LIST: Inspiring and heartwarming moments from the 2024 Paris Olympics

An expecting mom competing

Egyptian fencer Naza Hafez competed at this year's Olympics while seven months pregnant. She won against USA's Elizabeth Tartakovsky which landed her a spot in the top 16.

Hafez finished her Paris Olympics stint after bowing to South Korea's Korea's Jeon Hayoung on Monday, July 29.

On Instagram, she shared her extra special feat as an athlete, emphasizing the "fair share of challenges"—both physical and emotional aspects—in preparing for the event.

"The rollercoaster of pregnancy is tough on its own, but having to fight to keep the balance of life & sports was nothing short of strenuous, however worth it," she wrote.

"I'm lucky to have shared the trust of my husband (Ibrahim Ihab) and that of my family to be able to come this far. This specific Olympics was different; Three times *Olympian* but this time carrying a little Olympian one!" she concluded her post.

North-South Korea groupfie

No borders can hinder the spirit of the Olympics as table tennis players from North and South Korea took a viral selfie together on July 31.

This "rare cross-border unity" took place after South Korea won bronze and North Korea silver in the mixed doubles behind China.

Age is just a number

One Olympic athlete proved that age is just a number. Luxembourg's table tennis player Xia Lian Ni, a former world champion, competed at the 2024 games at the age of 61. Her run was cut short during a match against Chinese top seed Sun Yingsha.

Although she lost the game, she is grateful to have the opportunity to play against Shasha, the world's number one.

Ni becomes the oldest table tennis player to secure a win at the Olympic Games after seeing off Turkish bet Sibel Altinkaya, 4-2.

The 61-year-old athlete relocated to Luxembourg in the late 1980s after winning two gold medals for China in the world championships.

Acts of sportsmanship

Brazil's Tamires Araujo Frossard carried an injured rival from Angola, Albertina Kassoma, who suffered a knee injury during a must-win handball match to secure a spot in the quarter-finals.

Regardless of height differences and pressure on the playing field, Frossard demonstrated remarkable skill and sportsmanship as she gallantly lifted Kassoma from the court, drawing loud applause from the 5,800 spectators at the South Paris Arena 6.

Triumph over adversity

Despite being embroiled in a major controversy, Algerian boxer Imane Khelif was able to clinch the gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Aug. 9.

Prior to the finals, a gender controversy erupted when Khelif defeated Italian boxer Angela Carini in just 46 seconds during her opening bout.

Carini was left visibly upset, reduced to tears, and ultimately abandoned the match after sustaining a serious injury to her nose.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) then defended Khelif with president Thomas Bach saying they were born and raised as women, and have passports saying that.

Although it was cleared and settled, the incident drew backlash against the Algerian boxer. However, Khelif remained firm, giving her all to win her first Olympic gold medal after eight years.

"I'm very happy. For eight years this has been my dream and I'm now the Olympic champion and gold medallist," said Khelif. "I've worked for eight years, no sleep, eight years tired. Now I'm Olympic champion."

Romance in the City of Love

The Olympics were not just about athletic feats, the games also brought stories of love. What better setting for it than the city of Paris?

Aside from winning the gold medal in the badminton mixed doubles event, Huang Ya Qiong's longtime partner and teammate Liu Yuchen got down on one knee and proposed to her after the former proudly accepted her medal.

Moreover, a rekindled love seems to have been ignited when Czech duo Tomas Machac and Katerina Siniakova, who broke up before the Olympics began, made the crowd goes wild when they shared a kiss after clinching gold against Chinese pair Zhang Zhizhen and Wang Xinyu.

Although they announced their breakup last month during the Prague Open, the two insisted they would still compete at this year's Paris Olympics as a team, signifying their "professionalism" towards their event.

In an interview, the pair refused to open up on their relationship status, saying it is their "personal life," and "top secret."

French athlete Alice Finot also concluded her 2024 Paris Olympics campaign as a record holder and as a fiancée.

The athlete celebrated her win by running to her boyfriend in the stands after the race and getting down on one knee. She popped the question to him with an Olympic pin that said "Love is in Paris."

Another heartwarming love story was when an athlete penned a sincere apology to his wife after he lost his wedding ring during the opening ceremony.

In a joint Instagram post, Italy's Gianmarco Tamberi shared a picture of his wedding day with his wife, Chiara Bontempi as he recounted how he had lost his prized possession in the Seine River during the festivities.

"Too much water, too many kilos lost in the past few months, or maybe the uncontrollable enthusiasm of what we were doing. Probably all three things, the fact remains that I felt (the ring) slip away, I saw it fly … I followed (it) with a glance until I saw (it) bouncing inside the boat," a translation of his message read, according to the NBC Olympics website.

Despite this, the three-time Olympian high jumper found a silver lining in the incident, highlighting how he "couldn't imagine a better place" to lose his ring.

Double gold for the Philippines

Gymnast Carlos Yulo made history at the 2024 Paris Olympics as the first Filipino to have two back-to-back gold medals.

The gymnast scored 15.116 points during the men's vault finals event on Aug. 4, Manila time, beating Armenia's Davtyan (14.966) and Great Britain's Hepworth (14.946).

A day before that, he dominated the gymnastics men's floor exercise finals, scoring 15.000 during his pet event. Israel's Artem Dolgopyat finished silver with 14.966, and Britain's Jake Jarman got bronze with 14.933.

Yulo is the second Filipino athlete to ever win a gold medal at the Olympics after weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Two more Filipinos also brought home medals from Paris, bronze prize-winning boxers Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas.