2024 Summer Olympics: 3 former Scarlet Knights bring home medals
Rutgers was well-represented at the 2024 Summer Olympics, as five former Scarlet Knights competed for gold in Paris. Three of those five alumni will take home medals, adding more accolades to the Rutgers athletic programs.
Casey Murphy
Casey Murphy, the women's soccer program shutout leader, and the U.S. Women's National Team won the gold medal after defeating Brazil 1-0 on Saturday. It was the first gold medal for the U.S. in 12 years and the country's fifth overall.
Murphy served as the backup goalkeeper to Alyssa Naeher, who had an outstanding tournament and recorded four shutouts.
The former Knight will be looking to continue representing her country as the U.S. prepares to qualify for the 2027 FIFA World Cup.
Denise Reddy, assistant coach of the U.S., also played for the Rutgers women's soccer team. The highly experienced coach joined the U.S. team this year and now has a gold medal under her belt.
Kahleah Copper
With the U.S. defeating France 67-66 on Sunday in women's basketball, Kahleah Copper is now an Olympic gold medal winner. The former Knight played 22 minutes off the bench, going 3-8 from the floor and a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe to total 12 points. She also had five rebounds, two steals and two assists.
Copper was the deciding factor in the final five seconds of the game, making two free throws to earn the one-point victory.
Sebastian Rivera
Sebastian Rivera became the first former Rutgers wrestler to win a medal at the Olympics. His path to bronze was not easy, as he lost in the quarterfinals to the eventual gold medal winner, Kiyooka Kotaro.
Representing Puerto Rico and competing in the 65-kilogram weight class, Rivera was pulled back into the repechage and only needed two wins to medal. He defeated Maxi Sacultan of Moldova 15-4 before facing Tulga Tumur-Ochir of Mongolia.
Rivera found himself down 4-0 with the clock quickly winding down, but he landed a takedown and three rollovers to take an 8-4 lead. Tumur-Ochir retook the lead, but a last-second takedown from Rivera earned him the bronze medal in a close 10-9 victory.
Overall, the Knights finished 29th in gold and 58th in medals, ahead of top countries like Chile and Morocco.
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