Delta Air Lines in Atlanta honored Team USA members on Wednesday at Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport before their departure to Paris for the Summer Games. The airline provided T-shirts and water bottles at the gate for the athletes, which included archers, fencers, and basketball players. Signs with messages like “Good Luck Team USA!” and “A Merci Beaucoup From Us to You” were displayed.
Delta Air Lines, headquartered in Atlanta, is overseeing the travel arrangements for all U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Among the athletes celebrated was Mary Theisen-Lappen, a weightlifter making her Olympic debut, who expressed both excitement and nerves about the upcoming games.
One passenger named Gillian Tran, 17, from Tallahassee, Florida, was thrilled to discover that she would be sharing the same flight with the athletes. Tran’s family had won tickets to the Paris Games in a lottery two years ago. She had the opportunity to take photos with some of the athletes and shared her enthusiasm for the Olympics, mentioning her history fair project on the 1936 Olympics from two years prior.
The Summer Games’ opening ceremony is set to take place on July 26.
