This is a part of a series from Annenberg Media, highlighting the Olympians that USC is sending to Paris this year.

USC has one of the richest histories of any American university at the Summer Olympics. The Trojans are sending 66 to the 2024 Games in Paris, more than any other U.S. university.

Heading into these Games, USC has had 512 Olympians in its history — adding 33 first-time Olympians to the tally this year to put the total at 545 — and 326 medals across the history of the Games, again more than any U.S. university. If USC was its own country, the Trojans would be tied for the 12th-most medals in the Summer Olympics of any competing country. With 153 gold medals, USC would rank No. 11 in that category of any country.

While USC has a rich history in both swim and dive and then track and field at the Games, former and current Trojans have still populated in other Olympic sports. Six athletes who competed at USC will participate in beach volleyball, while the Trojans have a rowing delegation of four to go along with three women’s soccer players. USC has a single athlete for both women’s basketball and indoor volleyball.

Annenberg Media will update this story with the athletes’ results at the Games.

Beach and Indoor Volleyball

Sophie Bukovec

Country: Canada

Years at USC: 2015-2017

Results: Went winless in pool play

Currie: Bukovec transferred to USC after her sophomore year, spending her first two years of college playing indoors at McMaster University — located in Ontario, Canada — and Long Beach State. In her first year at USC she was named an AVCA All-American. Her partnership with Alexa Strange with the Trojans proved incredibly successful, as the duo went on to become the third-winningest pair in school history. In 2016, Bukovec was named a Pac-12 first-team All-American. She was part of USC’s title-winning teams in 2016 and 2017.

This is Bukovec’s first Olympic Games. She qualified for the Olympics with her partner Heather Bansley after winning the NORCECA Tlaxcala. Bansley played indoor volleyball at the University of Toronto, competing with the Varsity Blues, completely unrelated to USC’s admissions scandal with the same name.

Tina Graudina

Country: Latvia

Years at USC: 2018-2022

Results: Fell in quarterfinals of Olympic Tournament

Currie: In Graudina’s four years at USC, she racked up a 122-9 individual record and was a four-time AVCA All-American. She won Pac-12 Pair of the Year three times with three different partners and was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year three times. The Latvian is one of the 10 winningest women’s beach volleyball players in NCAA history.

In 2020, Graudina became the first NCAA beach volleyball player to make the Olympics. She finished fourth with partner Anastasija Samoilova and was named top scorer of the tournament. Graudina will again partner with Samoilova. Graudina was also named as Latvia’s flag bearer for the opening ceremonies.

Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes

Country: USA

Years at USC: 2014-2017

Results: Fell in quarterfinals of Olympic Tournament

Johnson: The story of Cheng and Hughes goes all the way back to their times at USC, meaning their stories cannot be told separately. The duo both started all four of their years with the Trojans and won three national championships, two NCAA and one AVCA. At USC, the pair went 147-4 with a 103-match win streak thrown in there.

While Cheng competed in the Tokyo Olympics without Hughes, the former Trojans are back together to compete in this edition of the Games. They came into the Olympics ranked as the No. 6 pair in the world according to the International Federation of Volleyball.

Across pro events, Cheng and Hughes have 13 victories as a pair and will look to carry over that success in the Olympics. Cheng’s husband, Jordan, will act as the co-head coach for the duo.

Andy Benesh

Country: USA

Years at USC: 2014-2017

Results: Fell in quarterfinals of Olympic Tournament

Collier: Andy Benesh is set to make his Olympics debut after a standout indoor career as part of the USC men’s volleyball team. At USC, he was a four-year starter at middle blocker for the Trojans from 2014 to 2017 and a team captain during his senior season. During his time as a Trojan, Benesh totaled 658 kills and had a .415 hitting percentage. He also had 346 total blocks at USC, and was a two-time AVCA All-American honorable mention in 2015 and 2017, while making the MPSF All-Conference second team during his senior year.

Benesh has been playing professional beach volleyball since 2018, competing with UCLA indoor volleyball alum Mile Partain. After qualifying for Paris back in May, Benesh and Partain are now the youngest duo in the history of Olympic beach volleyball since its debut in 1996.

