington. She’s a three-time Olympian and was part of the U.S. team that won silver at the 2020 Olympic Games.

Lyle’s 2024 Olympics have already ended, with both the USA’s dressage team and Lyle individually failing to claim a medal this past week.

Audrey Kwon: Seattle - Artistic Swimming

Kwon moved to the United States when she was two years old and has competed for the USA in international competitions since she was 12. Ahead of her first Olympics appearance, the 18-year-old won two team medals at the 2023 Canada World Cup.