The 2024 Olympics in Paris, France, are on the horizon. Five of the United States’ best weightlifters will venture overseas for this summer’s Games, which run from Jul. 26 to Aug. 11.
Team USA’s Olympic contingent contains five spectacular athletes, including 49-kilogram Jourdan Delacruz. The Texas-born Olympic weightlifter has had her sights set on Paris 2024 since her barbell hit the floor three years prior in Tokyo, where an uncharacteristic bomb-out left her off the leaderboard.
BarBend briefly caught up with Delacruz, 26, to pick her brain just a few weeks away from what could be called the biggest athletic event of her life — and whether she’s prepared to rewrite her own Olympic history.
BarBend: You made it to your first Olympics in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. How did it affect your Olympic experience, and what experiences are you looking forward to this time that you couldn’t have in Tokyo?
- Jourdan Delacruz: “I’m so excited to finally get the full Olympic experience, like attending the opening & closing ceremonies, watching other sports, and so on. In Tokyo, I competed on the second day and left shortly after, meaning I didn’t get to support any of my teammates in-person.”
BB: In Tokyo, you made 86 kilograms in the snatch but bombed out during clean & jerks at 108 kilograms. How, if at all, did that influence the approach you took to your training throughout this quad?
- JD: “It definitely motivated me to get back into training right after a hard quad. Bombing out was hard for me to process, but I’m actually glad that it happened because I ended up growing so much as a person and as an athlete. Going to Paris isn’t about redemption; it’s just the next part of my journey.”
BB: What will a great day look like for you at the 2024 Olympics?
- JD: “Coming off the platform and having my friends and family there to meet me. It already makes me emotional; I can’t wait to see all of them there.”
How Jourdan Delacruz Made It to the 2024 Olympics
Delacruz competed five times throughout the roughly 18-month Paris qualification period, steadily building her case across as one of the best lightweight women’s weightlifters in the world. Here’s how she did at each event:
Editor’s Note: The formatting below reads as “Total (Snatch / Clean & Jerk)” in kilograms.
- 2022 World Weightlifting Championships: 191 (86/105)
- 2023 Pan American Weightlifting Championships: 198 (86/112)
- 2023 IWF Grand Prix I: 195 (85/110)
- 2023 World Weightlifting Championships: 200 (88/112)
- 2023 IWF Grand Prix II: 0 (86/X)
It’s the kind of competitive resume most pro athletes dream of, but Delacruz hardly rested on her laurels. While campaigning for the 2024 Olympics, Delacruz also:
- Won her first Senior World medal (bronze)
- Matched her career-best Total of 200 kilograms
- Won her third Pan American gold medal.
She’s heading to Paris ranked number four in the world. Based on her momentum over the last year and a half, we’d bet the farm on Delacruz making it to the Olympic podium.
The Women’s 49-kilogram event at the 2024 Olympics takes place on Wednesday, Aug. 7, at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
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Featured Image: USA Weightlifting
