Gold medals for athletes competing in these summer Games were not the only ones distributed in Paris on Wednesday.
In a ceremony at Paris’ Champions Park, near the Eiffel Tower, nine members of the U.S. figure skating team received gold medals – more than two years after competing at the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
In Beijing, the Russian Olympic Committee finished first in the figure skating team event, with the U.S. finishing in second. However, there was no medal ceremony after the information came to light that Russia’s Kamia Valiyeva tested positive for a banned substance prior to the Olympics.
More than two years later on July 25th after a series of hearings and appeals, the U.S. figure skating team was officially confirmed as Olympic champions.
During the ceremony in Paris on Wednesday, members of the U.S. figure skating team were recognized for their accomplishments as the crowd chanted “USA! USA!” and held up American flags.
The following members of the U.S. figure skating team received gold medals:
Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Madison Chock, Zachary Donohue, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Alex Knierim and Vincent Zhou.
Members of Japan’s figure skating team, which originally placed third, were also honored at the ceremony with the silver medal.
Russia, which fell from first to third, was not present to receive the bronze medal.
SEE MORE: U.S. figure skating receives gold medals for Beijing Games
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