When Team USA won the gold medal in the women’s gymnastics team final, audiences could hear Biles and Chiles discuss which TikTok trends they wanted to film with their medals. Just a few hours later Biles posted the team crunching their medals on her account. In almost real-time audiences were able to share in the team's excitement and social media gave a platform for the team to be creative and celebrate with fans worldwide.

Be it a try-on of uniforms, a tour behind the scenes of the Olympic village or testing the strength of the infamous cardboard beds with somersaults and dance trends, social media has brought audiences closer to the Olympic games than ever. It has also provided athletes with a unique platform and the opportunity to showcase a different side of their personalities, humanizing them beyond their achievements.

Like never before social media has been able to lift the lid on a centuries-old tradition. In this new era of influence and sporting excellence, we asked industry experts is the 2024 Paris Olympics a watershed for authentic social storytelling.

The Olympics is at a crossroads, where tradition meets the digital future and we’re bearing witness to the turning tide. Paris 2024 has already been dubbed the first ‘TikTok’ Olympics’ as brands recruit athletes as content creators. The prioritising of personal, authentic channels, as opposed to corporate accounts, has much to do with a focus on grabbing the attention of the younger audience the IOC is targeting.

Bigger broadcasters are also getting on board. NBC, which makes up nearly half the IOC’s TV revenue, has partnered with TikTok for Paris 2024 and the BBC has pulled in Jazmin Sawyers, TikTok creator and long jump athlete, to support on athletic commentary while she recovers from injury.

These new storytellers are capturing the audience's imagination with a never before seen peek behind the curtain of the Athlete Village - roaming free in the first post-COVID Olympics. Stars like Ilona Maher, of the US Rugby Sevens team, have been sharing their thoughts and views regarding female athletes, body stereotypes and diet culture. This direct athlete-to-fan engagement, which allows their authentic personalities to shine through, is poised to redefine the narrative and marketing landscape of the Olympics.

The short answer is ‘yes’. The long answer is ‘Ilona Maher’. The US women’s rugby star is as impressive off the pitch as on, racking up 2 million followers on both TikTok and Instagram, with her authentic takes espousing positive body image interlaced with humour from cardboard Olympic Village beds to giving the glad eye to fellow Olympians.

Maher is an inspiration to other athletes, particularly those in sports that don’t necessarily have high recognition or money-earning potential, to get social to attract big money partnerships. But she has also set the parameters of success. Have a positive image. Give some behind the scenes exclusivity. But most of all be authentic. What this Olympics has shown is that beyond the sport, it is the stories and displays of real human attributes (perseverance, strength, grit etc.) that we all admire and can relate to that has created watershed moments that have transcended sport itself to bring in new audiences via TikTok and other platforms.

But beware, these new audiences can smell a phoney a mile off – so truly authentic social storytelling is the way forward to score gold in lucrative brand deals.

And just like the sports in which the athletes excel, it takes hours of devotion and not everyone has the natural talent needed to succeed.

We as humans have evolved around storytelling, and we love the humans at the heart of those stories. Throughout the Games, we’ve seen the real power that authentic storytelling can have when it comes to entertainment and inspiration.

Big ticket campaigns with huge sport star sponsorships will always play an important role, but we’re also seeing incredible impact from reactive, behind-the-scenes content agnostic to the platforms. Athletes like US Rugby Sevens player IIona Maher and Team GB’s Tom Daley have gained huge followings for their fun and candid content. It resonates with audiences because it allows them to connect with the culture around the Games and the athletes in a personal and organic way. We discover the quirks and traditions of these athletes that resonate.

For brands, the lesson here is that this reactive, lid-lifting approach can win them gold. Seeing an opportunity to push out a meme at speed can deliver short term kudos, however, giving people access to the incredible stars and their journey to the Games and the experience itself is where storytelling can really come to life. Know your audience and how they want to be entertained, and you can create relevant, engaging and human content that connects. It should be story first, brand second.