Nine Yellow Jackets with spots in Paris
Yeah, so I kind of had to stop doing this series as work picked up the pace over the last few months, which was a good thing! Finally, Ramblin’ to Paris returns to From the Rumble Seat and will keep appearing over the next week and a half while I’m in Paris. Thanks as always to Tech alumni and Travelmation travel agent, Nicolas Santine, for sponsoring this series.
Friday begins the 2024 Paris Olympics (although technically it’s today with soccer and rugby sevens getting their group matches underway), and Georgia Tech will have one of their largest delegations in school history at the games. Eight athletes and one coach representing five nations qualified for the summer games, including one returning athlete in Berke Saka (Turkiye).
We’ll go through each athlete and when you can watch them compete. Pro tip: get a Peacock subscription for the next couple weeks, as that will be the best spot to pick and choose any event you want to watch live.
Jose Alvarado (Puerto Rico, Men’s Basketball)
fiba.com
Jose makes his Olympic debut in Paris as Puerto Rico’s starting point guard, leading them through a qualifier in San Juan earlier this month, beating Damontas Sabonis’ Lithuania to clinch a spot in the tournament with 23 points, six rebounds, and an assist. It’s Puerto Rico’s first apperance in the Men’s Basketball tournament since 2004, where at best they finished fourth back in 1964.
For Tech, it’s the sixth consecutive Olympics they will have at least one Olympian in Men’s Basketball: Stephon Marbury 2004, Chris Bosh 2008, Alade Aminu 2012 & 2016, Josh Okogie/Avi Schafer 2021.
Puerto Rico will have an extremely difficult road in the tournament, getting drawn in a group with Serbia, South Sudan, and the United States. Considering the South Sudanese only lost to the U.S. by a point in a tuneup game recently, and Serbia literally having Nikola Jokic, every game is going to be a slog for them to get through. They will need to qualify in the top two positions of their group to advance to the knockout stage.
When to watch Jose (all times Eastern):
July 28, 5 am: Puerto Rico vs. South Sudan
July 31, 11:15 am: Puerto Rico vs. Serbia
August 3, 11:15 am: Puerto Rico vs. United States
Julia Bergmann (Brazil, Women’s Volleyball)
volleyballworld.com
A history maker in so many ways, Julia Bergmann becomes Georgia Tech’s first Olympian from its volleyball team, two years after graduating and going pro in Turkiye. She first played for Brazil’s senior team in 2019 and has been a regular player for them since 2022. Currently, she’s playing for Türk Hava Yollari at the club level.
Brazil historically has been a powerhouse in any volleyball competition. In Tokyo, the women’s team finished second to the United States. Brazil has five medals and two golds in women’s volleyball, all coming since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
When to watch Julia (* requires qualification):
July 29, 7 am: Brazil vs. Kenya
August 1, 7am: Brazil vs. Japan
August 4, 3pm: Brazil vs. Poland
*August 6: Quarterfinals
*August 8: Semifinals
*August 10, 11:15am: Bronze Medal Match
August 11, 7am: Gold Medal Match
Chris Eubanks (United States, Men’s Tennis)
Susan Mullane/USA TODAY Sports/Reuters
Men’s tennis comes at a very interesting time in the calendar right as grass court season is ending before the hard court U.S. swing leading into the U.S. Open. With Olympic tennis taking place at Roland Garros, which use clay courts, it’s a massive wrinkle as the top international players aren’t usually training for clay court play in July when hard court season returns. Because of this, one of the top U.S. players and friend of Tech, Ben Shelton, dropped out of Olympic consideration. This opened up spot helped give way for Chris Eubanks to be selected for the U.S. National Team.
Right now, Chris is the 105th ranked player in the world with an 8-16 record in 2024. He most recently played in the ATP Newport tournament, losing in the semifinal to fellow American Marcos Giron in three sets. While it was a grass court tournament, it easily was his best showing in any tournament this year. At the French Open earlier this year, he lost in the first round to Jannik Sinner in three sets.
Chris will face essentially a major level field, with the top players Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Novak Djokovic playing amongst many others. We will know where he lands in the draw the night before the tournament begins.
Berke Saka (Turkiye, Men’s Swimming)
aa.com
Saka, rising senior at Tech, makes his second Olympic appearance for the Turkish swim team in the 200 Backstroke. He’s been one of Tech’s primary swimmers over the last three seasons, swimming the best times for them in every backstroke event and the 200 Individual Medley during the 2023-2024 season.
At the Tokyo Olympics, Berke finished 23rd in the 200 Backstroke, well past semifinal qualifying.
When to watch Berke:
July 31, 5 am: 200 Backstroke heats
Ariana Dirkzwager (Laos, Women’s Swimming)
swimswam.com
A rising sophomore at Tech, Dirkzwager will set Laotian history by becoming their first swimmer to swim anything outside of the 50 Freestyle by competing in the 200 Freestyle in Paris.
She swam Tech’s 6th best 200 Freestyle last season at a 1:49.72 (short course). Tech’s head coach, Courtney Shealy Hart, will be in Paris with her as her acting coach for the Olympics.
When to watch Ariana:
July 28, 5am: 200 Freestyle heats
Imane El Barodi (Morocco, Women’s Swimming)
GTAA
Barodi, a recent Tech alum, will swim the 100 Breaststroke for Morroco in her first Olympic appearance. She swam her fastest long course time last year at the French Elite meet, going a 1:12.38. She holds the Moroccan records in the 50 Freestyle (26.32), 50 Butterfly (28.11), and in the 4×100 Freestyle Relay.
When to watch Imane:
July 28, 5am: 100 Breaststroke heats
Ela Naz Ozdemir (Turkiye, Women’s Swimming)
swimswam.com
A freestyler, Ozdemir is an incoming freshman to Georgia Tech, ranked 78th nationally in the 2024 recruiting class. She’ll be on Turkiye’s 4×200 Freestyle Relay.
When to watch Ela:
August 1, 5am 4×200 Freestyle Relay heats
Giovana Reis (Brazil, Women’s Swimming)
swimswam.com
Giovana, also an incoming freshman, was a finalist for Brazil in the 2022 World Championships on their 4×100 Freestyle Relay team as the anchor leg. She’ll swim the same event for Brazil in Paris. Her career best split, also swam at Worlds, is 55.26.
When to watch Giovana:
July 27, 5am: 4×100 Freestyle Relay heats
While Friday marks the official start of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, we have events starting today in soccer and rugby sevens.
Of all our athletes, Julia Bergmann by far has the best chance to potentially win a medal. Brazil is an elite team, they usually medal, and she has been a plus contributor for the team. Jose Alvarado with some chaos above them has and outside chance, but they are in one of the hardest groups of any sport in the Olympics.
I’ll have updates from Paris starting next week!
Jack Purdy is a non-revenue sports writer and co-host of Scions of the Southland for From the Rumble Seat. He previously served as The Technique’s assistant sports editor before graduating Georgia Tech in 2022. Follow Jack on Twitter @JackNicolaus