Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by First Lady Jill Biden at an Event to Celebrate Families of the 2024 Olympic Athletes
Paris, France
Ambassador Bauer—Denise, you always lead with care and thought, with hope and connection at the center. We are so lucky to have you as our ambassador to France.
I know from personal experience how Ambassador O’Donnell makes every room she walks into a little brighter and every project she’s a part of a little better. Courtney—I can’t wait to see all that you will do at UNESCO.
Ambassador Maloney, you bring so much experience and vision to this work. Joe and I are so grateful to have you as part of this tri-mission.
Gene, thank you and all the members of the USOPC here for everything you do to make sure our athletes can shine on the world stage.
And it’s my honor to be here as part of our presidential delegation supporting our incredible athletes.
There’s a moment that the cameras sometimes miss during the Olympics.
It happens before the whistle blows or the bell rings or the starting gun fires, when an athlete looks—just for a moment—to the stands, eyes searching for someone: all of you.
Your athletes’ journeys to Paris likely started many years ago—at a basketball hoop in the backyard, in a community pool, on a court at school. There, a little kid fell in love with sports and the world changed—though no one really knew it yet.
And no matter when you became a part of that adventure, you—parents, siblings, spouses, kids—have believed in them through the late nights and hard days; you’ve helped them get back up when they fell down; you’ve moved across the country, all so that our world can know their greatness.
As they leap, and sprint, and turn, America’s athletes aren’t only propelled by the years of sweat and sacrifice they’ve poured into their training.
Your love is also there, pushing them further, helping them go faster, lifting them higher as they reach for gold.
You love some pretty incredible people. Thank you for sharing them with all of us.
When Team USA glides through the opening ceremony tomorrow night, they carry more than just our flag. They carry our nation’s heart and our hopes with them too.
They show the world who we are as Americans: determined, optimistic, resilient. That our strength is found not only in our strides and swings, but in our hearts and minds. That with all our precious differences and infinite similarities, we are always one team. It’s what I love about our country: that we are united, and together we can reach for every possibility.
President Biden has led our country with that hope always in his heart. As he says: there is nothing America can’t do when we do it together.
And we see that especially now, at the Olympics. In this moment, we are more than our cities or states or backgrounds. We are more than our jobs or our political parties. We are all, first and foremost, Team USA.
That’s the gift your families give us.
The President, Vice President, Second Gentleman, and I are grateful for everything you do. So is your country. And so are your athletes.
You’re their biggest supporters—the ones who cheer even when the world isn’t watching. But over the next couple of weeks, as you peer through parted fingers or whisper prayers with closed eyes, know that the nation is by your side, cheering just as hard, adding our belief and hope to yours.
God bless you all, and go Team USA.
###
