From Bellingham to Biles: The Independent’s 10 sports stars to watch in 2024
A year featuring the men’s European Championship in Germany and the Olympic Games in Paris will provide a stage for the world’s best athletes to shine
The Paris Olympics headlines a packed year of sport in 2024 with the Games poised to provide a thrilling fortnight of entertainment.
England prepare for a Euro 2024 adventure with Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham dominating on the continent for Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, meaning Gareth Southgate's men appear poised for a major breakthrough on the big stage.
The next generation has arrived, too, with a selection of phenoms already capable of upsetting established champions and adding fresh flare and imagination to their respected disciplines. There is plenty of British interest, of course, but we have also considered some of the finest athletes around the world.
Without further ado, here are The Independent’s athletes to watch in 2024...
Simone Biles, gymnast bidding to tumble back to the top
Harry Latham-Coyle: Simone Biles will be hoping to banish the bad memories of Tokyo 2020 as she bids for a winning return to the Olympics in 2024.
The great American gymnast has set her sights on Paris after a successful recent return to competition following a mental health break. Her efforts to add to her four gold medals from Rio were hampered in Japan by the “twisties”, a psychological block that forced Biles to withdraw from several individual events.
That she was still able to secure bronze on the balance beam and a team silver spoke to the strength of Biles’s character. A haul of four golds from the 2023 Worlds in Antwerp, ten years on from her global event debut in the same city, show that her talent hasn’t waned.
Jude Bellingham, England superstar and the next Ballon d’Or winner?
Lawrence Ostlere: What could Jude Bellingham achieve over the next 12 months? Such is the 20-year-old’s phenomenal trajectory to the top of the game that it might be easier to ask what he can’t.
Real Madrid are the Spanish title favourites and are through to the Champions League knockout stages; England will be one of the contenders at Euro 2024. Bellingham has made himself central to both projects as a threatening attacking midfielder, arriving in the box with devastating effect. On this season’s form he might already be the best player in the world, and if things go well then it is not unthinkable that Bellingham could be standing on stage at a glitzy Paris ceremony holding the Ballon d’Or at the end of the year.
Ludvig Aberg, Europe’s rookie Ryder Cup sensation
Jack Rathborn: This time last year Ludvig Aberg was still studying at Texas Tech University. A whirlwind first year as a professional saw the towering Swede quickly establish himself with maiden wins on the DP World Tour (Omega European Masters) and PGA Tour (RSM Classic), while forcing Luke Donald to burn a wildcard selection for Europe’s dominant Ryder Cup victory in Rome – the first ever debutant in the competition without major experience.
That all changes in April when Aberg heads down Magnolia Lane for the Masters. The 24-year-old is deadly with his driver and ranked second in strokes gained off-the-tee this year (0.982) behind only world No 1 Scottie Scheffler. And what a stage for your major debut, too, amid unsavoury squabbling in the men’s game, there is a purity to Aberg’s first footsteps in professional golf. While LIV Golf continues to poach talent from the PGA Tour, further deepening the fissures caused by the sport’s civil war, following Aberg’s attempt to become the first debutant to win at Augusta in 45 years (since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979) will be an engrossing watch.
Florian Wirtz, Germany’s latest wunderkind at Euro 2024
Richard Jolly: There are multiple ways in which 2024 could be a breakthrough year for German football’s latest wunderkind – the 20-year-old midfielder Florian Wirtz. Bayer Leverkusen have not won a trophy for three decades but, with Wirtz excelling, they are threatening to end Bayern Munich’s 11-year rule in the Bundesliga.
They are still in the German Cup, whereas Bayern are not. They are one of the favourites to win the Europa League. And then there is the small matter of a home European Championships for Germany, when Wirtz could be a breakout star for Julian Nagelsmann’s team. All that and, with Leverkusen often a selling club, the possibility that Wirtz could be set for a big-money move to a larger club.
