How Snoop Dogg Became a Figure at the Olympics
Snoop Dogg has brought humor and fun to the 2024 Olympic Games.
The 52-year-old rapper was tapped to contribute as a special correspondent for NBC’s bOlympic coverage this year after a clip of him saying a horse was “crip walking” during a 2021 Tokyo Olympic dressage competition went viral online.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]This year, Snoop has held the Olympic torch, was spotted supporting Olympians—such as tennis star Coco Gauff and two-time all-around Olympic gold-medalist Simone Biles—with pictures of the athletes plastered on his shirts, was seen cheering on Team USA at matches, and even traded a unique Snoop Dogg Olympic pin with those at the Games.
Here are some of the memorable Olympic moments with the rapper and record producer.
Holding the torch at the Opening Ceremony
Snoop had a lovely start to the Paris Olympics when he was selected as one of a few cultural icons who got to hold the Olympic torch during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games last week.
“I felt like Muhammad Ali,” Snoop said in an interview with NBC Sports after the ceremony. “I was waving, shaking hands, kissing the babies — doing what I do, you understand me? Putting my foot in the pavement, letting the people know that we’re here. We’re here for peace, love, unity and great sportsmanship.”
Swimming with Michael Phelps
The “Drop It Like It’s Hot” rapper took to the swimming pool with the most-decorated Olympian in history, Michael Phelps, in an NBC segment for the Paris 2024 Olympics. Snoop teased Phelps, who said that his secret to being a great swimmer has to do with his wingspan and lung power. “You just described me,” said Snoop. “I definitely have great lung power. And I do have a swimmer’s body…We could be twins.”
Swimming proved to be much harder than it seems. “Mike, you make this look too easy,” he said after a lap in the pool.
Cheering on Caleb Dressel
Snoop Dogg warmed hearts when he supported eight-time Olympic medal winner Caleb Dressel as he won his latest gold medal during the U.S. men’s 4×100 freestyle relay. Snoop cheered for him alongside Dressel’s wife and son at his side. It was Team USA’s first gold medal in Paris.
“The main thing that I really wanted to do was be out in the field dealing with the families so I can see the experience of that support system,” Snoop said in a post-match interview on NBC. “Being there with Caleb’s wife and his son and his sister-in-law, you could just see that they was missing from the last Olympics and how this one felt so emotional to her.”
“I feel like I’m a part of their family now,” he added.
Dancing with Jordan Chiles and Simone Biles
The rapper was also spotted watching the Olympic women’s gymnastics team, where he started dancing—with two hands up in the air—while cheering on the young women competing.
Biles spotted Snoop first, pointing at him in the crowd, but Jordan Chiles was the first to dance with him. (Snoop was standing near the Chiles’ family.) Biles soon followed, smiling and waving her hands up and down with Snoop.
Snoop’s Olympic pin
When athletes aren’t training, eating chocolate muffins at the Olympic village, or winning medals, they’re participating in another beloved pastime: pin trading. The practice is well-documented online, as Olympians scramble to get the memento from highly-coveted countries like Belize, who came to Paris with one athlete, and whose pins feature a toucan; or the Netherlands, whose pin is a pair of clogs. Some athletes, like Simone Biles also have their own pin for the Olympic Games.
Snoop’s pin was shared by the International Tennis Federation online. It depicts Snoop in a blue suit generating five rings of smoke, colored like the Olympic rings with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Gauff called it the “best pin [she’s] ever gotten,” in a video thanking Snoop.
Snoop’s custom t-shirts
Snoop has shown his support for Team USA donning custom outfits at the Olympics. He’s been seen wearing shirts with Gauff and Biles on them, but was also at the women’s beach volleyball tournament, where he wore a jacket with Sara Hughes face, which he later zipped down to reveal a shirt with Kelly Cheng’s image.
“I represent the USA,” Snoop said. “Do what y’all do baby, bring home the gold.” The pair won their match against the French on Wednesday and will compete again on Friday against Germany.
Snoop meets French Bulldog, Pierre
Olympians aren’t the only ones having their dreams come true. Snoop’s wish to meet a French bulldog came true when he was surprised by the beret-bearing four-legged creature.
The rapper affectionately gave the canine the name Pierre Cardin, as seen in a video of the encounter shared by Access Hollywood. “My thing about Pierre, he’s spooned, he’s groomed. He’s dipped and whipped. And he’s suited and booted and gooted and wooted,” Snoop said.