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Red, White & Trending: June 29-July 5

By Jamie MacDonald | July 06, 2018, 1:27 p.m. (ET)

What are Team USA athletes — Olympians, Paralympians and hopefuls — up to when they're not competing? They're training. They're practicing. They're traveling to competitions and meets and games and tournaments. They're relaxing. They're getting engaged and married and having children. They're taking hard-earned vacations. Or retiring. Or coping with the raw emotions that come from losing and winning. And they're sharing. Through the reach of social media, we're able to follow along on their often extraordinary journeys. We'll catch you up each week on what's "Red, White & Trending."

 

Stars And Stripes Salute

Few holidays bring out the U-S-A in Team USA more quickly — and fashionably, and seasonably appropriately, and naturally — than the Fourth of July. And, in the age of social media, there is no better way to share all that love for the red, white and blue than up and down the Team USA timelines. Our roundup of the highlights include some of Team USA’s brightest stars and most thoughtful presences in social media.

 

 

 

 

Happy Birthday America! So proud to call you home. 🇺🇸 #happyfourthofjuly

A post shared by Meghan Duggan (@mduggan10) on

 

 

Happy 4th of July!!! 🇺🇸 #USA 😁🤘🏻

A post shared by L I N D S E Y • V O N N (@lindseyvonn) on

 

 

happy 4th 🌊☀️ #nofilter

A post shared by Laurie Hernandez (@lauriehernandez_) on

 

 

🎆Happy 4th of July! 🎆 🇺🇲

A post shared by Elana Meyers Taylor OLY (@elanameyerstaylor) on

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Fourth of July! 🇺🇸🇺🇸

A post shared by Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson (@jocelyneusa17) on

 

 

 

Baby, you’re a firework ✨ Happy 4th!! 🇺🇸⭐️🇺🇸

A post shared by Ashley Wagner (@ashwagner2010) on

 

 

 


Workday For Gwen

While the Fourth of July is a day off for so many, Olympic triathlon champion Gwen Jorgensen — who has set a more-than-modest goal to become an Olympic marathon champion — joined 60,000 of her closest friends for a 10K in Atlanta. For Jorgensen, July 4, 2018, was a workday. And work she did, all the way to a fifth-place finish. In a way, it was a workday for her husband, too, who took over Twitter to create a compelling real-time recap of Jorgensen’s next few thousand steps in the audacious journey. But, first, Jorgensen set the stage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Meanwhile …

Also in Atlanta, another dominant Team USA athlete, Paralympic star Tatyana McFadden, recorded another stellar finish while Bernard Lagat, who two Julys ago won the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials’ 5,000-meter at the at the age of 41, and Stephanie Bruce, the mother of two who’s having an excellent summer on the track, earned these celebrations. Even if Bruce couldn’t quite capture her emotions.

 

 


The King Goes West

The ultimate form of professional freedom in the NBA comes when a player hits the open market. And when the prize is three-time Olympian LeBron James, widely considered by many to be among the top handful of players in NBA history, he of 40 or so million Twitter followers, this decision was bound to bend the laws of what social media could handle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And if the NBA’s super-team arms race heats up any more, Olympic men’s curling champion Matt Hamilton wants in.


New Dreams

Well, then. Shaun White, who, if you hadn’t seen above, seemed to have enjoyed his Fourth of July, also dropped a bit of a bombshell two days earlier. Not only is he … well, Shaun, take it away …


#Retired

Affectionally known as “Daver,” two-time Olympic alpine skier David Chodounsky, who has always entertained his 5,000 or so Twitter followers with his quippy takes and quirky pics (and a fun recent pepper challenge), retired this week with a typically thoughtful post complete with all sorts of flashback images.

 

Well folks, it's been quite a ride, but all good things must come to an end. Looking back to the beginning, I can't believe I how far I made it in this sport. I am forever grateful to all my friends, family, coaches and supporters that have had my back through the years. I will always cherish the memories and relationships I made along the way, and that is all that matters. Of course, as with any athlete ever, my mind will endlessly battle all the "what ifs" and "what could have beens" of my career, but I will always remember the successes to give myself respite. I only hope that I have done enough to inspire the next generation to never give up on their dreams so that they too can appreciate our extraordinary sport! Thank you all and see you down the road! Daver out!

A post shared by David Chodounsky (@dchodounsky) on


Paradise Found

What’s a little vacation for alpine skiing legend Lindsey Vonn if she couldn’t sneak in a workout?


Court Case Closed

High fives all around for Team USA’s women’s volleyball team, which had been chipping away at making history over the past six or so weeks around the globe. All of that hard work paid off in the form of winning the inaugural Volleyball Nations League event — with a 17-2 record and a five-set win over Turkey in the final. Individual awards? Yes, please. Michelle Bartsch-Hackley was named the tournament’s most valuable player and best outside hitter while Tori Dixon earned honors as the best middle blocker. Enjoy what will one day become their unforgettable walk down memory lane …

And after the five-setter …

 

 

 

I LIKEEEE MILLION DOLLA DEALS 🤑

A post shared by Tori Dixon (@toridixon06) on

 

 


Oh, The Places You Will Go

Four-time Olympic swimming medalist Simone Manuel will take, “Things I didn’t expect to see in New York for $100 …”

 

Okay!! This is so cool... me on a billboard in Times Square in New York.

A post shared by Simone Manuel (@swimone13) on


Twinning

Even twins can be brought closer together by Team USA …

 


Speaking Of Siblings …

One of the week’s best turns of fame came when Olympic men's soccer team midfielder Stu Holden, who in his current role as a broadcaster is reaching millions of soccer fans on a regular basis throughout a wild World Cup, was upstaged in one of the oddest ways one might imagine. The scene unfolds best in real time, but the quick-hit recap is that a couple asked to swap seats on a flight, and the thankful woman, in some sweet sense of good karma, said she’d hoped for the best with the arrival of the new seatmate. And that’s when #PlaneBae, Holden’s brother, showed up. The rest is what in the world of social media would be considered history …

 

 

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Related Athletes

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Stuart Holden

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Michelle Bartsch-Hackley

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Tori Dixon

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David Chodounsky

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LeBron James

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Tatyana McFadden

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US Paralympics
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Bernard Lagat

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Gwen Jorgensen

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