9 Olympians to follow on TikTok right now
Olympians aren't just competing for medals in Paris; some of them are competing for our screen time as well. As a result, TikTok is the most fun it's been in years.
These are the athletes who have won our hearts on the app by posting in real-time from the 2024 Paris Olympics and giving us the behind-the-scenes content we need.
Ilona Maher, Team USA Rugby
Already the TikTok favorite out of Tokyo, Maher continues to deliver both on and off the pitch. Not only did she help the women's rugby team bring home its first Olympic medal, but she boasts 2 million followers on the clock app. She posts an enviable combination of content from body positivity videos to answering the real questions to her running Love Island bit that it's the Olympic "Villa." There's a reason Jason Kelce and Olivia Rodrigo are among her fans.
Henrik Christiansen, Team Norway Swimming
While Maher looks for love in the Olympic "Villa," Christiansen searches for his next "choccy muffin." The Norwegian swimmer and three-time Olympian has yet to medal, but he has posted 11 videos about the chocolate muffins served in the Olympic Village. And the muffins look so gooey and delicious that they've developed a fandom of their own. An Olympic aide posted a video captioned, "looking for the chocolate muffins at the olympics but i'm pretty sure that norwegian swimmer stole them all." Christiansen commented, "You'll never find them."
Over on X, the quest to find the muffin manufacturer and dupes is off to a running start.
Daniella Ramirez, Team USA Artistic Swimming
Time and time again, the Olympics gets viewers invested in niche sports, and on TikTok, athletes can get granular about their specialization. For Ramirez that means showing her fans the ins and outs of "knoxing," the method by which artistic swimmers get their shiny, slicked-back buns. She posts both application and ASMR removal videos. While she's yet to get knoxxed up at the Olympics, she's still posting fun behind-the-scenes footage, including the artistic swimmers matching LeBron James' freak during the Opening Ceremony.
Alena Sail, Team New Zealand Rugby
Not only did New Zealand's Rugby team take home gold, but two teammates Sail and Tysha Ikensio are likely taking home the most Olympic pins. Sail and Ikensio document their "Pinquest" on Sail's TikTok account, showing off every country's pin that they've collected so far with genuine enthusiasm. The rugby players take pin challenges from their comments, and Sail even met up with a Canadian pin collector. Cheers to the reigning champs of PinTok!
Coco Gauff, Team USA Tennis
America's current favorite tennis player was unfortunately eliminated from women's singles and doubles, but not before posting winning videos on TikTok. From behind-the-scenes footage of flag bearing with LeBron at the Opening Ceremony to the chaos of getting ready in the Olympic Village, Gauff serves both on and off the court.
Jasmine Schofield, Team Dominica Swimming
Schofield is 18 years old, which means her TikTok presence is unmatched. She seemingly has an encyclopedic knowledge of TikTok sounds and fluency in everything from brat summer to aura points. Aside from showing a quirky, unfiltered look at what it's like representing a small country at the Olympics, she's also so dedicated to pin collecting that she went door to door searching for Australia's pin. After her pin haul, she ranks each pin using creative descriptions. Slovakia's pin? To Schofield, that's an "artisanal louver souvenir that I'd pass down to my kids."
Simone Biles, Team USA Gymnastics
If you're not already following Simone Biles, what are you doing?! Why aren't you following her?! Get it together.
Tim Elter, Team Germany Surfing
Elter made headlines for his butt-exposing wipeout, but on TikTok, he's showing off more than just his cheeks. Elter pulls down the pants back the curtains on the floating Olympic Village experience. He's letting us know just how good the surfers have it in Tahiti. No cardboard beds in sight, only stunning tropical views.
Tom Daley, Team Great Britain Diving
It's Daley's fifth Olympics, and he's still stealing our hearts with his diving and knitting! His footage is as lovely and wholesome as you'd expect from the guy who came out of retirement so his son could watch him compete at the Olympics.