The Olympics are a stage for the globe's elite athletes to showcase their talents and represent their countries, no matter their age. This year, a litany of teenagers are headed to Paris to represent the United States.

Read below to meet the many teens that will be competing for Team USA at the Games. It's safe to say the future is bright.

Megumi Field, 18

At just 18 years old, Megumi Field has 13 years of artistic swimming experience. A member of the U.S. senior national team since 2020, Field began swimming before she could walk and first gave artistic swimming a shot just before her 6th birthday. She has had significant success on the international stage, contributing to three first-place finishes during the 2022 FINA World Series), a first-place finish at the 2022 FINA World Series Super Final, and a bronze-medal finish at the 2023 World Championships. 

Follow Megumi Field on social media: Instagram

Audrey Kwon, 18

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Audrey Kwon moved to the United States at 2 years old and first competed in artistic swimming six years later. The teenager is making her Olympic debut in just her second year of professional competition and one month after her 18th birthday, making her the youngest member of the American artistic swimming squad. Earlier this year, she joined the U.S. team in winning bronze medals in the acrobatic and free team events at the world championships.

Follow Audrey Kwon on social media: Instagram

Colin Heathcock, 18

Colin Heathcock's rise to the top of the youth fencing field was so precipitous that, in 2019, the whole Heathcock crew picked up their lives in Palo Alto, California, and moved to Orleans, France, where esteemed sabre coach Christian Bauer was opening an academy. Five years later, not only is Heathcock preparing to make his Olympic debut, he's also one of the most promising Americans in the sport. Following a wildly fruitful junior season competing for Germany, where his father holds dual citizenship, he turned pro at age 16. In 2023 — the first time he was actually in the correct age range to participate — he would go on to clinch a second-consecutive junior world title. In his first events competing with the U.S. senior men's sabre team, he helped the country earn gold at the Pan American Championships and bronze at the world championships, the team's first medal in the 93-year-old event.

Follow Colin Heathcock on social medal: Instagram

Tatiana Nazlymov, 19

Born to a fencing father and grandfather, it's no wonder Tatiana Nazlymov has found such success in the sport. The Princeton rising sophomore will make her Olympic debut in both the individual and team sabre events following a silver medal-effort at the 2023 World University Games with Team USA. In her first season at Princeton, Nazlymov, who grew up in Bethesda, Maryland, went 3-0 at the Ivy League Championships and earned a third-place finish at an NCAA Regional this spring.

Follow Tatiana Nazlymov on social media: Instagram

Magda Skarbonkiewicz, 18

Fencing runs in the family for this clan, but Magda Skarbonkiewicz is carving out her own legacy. Magda’s father, Adam Skarbonkiewicz, is a former U.S. national sabre champion and had his daughter wielding the sword when she was just 6 years old. Since then, she has had a meteoric rise to the top of the sport. With two-time Olympic fencing gold medalist Mariel Zagunis as a mentor, Skarbonkiewicz captured the 2022 and 2023 Junior World Championships en route to earning the nomination to the women’s sabre squad for both the team and individual events in Paris.

Follow Magda Skarbonkiewicz on social media: Instagram 

Hezly Rivera, 16

Hezly Rivera will be Team USA’s youngest athlete across all sports, having celebrated her 16th birthday just before Olympic Trials. After becoming eligible for senior competitions this past year, Rivera quickly established herself as a force to be reckoned with. At the 2024 Winter Cup, her first senior competition, she claimed gold on the balance beam and a pair of bronze medals in the floor and all-around events. She continued to impress at Olympic Trials, again taking gold on the balance beam on her way to a fifth-place finish in the all-around event and securing her spot on Team USA's roster. Rivera, who won’t graduate high school until 2026, is one of only a few gymnasts to ever make the national team in their first year competing at the senior level.

Follow Hezly Rivera social media: X, Instagram

Ada Korkhin, 19

Ada Korkhin just completed her freshman year at the Ohio State University, where she's pursuing a degree in biochemistry. When she wasn’t focused on her studies, the 19-year-old from Brookline, Massachusetts, was busy qualifying for the U.S. Olympic shooting squad. After placing second in the U.S. Olympic Shooting Trials, Korkhin was sitting in her dorm room in Columbus when she heard she’d be representing Team USA in the women’s sport pistol competition. A member of the gold medal sport pistol team at the 2024 Championship of the Americas, Korkhin will look to add another medal to her collection in Paris.

