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Coco Gauff Was Floored to Find Out She Was Team USA Flag Bearer With LeBron James

Kristen Wong

Screengrab on Twitter/ @TeamUSA

Tennis star Coco Gauff was left speechless upon finding out she would be the female flag bearer for the United States at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.

Gauff’s compatriot and longtime friend, Christopher Eubanks, surprised her with the news on Wednesday.

“Your year last year was incredible,” Eubanks said. “You captured the world by storm. You captured your first Grand Slam. I think you kind of showcased to the world, in the U.S. and abroad, how special of a person and tennis player you are. And I think because you are so special, you have the honor of wearing this jacket during the opening ceremony and being a flag bearer with LeBron James.”

Gauff’s mouth dropped to the floor.

“I was not expecting that,” Gauff said as she gave Eubanks a heartfelt hug. “Thank you, that’s really cool.”

Gauff, 20, will be the youngest ever U.S. flag bearer at an Olympic opening ceremony and the first tennis player to be bestowed the honor. Gauff is currently ranked as the world No. 2 by the WTA and is coming off a Grand Slam title in 2023. Both Gauff and LeBron James were chosen as flag bearers by a vote from Team USA members. 

Gauff later posted an emotional message on X:

“I just want to say thank you to my fellow team usa olympians/athletes for voting and choosing me for this incredible honor to be the flag bearer for the opening ceremony. Thank you so much. I am incredibly honored.”

The Olympic opening ceremony in Paris will kick off at 1:30 p.m. ET on Friday.

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Kristen Wong

KRISTEN WONG

Kristen Wong is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. She has been a sports journalist since 2020. Before joining SI in November 2023, Wong covered four NFL teams as an associate editor with the FanSided NFL Network and worked as a staff writer for the brand’s flagship site. Outside of work, she has dreams of running her own sporty dive bar.

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