It seems almost unpatriotic that Americans are expected to work during the Olympic Games. Someone has to cheer on Team USA, after all, and that’s its own full-time job. The first week of 16 days of competition is coming to a close, and lots of action was packed into these past seven days. Here are some of the Olympics highlights you might have missed when streaming NBC and Peacock secretly in the office between conference calls.

First American medal kicks things off

The opening ceremony kicked off on July 26. The following day, Team USA won its first medal. Divers Sarah Bacon and Kassidy Cook got the momentum going by winning silver in the 3-meter synchronized springboard competition. This is also the first medal for Bacon and Cook.

Bacon made her Olympic debut while Cook took part in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The United States has not medaled in this event since 2012. Off the diving board, the ladies are best friends, making this moment all the more special.

Superman and Team USA men’s gymnastics

Women’s gymnastics tends to dominate the headlines—but this year, the boys are back in the news and on the podium. Brody Malone, Frederick Richard, Asher Hong, Paul Juda, and Stephen Nedoroscik ended a 16-year medal drought by winning a team bronze.

Nedoroscik brought his team over the finish line with his practically perfect pommel horse routine. While doing so, he also captured the hearts of the internet. He’s a specialist and only competes in one event. While waiting his turn, he was seen closing his eyes and meditating on the sidelines. He also cheered on his teammates. Then, he took off his glasses and led the men to third-place victory—much like Superman. On Saturday, he will compete in the pommel horse individual final.

The Olympics redemption tour

At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the women’s gymnastics team took home silver after Simone Biles withdrew from the competition for mental health reasons. This year, Biles, Jade Carey, Jordan Chiles, and Suni Lee wanted a second chance at gold and were joined by rookie Hezly Rivera.

“This is definitely our redemption tour,” Biles promised the media ahead of the Paris Games. “I feel like we all have more to give, and our Tokyo performances weren’t the best. We weren’t under the best circumstances either. But I feel like we have a lot of weight on our shoulders to go out there and prove that we’re better athletes, we’re more mature, we’re smarter, we’re more consistent.”

The ladies delivered and took home a team gold, but didn’t stop there. Biles also took home gold in the all-around competition while Lee took home bronze.

First U.S. women’s rugby medal

Alex Sedrick led the U.S. women’s rugby sevens team to its first-ever medal with less than a minute left on the clock. The team was trailing Australia 12-7, when Alex got possession and sprinted down the field to tie things up. A conversion tipped the scales and ensured victory. Expect to see more from this team in future Olympics. Jason Kelce is already a big fan.

Katie Ledecky makes Olympic history

Swimmer Katie Ledecky won her first Olympic gold medal for the 800-meter freestyle at age 15 in the 2012 London games. Flash forward to 2024, and she now has 13 medals to her name. She is the most decorated women’s swimmer in Olympic history.

She tied Jenny Thompson, Emma McKeon, and Dara Torres for the record on Wednesday by winning the 1500-meter event. She was so far ahead of her competitors that cameras had to zoom out to show more of the pool. Ledecky surpassed the record on Thursday as part of the women’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay. The U.S. took home silver while Australia took home gold.

U.S. fencing’s first medal is gold

Lee Kiefer, Lauren Scruggs, Jacqueline Dubrovich, and Maia Weintraub have made Olympic history as the first team to take home a fencing medal—and it happened to be gold. These women bested Italy 45-39 in the final. Scruggs served as the team’s anchor and delivered the final touch.

A six-decade Olympics drought ends

Liam Corrigan, Justin Best, Michael Grady, and Nick Mead ended a 64-year drought in the rowing men’s four class when they paddled their way to gold. As a bonus, it was the first U.S. rowing gold in Paris for Team USA. All four competed in Tokyo but left empty-handed. The men teamed up last season for this year’s win.