Follow Ada Claudia Korkhin on social media: Instagram

Poe Pinson, 19

One of the first teens skating into Paris for Team USA is Poe Pinson, who will be making her Olympic debut. Pinson first got on a board when she was 4 and never looked back, competing in her first major contest in 2019. The goofy-stance rider has had no shortage of success since beginning to skate professionally. She posted a third-place finish in the Street League Apex Vegas contest and finished fourth in the 2022 SLS Super Crown Final. After coming close to qualifying for the Tokyo Games and overcoming a litany of injuries over the last couple years, Pinson is ready to represent her country in Paris.

Follow Poe Pinson on social media: X, Instagram

Gavin Bottger, 17

Gavin Bottger may not even be 18 years old, but he’s certainly no apprentice. Bottger has been making headlines since he entered the professional scene in 2019, beating out Tokyo gold medalist Keegan Palmer for the top spot at the 2022 Dew Tour, becoming the third-consecutive American male skateboarder to earn the park world title at the 2023 World Championship, and placing second at the World Skateboarding Tour event in Dubai later that year. Ranked third globally, Bottger enters his first Olympic competition as a top contender with 12 years of skating experience under his belt.

Follow Gavin Bottger on social media: Instagram

Tate Carew, 19

At just 19 years old, Tate Carew is the top-ranked male park skateboarder in the world, sitting four spots above skateboarding great Jagger Eaton. Since bursting onto the professional scene in 2019, Carew has secured top-10 finishes in 13 of his 15 World Skate appearances, but his reign truly began post-2021. In the three years since, the San Diego native has made the final in each of his World Skate events, placing in the top five in all but one competition. He secured his first world championship medal in 2023, placing third behind teammate Bottger and Brazil’s Luigi Cini. Now, thanks to first- and third-place finishes at the two Olympic Qualifier Series contests this summer, he’ll make his Olympic debut in Paris.

Follow Tate Carew on social media: Instagram

Paige Heyn, 16

Though she’s relatively new to the professional world of street skateboarding, Paige Heyn enters the Paris Olympics as the United States' highest-ranked woman in the discipline. The fast-rising Heyn began her climb to the spotlight after claiming her first national title in December 2022. She quickly followed that breakout performance with a second-place finish at the 2023 Phoenix Am and an X Games debut later that year, where she finished 9th in Japan and 7th in California. As a product of the Eaton family skatepark in Arizona, Heyn was among the first to introduce switch rail tricks to the street discipline, solidifying her spot as one of the top skateboarders to watch as she makes her Olympic debut in Paris.

Follow Paige Heyn on social media: Instagram

Ruby Lilley, 17

Ruby Lilley is not your typical skater. The 17-year-old grew up on a Maryland farm with seven siblings. After spending the first 10 years of her life practicing ballet and ballroom dancing, she ditched the dance floor for the concrete and started skateboarding with her brothers. She quickly became obsessed and quickly ascended to the top of her craft, making her X Games debut in 2022 at the age of 15. The next season, she won a silver medal at the X Games event in Japan. Lilley is still a fairly new name in the world of professional skateboarding, but it is safe to say that a lot more fans will know the name by the time she rolls into her Olympic debut.

Follow Ruby Lilley on social media: Instagram

Minna Stess, 17

Another 17-year-old skater riding Paris to make their first Olympic appearance is Minna Stess. A phenom in the skating world, Stess has been on a board since before her second birthday, similarly inspired by her older brother’s passion for skateboarding. Without any good skate parks in town, her parents converted their backyard to a skatepark of their own, giving Stess a place where she still spends countless hours practicing. She did not waste much time before she began competing too, as in 2013 she became the first girl to ever win the California Amateur Skateboard League. She competed in an X Games Qualifier when she was 11 and appeared in a final just two years later. She is the youngest national park champion ever in the United States and after being an alternate on Team USA for the Tokyo Games, she is ready to roll for the 2024 Olympics.

Follow Minna Stess on social media: X, Instagram

Benjamin Cremaschi, 19

Despite his status as the youngest member of the U.S. men’s soccer team, Benjamin Cremaschi is a seasoned midfielder. Born to Argentinian parents — his father Pablo played for the national rugby team — his rise to the top began in 2021, when he joined the Inter Miami CF Academy and quickly proved to be a valuable asset. After leading the U-17 team to the semifinal round of the Generation Adidas Cup, Cremaschi became the fifth-ever player to be called up from the academy and placed on the first team’s roster. He has played in 14 games for Inter Miami this season, tallying three goals and three assists. The Key Biscayne, Florida, native has also made several international appearances, playing a key role in the U-19 squad’s Slovenia Nations Cup win in 2022 and, most recently, earning a spot on Argentina’s U-20 team. 