Izac Carracher

Country: Australia

Years at USC: 2019

Results: Eliminated in pool play of Olympic Tournament

Edelman: In his freshman year in 2019, Carracher was an outside hitter for USC and played in five matches after playing for the Sydney Warriors, an Australian Volleyball League team, in high school. But after his lone year with the Trojans, Carracher traveled back to Australia to attend the University of Sydney and met his partner Mark Nicolaidis, who is also making his Olympic debut during these Games.

The duo became partners in 2022, winning gold at their first international competition at the Gold Coast Beach Pro Tour Futures event. They later placed ninth at the 2022 World Championships in Rome. Carracher and Nicolaidis are Australia’s second-youngest pair to compete in the Olympic Games.

Micah Christenson

Country: USA

Years at USC: 2012-2015

Results: Won a bronze medal with Team USA

Edelman: The lone former Trojan competing in indoor volleyball, Christenson is once again joining Team USA as a setter, playing in his third Olympics. The 2015 graduate was the starting setter for his four years at USC and a co-captain for three. During his junior year at age 20, he joined the U.S. men’s national team, making him the youngest starting setter to compete for the team.

While at USC, he also earned the 2012 National Newcomer of the Year title after helping his team qualify for the NCAA Championship match. Christenson had such a stellar career that he won the first-ever Off The Block Lloy Ball Award, given to the best collegiate setter across the country.

Christenson has had a long and successful career since he started playing in 2005 at Asics Quicksilver. He led his high school volleyball team to a State Championship title in 2011 and won a bronze medal at his first Olympic Games in 2016.

Women’s Rowing

Chloe Brew

Country: Great Britain

Years at USC: 2015-2019

Results: Finished No. 6 in B Final for Coxless Pair

Donovan: Brew feels right at home in the Olympic Village. Not only is her father also an Olympian — a swimmer for Great Britain in Seoul at the 1988 Games — but she is returning to the British rowing team for her second Olympic showcase. Throughout her Trojan career and at the Tokyo Games, she has competed with the women’s 8+ boat. But, in Paris, she will be competing in the women’s coxless pairs.

During her time at USC, Brew led the Women of Troy to placements at the NCAA Championships in 2016 and 2018. She studied Law, History, and Culture as an undergraduate while earning various titles, like All-American honors her senior year. Since graduating, Brew has focused on her professional athletic career, competing in nearly eight international contests for Great Britain.

Nikoline Laidlaw

Country: Denmark

Years at USC: 2016-2018

Results: Eliminated in repechage round of women’s eight

Donovan: Before finding herself competing as a Dane, Laidlaw tried out twice for the U23 Great Britain rowing team during her time at USC after being born in Scotland. But, in true “Fight On” spirit, Laidlaw’s teammates at USC put her in contact with the Danish coaches. As Laidlaw was eligible with dual citizenship, she qualified and was selected for the Danish rowing team. Since then, she has competed with Denmark’s women’s Varsity 8. Paris 2024 is her Olympic inauguration.

At USC, Laidlaw was a Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable Mention, along with guiding the team to the NCAA Championships her senior year after transferring over from UConn for her junior year. As an undergraduate, she studied environmental studies with the aspiration of becoming a marine biologist. She has competed with the Danish team now since 2017, notably placing first in the 2018 European Rowing Championships and the 2022 World Rowing Championships.

Astrid Steensberg

Country: Denmark

Years at USC: 2016-2020

Results: Finished No. 2 in B Final for women’s four event

Donovan: Steensberg was a superstar for the Trojans, but it didn’t stop there, as she has become a pivotal part for the Danish rowing time. She has competed with the Danes since the 2014 World Rowing Junior Championships. Since then, she has competed in over 20 international championships and just shy of 70 events within these tournaments. In Paris, she’ll be competing in the Women’s Four.

Her stardom helped her succeed as a Trojan, as well. She rowed for the Varsity 8 for her entire collegiate career, being named a Pac-12 All-Academic Second Team member by her junior year. During her sophomore year, she was part of the pack that took the Trojans to the NCAA Championships and placed No. 12 overall nationally. After studying health and human sciences at USC, she continued her collegiate rowing career and received her masters from the University of Copenhagen.

Caroline Munch

Country: Denmark

Years at USC: 2022-present

Results: Eliminated in repechage round of women’s eight

Johnson: Competing with fellow Trojan Nikoline Laidlaw, Munch is no longer listed on the roster, but did compete at USC for one year. A Bjæverskov, Denmark native, Munch rowed for USC’s Varsity Eight boat at the NCAA Championships as merely a freshman in 2023.

