This same gesture was replicated by her compatriot Caio Bonfim when he received the silver medal for race walking, pointing to the sky and showing his devotion to Jesus.
A friendship born of faith
On July 28, Brazilian judoka Larissa Pimenta secured bronze in the 52-kilogram category, beating her Italian friend Odette Giuffrida.
Pimenta shared in an interview that Giuffrida came to know God through her and that, after the defeat, the Italian reminded her friend: “All honor and glory must be given to him.” Both shared messages of gratitude to God on their Instagram accounts.
Photo of the year
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Surfer Gabriel Medina, bronze medalist at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Tahiti, starred in one of the most iconic images of the event.
Raising his index finger in a sign of victory while in the air, Medina shared the photograph on his Instagram with the biblical quote “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13).
Other displays of faith
South African swimmer Tatjana Schoenmaker won the gold medal in the 100-meter breaststroke. To express her gratitude, Schoenmaker wore a special T-shirt with the names of the people who supported her, headed by God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.
Ethiopian Tsige Duguma, who won the silver medal in the 800-meter race, showed that on the back of her race bib “Jesus is Lord” was written. Similarly, Lucia Yepez of Ecuador, a wrestler in the 53-kilogram category, took the silver medal in freestyle wrestling with the word “God” on her right hand. In an interview, Yépez said: “He is on my path to victory. I always have faith.”
Britain’s Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix, who won the bronze medal in the 3-meter synchronized springboard diving, told the BBC that despite the difficulties she went through, “it was just God’s way of telling us that we still have a lot to do, and I give all the glory to God.”
In swimming, American Katie Ledecky became the swimmer with the most gold medals in Olympic history, taking her total to nine after her victory in the 800-meter freestyle.
Ledecky, who in an interview with the National Catholic Register in 2016 revealed that she prays a Hail Mary before every race, said: “More than anything, praying just helps me to concentrate and let go of things that don’t matter in that moment. It gives me peace knowing I’m in good hands.”
The swimmer also praised devotion to Mary, noting that “she has a sacred role in Catholicism, and her strong faith and humility are things we can learn from.”
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