Follow Benjamin Cremaschi on social media: X, Instagram

Jaedyn Shaw, 19

Jaedyn Shaw is no stranger to the big stage, with multiple years of international competition under her belt. The soccer phenom has been representing the United States in international play for six years already, first leading the U.S. to winning the CONCACAF Girls’ Under-15 Championship in 2018 and taking home the Golden Ball award as the tournament’s best player. In September of 2023, Shaw got her first call-up to the senior team in a friendly against Colombia. Then she earned a spot on the roster for the first ever CONCACAF W Gold Cup in 2024, where she played in all six matches and became the first player in USWNT history to score in their first four starts. This tournament was deja vu for Shaw, as she added another Golden Ball trophy to her resumé en route to helping the U.S. hoist the first Women’s Gold Cup. Back at home, she has played for the San Diego Wave of the NWSL since 2022, where she became the second-youngest player to ever compete in the league at just 17.

Follow Jaedyn Shaw on social media:  X, Instagram

Caleb Wiley, 19

Representing the United States in the Paris Olympics is not the only big news for Caleb Wiley this summer, as just hours after he was announced to the U.S. Olympic roster, it was reported that Wiley is headed across the pond and will be inking an $11 million contract with Chelsea of England’s Premier League. It will not be his first professional action, as the defender signed to MLS’s Atlanta United as a homegrown player in 2022. During the 2023 MLS season, he scored two goals and had an assist in a Week 3 win, making him the fifth-youngest player in league history to contribute three goals in a single match. Wiley has represented the U.S. in international play since 2020, when he was called up to the U-17 team for a UEFA Development tournament. In 2023, he made his debut for the senior squad in a friendly against Mexico.

Follow Caleb Wiley on social media: Instagram

Zach Hammer, 18

Sport climbing phenom Zach Hammer is reaching new heights this year. The teenager secured his spot in Paris after a strong performance at the Olympic Qualifier Series and this summer will make his Olympic debut. Paris will be the first Games where speed climbing is contested as an individual medal event, and Hammer has his eyes on the prize. The Ann Arbor native has been climbing since he was 3 and started competing in the Youth National Championship at 9. At 15, he made the decision to focus on speed climbing, just as sport climbing was making its Olympic debut in Tokyo. Now he will be looking to bring home the hardware before starting at the University of Utah this fall.

Follow Zach Hammer on social media: Instagram

Sam Watson, 18

With only 14 spots available for men’s speed climbing at the Paris Olympics, there was little doubt whether Sam Watson would make the cut. The teenager made his senior international competitive debut at 16 when he grabbed gold at a World Cup event in 2022. He earned another World Cup victory in 2024 and secured his spot in Paris after grabbing gold at the 2023 Pan American Games. On top of all that, the young phenom is the world record holder in men’s speed climbing. Having set the world record at a World Cup event in April not once, but twice in one day, Watson’s 4.79 seconds has set the standard for the event this summer. Heading into Paris, he is ranked No. 4 in the world and will be one of the favorites to grab the first gold medal for Olympic speed climbing since it became a standalone sport.

Follow Sam Watson on social media: Instagram

Caity Simmers, 18

As an Oceanside, California, native born to surfers, it is no wonder Caity Simmers was shredding waves at an early age. Now she is already a superstar headlining the next generation of the sport. Simmers began surfing professionally in 2018 when she was just 12. She captured her first win on the professional circuit a few years later in 2021, placing first at the U.S. Open of Surfing on the Challenger Series. That year she finished fourth in the series, qualifying her to make the jump to the World Surf League Championship Tour, the highest level of professional surfing. In her first full season on the WSL Championship Tour, she finished fifth, qualified for the WSL Finals, and added the 2023 Rookie of the Year award to her trophy case. Her season included a runner-up finish in Tahiti, the same location that will be used for the Olympic competition. With eight of nine WSL regular-season events complete, Simmers is the top-ranked female surfer in the world this season, solidfying her as a contender for gold when she hits the beach.

Follow Caity Simmers on social media: Instagram 

Erin Gemmell, 19

Erin Gemmell was born to be a champion amongst an entire family of high-level swimmers. Both her parents are accomplished swimmers: Her father Bruce swam at the University of Michigan and is a former coach to Katie Ledecky, while her mother Barbara Harris swam at Northwestern. When she makes her Olympic debut in Paris this summer, Gemmell will be following in the footsteps of her older brother Andrew, who swam for Team USA at the 2012 London Olympics. With four world championship medals already in her possession, Gemmell has been a standout for Team USA, helping it get onto the podium in the 4x200m freestyle relay (twice), the 4x100m freestyle relay and the 4x50m freestyle relay. In her freshman year at Texas, she finished as a member of the silver medal team and won four Big 12 Championships in freestyle events. She will take part in the 200m freestyle relay in Paris after both Ledecky and Paige Madden scratched the event.

