Olympics 2024: What it's like to be your country's only Olympian

Four nations have just one athlete at the Games - it's a hard, lonely experience, they say, but also a source of pride.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessWomen at the HelmFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersWhat it's like to be your country's only OlympianGetty ImagesShaun Gill said he was the "most famous man in Belize... for now"As the only athlete sent by his country to the Olympics in Paris, sprinter Shaun Gill has been revelling in his temporary status as “the most famous man” in Belize.

He is one of four athletes sent to the 2024 Games as their nations' sole representative. It is a responsibility that brings pride - and some extra anxiety.

Solo competitors told the BBC their jobs could be lonely, but being their nation’s default flagbearer during the opening ceremony had been exhilarating.

As a result of Gill's sudden celebrity, others in the athletes’ village have been chasing his autograph, the 31-year-old told the BBC.

“I had a joke with one of my friends that I may need a security detail,” he laughed.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czxll21leryo

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