The U.S. 2024 Olympic women’s golf team is made up of three players.
World No. 1 Nelly Korda will be looking to defend her gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. World No. 2 Lilia Vu and world No. 9 Rose Chan will be making their Olympic debuts.
When Korda made her debut, COVID-19 was restricting everything, and she and other athletes were unable to participate in various sporting events or experience the Olympics in person.
But this year, all three women watched their fellow Americans compete in the same sport.
Ahead of the golf tournament starting on Wednesday morning, Korda, Vu and Chan spoke at length about their experiences and what it means to be Olympians.
All three went to watch Team U.S. swimmers in action and witnessed their greatness.
“I saw Katie Ledecky win the 800, which was amazing, and then some of the relays,” Korda said. “I was excited. To see that in person was definitely on my bucket list.”
Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
“We all went to watch a few events,” Zhang said. “I went to watch the swimming on Saturday night, and overall it just feels really good to be here. I got to see a bit of the men’s competition as well, and so far it’s been a good experience.”
Watching the other competitions, Vu realized this wasn’t a dream but reality: She is one of three U.S. women’s golf team Olympians. An injury earlier this year made it unclear whether she would even be able to compete in Paris.
“I really felt that the other night when I went to watch swimming,” Vu said. “The crowd was so crazy, I watched Katie Ledecky win another gold medal, and it was so moving to hear our national anthem. I can’t wait to do the same.”
Vu and Tran watched Scottie Scheffler win the gold medal on the clubhouse television, and took positions in front of the TV to cheer on Scheffler.
For the Kordas, the Olympics run deep in their family.
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Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
“We watched a lot of games, including the Winter Olympics every two years. It was something we did as a family,” Korda said. “Nothing beats representing your country, and to be able to do that on the Olympic stage is a dream come true.”
Korda’s mother is also an Olympian, competing in the 1988 Olympics, and the women in the Korda family love to brag when it comes to the Olympics.
“We always make fun of the boys because we say that in the Korda family, only the girls are Olympians and the boys aren’t,” Korda said. “My dad and my brother may or may not be Olympians, so we’re above them in the family.”
For Vu and Chan, these first-time Olympians are soaking it all up. From trading pins to watching the other athletes compete, representing the U.S. feels like a privilege.
“The Olympics is a whole other level in the sense that you’re representing your country,” Zhang said. “Everyone is watching on TV and cheering for you. For us athletes, it’s always a really big honor, and I think being able to represent our country is the highest recognition or benchmark for us.”
Not many people get to experience the Olympics from an athlete’s perspective — it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and even fewer get to experience it multiple times — and these three women seem to be enjoying every moment of it.
They will now compete for gold, silver and bronze medals at Le Golf National. All three have a shot at a place on the podium, but who will take home the gold?
Savannah Lee Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow us for more golf articles. Follow You can follow us on all major social platforms. You can also follow us on Twitter Follow Her Instagram account is @golf_girl_sl.