Follow Erin Gemmell on social media: Instagram, X

Katie Grimes, 18

Described by the unbeatable Katie Ledecky as “the future” of swimming in the United States, Katie Grimes is no stranger to Olympic competition. The three-time world championship silver medalist made her Olympic debut in Tokyo at just 15 years old in the 800m freestyle. As the youngest member of Team USA across any sport, Grimes just missed a spot on the final podium, finishing six seconds behind the silver and bronze medalists for a fourth-place finish. In Paris, she will represent the United States once again; only this time, she’ll compete in the 1500m freestyle (alongside Ledecky) and the 400m individual medley, as well as the women’s 10km open water competition.

Follow Katie Grimes on social media: Instagram

Thomas Heilman, 17

American swimmer Thomas Heilman has spent years setting records in the pool at the junior level. The teenager has broken over 25 national records for his age group and holds six medals from the Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships. In 2023, Heilman won his first senior international gold medal as a member of the 4x100 relay team at the world championships. The Virginia native qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics in both the 100m and 200m butterfly, and broke Michael Phelps’ 17-18 age-group national record in the 100m fly. He is the youngest male swimmer since Phelps to represent Team USA at the Olympic Games. Heilman is committed to the University of Virginia.

Follow Thomas Heilman on social media: Instagram

Keaton Jones, 19

Keaton Jones is following in famous footsteps as he prepares to make his Olympic debut in Paris. The Berkeley star is set to compete in the 200m backstroke after finishing runner-up at Trials to Berkeley legend and training partner Ryan Murphy, who finished first. While Jones will be competing alongside Murphy this summer, he was only 11 years old when his fellow Bear swept the individual backstroke gold medals at the Rio Olympics, and now Jones will be looking to claim a medal for himself. At 19, he has already put together an impressive rap sheet, including the two world records he set at the Ice Swimming World Championships in Samoens, France. The Olympics will serve as yet another competition between Jones and Murphy: in May, Jones defeated his partner to win gold at the TYR Pro Swim Series in Mission Viejo, CA.

Follow Keaton Jones on social media: Instagram

Aaron Shackell, 19

The elder Shackell sibling is familiar with big-time performances. The first U.S. pool swimmer to qualify for the Olympic Games, Aaron Shackell upset the defending Tokyo bronze medalist and grabbed gold in the men’s 400m freestyle event at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials. With national championships and Junior Pan Pac gold medals under his belt, the teenager will look to add "Olympic medalist" to his already stacked resumé and cement his status as one of the nation’s top young talents. Shackell swam one semester at University of California-Berkeley before making the decision to redshirt and train for the Olympics at home in Indiana, and recently announced his upcoming transfer to the University of Texas.

Follow Aaron Shackell on social media: Instagram

Alex Shackell, 17

Alex Shackell is no stranger to success in the pool. The 17-year-old swimming phenom has established herself as one of the nation’s best young swimmers and is ready to take her talent to the Olympic, and collegiate, levels. With four gold medals at the Pan Pacific Junior Championships, Shackell made her senior debut at a World Cup event in 2022, where she grabbed bronze in both the women’s 100m and 200m butterfly events. In 2023, she made her world championships debut, helping Team USA to a silver medal in the 4x200m freestyle relay. Shackell will be the latest in her family to swim at the Olympics, joining her father Nick who represented Great Britain and her brother Aaron, who also qualified for the Paris Games. She will take part in the women’s 200m butterfly after winning silver at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials. In the fall, Shackell will be headed to UC Berkeley.

Follow Alex Shackell on social media: X, Instagram

Claire Weinstein, 17

This may be her first appearance at the Olympics, but Claire Weinstein is used to competing against the best. The 17-year-old started competitively swimming when she was just 6 and has spent the last few years testing her skills at the national and international level. In 2021, she became one of the youngest athletes to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, finishing 20th in the 400m freestyle. In 2022, she captured the U.S. national and junior championship in the 5km, finishing with over cushion over more than one minute between her and the other competitors. At the world championships later that year, she was part of the U.S. 4x200 relay team that took home the gold medal and also made it to the semifinals in the 200m freestyle event. Weinstein is not even in college yet, but the UC Berkeley commit is already widely known as one of the top swimmers in the country. In Paris, she will hit the pool in both the 200m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle relay, hoping to add an Olympic gold medal to her trophy case.

