Olympics essentials
Ariana Grande, Tom Cruise, Baz Luhrmann, Cynthia Erivo and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour were among the crowd of celebrities packed into Bercy Arena in Paris on Sunday to witness the return of Simone Biles to the Olympic stage.
Biles is back for her third Olympic Games after withdrawing from the Tokyo Games in 2021 due to mental health issues.
Actors, singers, social media personalities and NFL players, cheered on their feet as the four-time gold medallist entered the arena.
Tom Cruise told Reuters it was “awesome”.
“Great stories, great athletes. It’s incredible what they have to do, the sense of accomplishment,” he said.
He was sat with David Zaslav, the CEO and president of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Grande and Erivo appeared to be channelling the aesthetics of their characters in the upcoming film Wicked, a promotional hype-building tactic we’ve seen in the past from the likes of Margot Robbie and Zendaya.
Other celebrities spotted were Snoop Dogg, Jessica Chastain and Nick Jonas.
If you think you’ve seen Snoop Dogg everywhere during this Olympics, it’s probably because you have.
The rapper was also an Olympic torch bearer, carrying the flame through streets of Saint-Denis on Friday ahead of the opening ceremony.
He was also a special correspondent for NBC’s coverage of the ceremony.
Singer John Legend and his model wife Chrissy Teigen took their children to see the qualifications.
“This was on our bucket list, we wanted to make sure we came to this event. We’re very excited,” he told Reuters.
It’s not just the gymnastic events that attracted celebrity spectators.
Fresh off the opening ceremony stage, Lady Gaga was seen wearing Team USA colours in the stands at the swimming.
She cheered as swimmer Nic Fink was awarded silver for the 100m breaststroke event.
US Women’s water polo team sponsor, rapper Flavor Flav, caught their game against Greece and was seen cheering with First Lady Jill Biden after the team’s 15-6 victory.
The unlikely partnership between the rapper and the team was formed when captain Maggie Steffens put out a call for financial support in May.
The 65-year-old founding member of American rap group Public Enemy went viral when he trained with the squad in the pool.
He arrived on Friday wearing a USA water polo cap and jersey.
Team USA wasn’t the only country with a celebrity cheer squad.
Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban were spotted by fans in the crowd for the skateboarding finals, witnessing 14-year-old Chloe Covell’s dashed attempt at Australia’s youngest Olympic champion.
Photos posted on social media showed them cheering from the grandstands among skating fans.
With many more events to come and the finals for Simone Biles, there’s no doubt more familiar faces will be spotted in the crowds.
You can read the full schedule for upcoming events here.
