"Does anybody want to take it anymore?" Queen asked before the chorus of "The show must go on." Stephen Curry had the answer to that question, which France was desperately asking as they tried to fend off the unstoppable American team. Curry stepped up and delivered the response, sending the over 12,000 attendees at the Bercy Arena home with a decisive message. As "We are the champions" echoed through the arena, the American celebration erupted on the court, while the local crowd’s disappointment deepened.

Not even 24 hours passed before the same stage, with almost the same crowd, witnessed the reenactment of another unimaginable drama in the women's category: France vs. USA. Cheryl Reeve's disciples had to sweat bullets. They were frustrated as it seemed the hosts, under the orders of Jean-Aimé Toupane, were setting up a defense that appeared to be the ultimate kryptonite for the American superheroines.

Used to having an average lead of about 18 points in their other five tournament games, the North Americans didn’t expect to face a team that would treat them the same way. France closed ranks and forced the lowest score for the 'Avengers' throughout the tournament: only 25 points. In the end, the dominance in the paint by Britney Griner, Aja Wilson and Breanna Stewart prevailed, and the gold ended up returning home for the 10th time.

Medal table comeback thanks to the women’s final

The tense victory of the United States over host France in the women’s basketball final confirmed that the Americans would win the Olympic medal table in Paris 2024. The celebrations transcended basketball, marking an achievement for the American Olympic Committee by surprising China with its prowess in team sports—a factor the Asian giant failed to capitalize on—.

The 67-66 triumph at the Bercy Arena was the last event of the Games and granted the United States the right to add their 2,781st medal in the historical medal count. The distribution of medals favored the United States, dominating almost all disciplines and remaining indisputably the queen of Olympic sports.

USA and basketball: a monologue

17 out of 21 in men’s, and 10 out of 13 in women’s. These are not the three-point percentages in the final, but they could be. These numbers represent the percentage of American Olympic golds in basketball, for both genders. In fact, there is only one country today that can boast of having defeated these superteams: Argentina—curiously, the second home of the legendary Diana Taurasi—. The other giant-killers, now only residing in our memories, were the Soviet Union (5) and Yugoslavia (1).

This time, no one could stand up to them. The USA women’s team finished with a 6-0 record, where only France could give them slight trouble in the decisive match. The men’s 'Dream Team,' despite having the same undefeated record, also lived through a traumatic episode, this time in the semifinals against the great Serbia led by Jokic, who took the bronze. The big man had never been seen so happy, not even when he won the NBA with the Nuggets or when he won 3 MVPs in 4 years.

Durant, LeBron and Taurasi straight to stardom

The infinite Diana Taurasi now stands alone in the spotlight, positioning herself as the only one at the pinnacle of Olympic basketball, having reached an unprecedented height with medal after medal: she crowned herself as the greatest in history, with six golds. We will see if Durant can replicate it, if he can and decides to participate in Los Angeles 2028—he would be 39 years old by then, the same age LeBron is now—.

'Durantula' already has his 4 gold medals in his trophy case. No man has more than him in the basketball discipline. For many, he is the most outstanding man of Team USA in the last decade, leading the team in World Cups and the Olympics, emerging as the tournament MVP almost every time, and being a major factor in this historic American streak that is on track to equal the unreal 7 consecutive Olympic championships achieved by his country between Berlin 1936 and Mexico 1968. LeBron also had something to say when it came to handing out milestones after his outstanding journey in Paris. First player in history with 3 rings and 3 Olympic golds. Not bad at all.

What happened to the other favorites?

Before the Paris event, there were many challengers, aiming to dethrone the North American giant. Serbia was one of them, with Jokic and Bogdanovic, one dominating the paint and the other securing the perimeter. They almost pulled off the upset in the semifinals. They were up by 11 at halftime and still ahead in the last quarter. But USA is too much...

Besides the Balkan powerhouse, Canada, Germany, France, Australia, and Spain formed the 'Anti-Avengers' squad. Their fates, ultimately, were varied. Spain, bereft of its golden generation, was knocked out in the group stage due to an unlikely outcome against Australia. The Oceanic country, precisely, fell to Serbia in a tournament that catapulted the figure of Josh Giddey as a FIBA star, taking the baton from his friend Patty Mills.

Canada and Germany were rare birds. The main favorite, filled with NBA stars, promised to checkmate its neighboring country, just like the reigning world champions, led by Schröder and the Wagner brothers. Both saw their dreams shattered by the cohesive play of France. The hosts, who were 0-4 in the previous tour, drew on epic moments to go toe-to-toe with the USA after knocking out two giants in the semis and quarters. 

Fair to say, that was without the best version of Wembanyama, whose Olympic run was somewhat erratic until the final, where he registered 26 points in 29 minutes. The extraterrestrial wanted to star in the story of reclaiming the gold, whose last edition dates back to Athens 2004 when Argentina toppled the 'Dream Team' of that time. However, that team didn’t have a little green-eyed shooter, seemingly 'harmless,' nicknamed 'Chef.'

The Chef added the perfect seasoning to the final

Last quarter of the final. One gold medal on the line. USA up by five. Just under 3 minutes on the clock. A putback by Wembanyama from his own missed layup cut the lead to 3. The crowd went wild. France dreamed of a throne that was increasingly within their reach. USA's coach, Steve Kerr, didn’t call a timeout. He knew what was coming, a show he had seen so many times before with Golden State Warriors, one he had enjoyed so often: The 'clutch hour,' starring the magical Chef Curry.

The veteran point guard pulled a marvelous menu of 4 three-pointers out of his hat that left Vincent Collet’s France lying on the canvas. The man who turned modern basketball into a three-point contest put the finishing touch with one last 8-meter three-pointer with 40 seconds left, which now sits in the gallery of sports history. Fadeaway included, against double defense from two NBA players, Fournier and Batum, falling backward... In short, hands on heads all around, whether out of frustration or admiration.

Just listen to the testimony of Spanish referee Antonio Conde, one of those in charge of officiating the final. Completely in awe of what his busy eyes witnessed in the gold medal match: "Curry is spectacular, he’s one of those players that make you feel this sport is magical."

Durex and McDonald’s ban Curry in France

"For obvious reasons, we are considering removing this sauce for at least four years," tweeted McDonald’s in a post that quickly spread like wildfire on social media. In a marketing stroke as brilliant as those performed by the best shooter of all time, McDonald’s shined with this sarcasm. An even greater sarcasm considering the multinational is American.

British condom company Durex didn’t hold back either, seizing the moment to comment on the global fast-food giant’s post with its French account: "We’re canceling the curry-flavored condoms project too." A touch of humor is always helpful in taking defeats in stride, that’s clear.