Katie Ledecky, US swimmer ready to create more Olympic history
Jack Rathborn: Katie Ledecky can further enhance her legacy by becoming the first woman to win four consecutive Olympic gold medals in an individual event. The 26-year-old bids to add a fourth 800m freestyle title in Paris, a streak only matched in the pool by Michael Phelps in the 200m individual medley.
Ledecky is in fine form after a dominant showing at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, where she eclipsed Phelps by picking up two more gold medals, in the 800m and 1,500m freestyle, to reach 16 in her career and one more than her legendary compatriot.
Her trick? Unfathomable longevity since bursting onto the scene at London 2012 as a 15-year-old. More greatness awaits in Paris.
Moses Itauma, the teenage boxing sensation
Alex Pattle: The 18-year-old Itauma made his professional debut in January, and the heavyweight has already gone 7-0 with five knockouts.
All of the Slovak-born Briton’s stoppages have come in Round 1, with his quickest clocking in at 23 and 35 seconds respectively. As fast as his finishes are his hands – frighteningly so – but not at the expense of any power. Some are labelling the southpaw the ‘next Anthony Joshua’, but his stance, approach and attributes are different from AJ’s – and he will look to carve his own path, with malice.
Itauma, the younger brother of light-heavyweight Karol, is definitely one to watch in 2024, but be careful; blink, and you just might miss him.
Gus Atkinson, England’s superfast-bowler
Sonia Twigg: Gus Atkinson had a breakout year in 2023 that earned him a maiden England call up in both ODI and T20 cricket, and he has been chosen in the 16-strong squad for the five-Test tour of India in the winter.
Capable of bowling express pace, 25-year-old Atkinson could move to cement his place as an England regular across all three formats, and has impressed those at the top of the sport, including Michael Atherton who raved about his performance for Surrey early in the campaign. With the T20 World Cup scheduled for the summer, Atkinson could yet force his way into the side.
Oscar Piastri, McLaren’s rapid Formula 1 driver
Kieran Jackson: Oscar Piastri shone in his rookie year in Formula 1. The Australian star’s bold move to McLaren, in which he ditched Alpine, more than paid off as the papaya became Red Bull’s closest challengers in the second half of the season.
The 22-year-old, who signed a new contract in September, will pose a genuine challenge to team-mate Lando Norris next year and his understated, relaxed demeanour indicates a man with his feet firmly on the ground. A grand prix victory is his obvious target for 2024.
Shoutout as well to Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the highly-rated 17-year-old Mercedes junior who has skipped F3 and will make his debut in F2 in 2024.
Dina Asher-Smith, British medal hope in Paris
Michael Jones: 2024 is an Olympic year, and one of Great Britain’s brightest stars is runner Dina Asher-Smith, who has her sights set on individual and relay gold medals.
At 28, Asher-Smith has already won bronze medals at two Olympic Games – Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 in the women’s 4x100m relay – but she’s aiming higher this time, and her previous achievements prove she has the ability and skill to win gold.
She became Britain’s first female sprinter to win World Championship gold when she was victorious in the 2019 200m final – injury forced her out of the race in Tokyo – while the 2018 European Athletics Championships saw her claim a historic sprint treble, taking gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay to become the first British woman to achieve this feat at a major championship.
Asher-Smith herself sums it up best: “My personal goals are to win Paris 2024.”
Coco Gauff, the next superstar of tennis
Harry Latham-Coyle: Coco Gauff fulfilled her destiny as a grand slam champion in New York in September, the teenager showing she had the big tournament temperament to go along with her unquestionable talent.
With a major in her pocket, could 2024 be the year that Gauff climbs to the summit of the tennis world? Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka will have something to say but the Flushing Meadows title will give Gauff plenty of confidence heading into January’s Australian Open.
Olympic success might also be on the 19-year-old’s mind; Gauff described winning gold as one of her “biggest dreams” in August. An obvious singles contender, Gauff’s successful partnership with Jessica Pegula could also secure the USA a women’s doubles crown.
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