Follow Claire Weinstein on social media: Instagram

Luke Whitlock, 18

Coming into the Olympics this summer, very few athletes can claim to have experienced as fast an ascension into world conversation as Luke Whitlock. The 18-year-old rocketed into prominence after a meteoric 2022-2023 season that saw him claim a place at the 2023 Junior World Championships with Team USA, placing fifth in the men’s 400m and 800m freestyle events. The indoor and open-water swimmer made a strong impression at the U.S. Olympic Trials, finishing second in the men’s 800m freestyle and beating his personal best by five seconds. He will make his Olympic debut in Paris and compete alongside his idol Bobby Finke. Whitlock will start college in the fall and has committed to the University of Florida, where he will continue to swim with Finke in Gainesville

Follow Luke Whitlock on social media: Instagram

Kristina Teachout, 18

As one of just four Americans competing in taekwondo in Paris this summer, Kristina Teachout is more than ready to fight her way through the field. The teenager from Jupiter, Florida, has been committed to her sport for a long time: After starting taekwondo at a young age, Teachout left home at 14 to join a training academy in Colorado, and moved again at 16 when the group relocated to North Carolina. Her dedication paid off, and coming into the Paris Olympics, Teachout has a stacked resumé that is headlined by her bronze medal performance at the 2023 Pan American Games and gold medals at the 2023 World Taekwondo Grand Prix Challenge, 15th Costa Rica Taekwondo Open Championship and 2023 Dominican Open.

Follow Kristina Teachout on social media: Instagram

Kaylyn Brown, 19

Kaylyn Brown is used to running in Fayetteville, AK, but she’ll have a change of scenery when she hits the track in Paris for the 2024 Olympics. The Razorback joins Team USA as part of the women’s relay pool. At the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, Brown posted a 49.71 in the semifinals of the 400m, the fifth-best time in the history of the Trials. She is no stranger to the big moment though, earning a gold medal as a member of the United States’ 4x400m mixed relay team at the 2022 U20 World Championships.

Quincy Wilson, 16

Though he’s just in high school, Quincy Wilson looks on pace to one day grab the 400m throne. At just 14 years old, the Maryland native claimed his fifth AAU Junior Olympic Games title, running the race in 47.59 seconds, a time that surpassed Obea Moore’s under-14 indoor record that had stood for 30 years. In 2023, he was the only freshman to compete in the 400m field at the New Balance National Indoors meet in Boston, cruising to a victory and clocking 46.67. He then crushed the same event the following year with a 45.76 finish, which sliced another decades-old record and would have earned him a fourth-place finish at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championship — a senior competition. Although he was unable to qualify in the 400m individual race, Wilson's staggering performances at the Olympic Trials in July — he smashed the under-18 record in the 400m twice in three days — earned him a spot on the men’s relay pool in Paris.

Follow Quincy Wilson on social media: X, Instagram

Emily Ausmus, 18

Born in Riverside, California, Emily Ausmus would have been hard-pressed to escape the world of water sports. Ausmus, who will follow her brother to the water polo program at USC after competing in Paris, began making a splash in the professional scene in 2022, when she netted 16 goals at the FINA Intercontinental Cup en route to the United States’ third-place finish. At the 2023 World Cup, Ausmus, the most junior player on the squad, powered the United States to a win with 13 goals — a total she increased by three at the Pan American Games later that year. She joins an accomplished U.S. Olympic crew that has won the last three Olympic competitions and only missed out on one gold medal game since the sport made its Olympic debut in 2000 (and even then, the team took home bronze).

Follow Emily Ausmus on social media: Instagram

Ryder Dodd, 18

When he gets in the pool in Paris, Ryder Dodd, will see a familiar face on his team. 18-year-old Ryder, the youngest member of the U.S. men’s water polo team, is making his debut at the Olympics, and so is his brother, and UCLA teammate, 21-year-old Chase Dodd. Representing the United States is nothing new for Ryder, as the Bruin has competed on both the national youth and junior teams in the past. He has no shortage of accolades at the international level, highlighted by earning MVP honors at the 2022 Pan American U17 Championships. 

Follow Ryder Dodd on social media: Instagram

The age requirement for each sport is determined by its respective international governing body and varies from sport to sport. For example, the minimum age requirement for gymnastics is 16, whereas in skateboarding, there are no age restrictions.