The Paris Olympics is drawing to a close, and what an incredible two weeks of sport it has been. This summer’s Games have produced not only a slew of medalists but also a new wave of viral sensations and memes online.
From a Norwegian athlete with an insatiable love for chocolate muffins to a stone-cold South Korean sharpshooter, here are the Olympians that have become some of the most beloved figures on the internet. Italian gymnast Giorgia Villa missed the 2020 Tokyo Olympics due to a sprained ankle, but despite lingering back injuries, she made history at this year’s Paris Games.
Alongside teammates Angela Andreoli, Alice D’Amato, Manila Esposito, and Elisa Iorio, Villa helped Italy win silver in the women’s team final, marking the country’s best Olympic gymnastics result since 1928.
But, it wasn’t just her impressive performance that made her a social media sensation – it was her past gig as an ambassador for Parmigiano Reggiano cheese that stole the show. Immediately after the women’s team final, images of a 2021 advertising campaign showing Villa in a leotard next to a giant wheel of the hard, grainy cheese, one hand resting proudly on a chunk of the iconic cheese, began to circulate on social networks.
“Since I was a child I’ve always loved this amazing product, a symbol of excellence and Italian culture,” Villa said when the sponsorship deal kicked off. According to Italian media, the deal ended in 2022. Villa, we totally get it – who could resist parmesan cheese? Parmesan isn’t the only food that’s made waves in the Olympics. Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen has become a TikTok sensation with his obsession over the Olympic Village’s chocolate muffins.
It all began on 26 July when the athlete posted a video reviewing meals he’d eaten so far in the Olympic Village. He gave the pesto pasta and pork skewers a solid 7/10 and the shrimp dumplings and chicken gyozas an 8/10. But it was a humble “choccy muffin” that received his highest score: an unprecedented 11/10. And thus, a legend was born.