A first-time Olympian, Munch competed in 14 regattas with USC. Danish rowers are well represented for the Trojans, as Munch is one of three USC rowers who are competing for Denmark. She and Laidlaw are in the same boat at the Games and while they did not compete at USC together, the duo still has that Trojan connection.

Radka Novotnikova

Country: Czech Republic

Years at USC: 2015-2019

Results: Finished No. 4 in women’s pair B Finals

Johnson: Novotnikova started rowing on the Varsity 8 boat for the Trojans as merely a freshman, even making it to the NCAA Championships that season. While she was never able to take home an NCAA title in her career with USC, she was named to the Pac-12 All-Conference Team and earned All-American honors as a junior.

Now Novotnikova enters her first Olympics, competing for her birthplace in the Czech Republic. She is participating in pairs rowing with Pavlina Flamikova, another first-time Olympian. The duo went to the A Final at the 2024 European Rowing Championships, finishing fourth in the event to get them ready for the Games.

Women’s soccer and basketball

Croix Bethune

Country: USA

Years at USC: 2019-2022

Results: Won a gold medal with Team USA

Johnson: Bethune spent four years with the Trojans between 2019 and 2022, but did not wrap up her collegiate career with USC. The midfielder transferred away to Georgia to reunite with former USC head coach Keidane McAlpine, who took over the Bulldogs’ program in 2021.

Bethune was one of the Trojans’ best players when she was with the team, earning Pac-12 Midfielder of the Year in her final two seasons at USC. That success continued with the Bulldogs, as Bethune was named the SEC Tournament MVP this past fall. Georgia made it to the NCAA tournament, winning its first two games, but fell to Clemson in the third round despite Bethune notching a goal to put her squad ahead in the 84th minute.

A native of Alpharetta, Georgia, Bethune was drafted by the NWSL’s Washington Spirit this past January. She was named an alternate to the U.S. women’s national team, but got the call to the active roster to open up group play in the Olympics.

Simi Awujo

Country: Canada

Years at USC: 2021-present

Results: Fell in Olympic Tournament quarterfinals

Holton: Awujo will be making her second major tournament appearance for team Canada and first Olympics appearance after playing in the 2023 World Cup. The midfielder is entering her fourth year at USC after starting 15 of 18 games for the Trojans last season.

Last year with USC, Awujo registered two assists and was named to the Pac-12 First Team, playing 1,250 minutes.

Awujo earned her call up to the Canadian national team in 2022, despite having eligibility to play with Nigeria, the United States and Canada. Awujo was named the women’s 2022 Canada Soccer Young Player of the Year and registered her first goal in international play during a 5-0 win against Australia in December 2023.

Nicole Payne

Country: Nigeria

Years at USC: 2022

Results: Went winless in pool play

Holton: Payne will be making her first Olympic appearance after three years with the Nigerian national team. The defender was born in Birmingham, Alabama, but her parents are both Nigerian, allowing her to play for the African country.

Payne only played one year with the Trojans after playing three years with West Virginia, registering three goals in 16 appearances for the Trojans in 2022.

Professionally, Payne plays for the Portland Thorns of the NWSL and was recently signed permanently to Portland after being on loan from Paris Saint-Germain of the Division 1 Féminine in France. Payne was signed by Paris Saint-Germain in 2023 directly following her career with the Trojans.

Amy Okonkwo

Country: Nigeria

Years at USC: 2014-2015

Results: Became first Olympic team from Africa to make quarterfinals, but did not advance further

Ridley: Even though Okonkwo did not finish her collegiate career at USC, it is where it started. The forward played 27 games with the Trojans her freshman year before transferring to TCU and playing there for three years. As a horn frog, Okonkwo won BIG 12 Sixth Player of the Year in 2018.

After leaving TCU, the California native competed in the 2020 Olympics and 2021 Afrobasket with the Nigerian team. She notched eight points across three games at the Tokyo Games, but Nigeria did not tally a win to continue its winless streak dating to the 2004 Athens Olympics. Okonkwo has been playing overseas in Spain and France since competing in the 2020 Olympics.