Tag: Olympics 2024

McKayla Maroney quickly reminded fans she’s not the MyKayla who Simone Biles trolled after winning gold

McKayla Maroney is not MyKayla Skinner, in case you need an extra reminder

No disrespect to anyone who shares the same name out there, but typically the first person who comes to mind when you hear “McKayla” and “Olympics” in the same sentence is former USA Gymnastics star McKayla Maroney.

This is for two very good reasons.

First, she was a member of the Fierce Five team at the 2012 London Olympics that won a gold medal in the team event. Second, she created one of the greatest memes ever with her unimpressed expression after winning a silver in her individual vault event.

She even got then-President Barack Obama to recreate the image.

But there’s another MyKayla out there, also a former USA Gymnast who caused a bit of a stir with her recent criticism of the current Olympics team. MyKayla Skinner also won silver on the vault at the Olympics, but that was in 2021.

You could see how it’s easy to confuse the two.

McKayla Maroney IS NOT MyKayla Skinner. And while that should be pretty easy to remember now, Maroney made it exceptionally clear with a comment on Simone Biles’ epic Instagram post slamming Skinner’s comments after winning the team gold medal on Tuesday.

Referencing the NSFW nickname Biles bestowed on the 2024 USA Women’s Gymnastics team, Maroney made sure everyone knew her and Biles were still cool.

Now you can remember her for a third reason.

Angela Dugalic and Team Serbia women take down China

UCLA representing in Paris.

It has been a great summer for 22-year-old Angela Dugalic. The former Maine West High School star has been playing with her country in the 2024 Olympics and is now 2-0.

Serbia downed China 81-59. Cugalic did not score in the game but was a key contributor for a team that outscored China 36-20 in the second half of the game. In the win in Game One, she had 4 rebounds and 3 assists in the win over Puerto Rico.

Dugalic will be starting her third season at UCLA and fifth overall this season. She had a solid season for Coach Close and the Bruins last season. She started 29 out of 30 games and scored nearly 9 points per game. She averaged nearly 24 minutes per game.

Team Serbia will now take on Spain on Saturday to finish up Group A play. Both teams will move to the quarterfinal, but the winner of the game will win Group A.

Three UCLA men’s volleyball members assist in USA opening win

UCLA players making noise in Paris.

Three UCLA Bruins led Team USA to a three-set win over Argentina on Saturday. The United States team is looking to get back on track following their tough finish in the last Olympics where they lost in the Pool Play.

Garrett Muagututia us a 6’5 outside hitter from Oceanside California. He finished playing at UCLA back in 2010. He has been a US Men’s National team member since 2011. He had played in several countries over the last ten years.

Micah Ma’a is a 6’3, setter from Hawaii. He finished his college volleyball at UCLA in 2019. His father Pono was on the Men’s Olympic team back in 1986, and his mother played professional beach volleyball.

Of course, head coach John Speraw has been on the men’s Olympic staff since 2012.

The USA team got off to a great start against Argentina. The Americans won the first set 25-20 after the match was tied at 13.

The next game for Team USA is on Tuesday. They will take on Germany. The Germans are coming off a massive upset over Japan.  The Americans are part of Pool B.

Jordan Chiles just misses at Paris Olympics

Jordan Chiles just misses out…

Jordan Chiles performed a monster bar routine on Sunday but appears to just miss out on the chance to compete for a medal in the all-around.

Chiles finished just behind USA teammate Suni Lee by 0.067 points. That puts her in the top alternate spot.

The Olympic rule states only two from the same country can move on to compete for the medal, despite the overall scores. Chiles remains third behind Simone Biles and Lee.

Back in 2021, Russia had three top six finishers in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and had to leave one off.

Chiles will continue to participate with Team USA in the team qualifying.

Of course, Biles is the leader of the squad. She did hurt her lower left leg during warmups. She had to heavily tape her ankle, and she also had a misstep during her floor routine, but still remains one of the best in the world.