Jill Biden Cheers On Team USA and Talks Women’s Health Innovation While in Paris
The first lady celebrates the opening of the Olympic Games and begins counting down to the 2028 games in Los Angeles.
After an afternoon of cheering on Team USA at the Paris Olympics, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden spoke Saturday evening at a reception at Hotel Meurice on women’s sports and health innovation.
Dr. Biden joined health, sports, and business leaders for the event focused on advancing women’s sports and health innovation. The first lady also spoke on the work of the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research.
“The more we understand about our health, the more treatments and cures we can find for everyone,” Biden said, expressing gratitude to those working to “shine a light on the issue.”
Biden was introduced by Michelle Kang, owner of Washington Spirit, Olympique Lyonnais Feminin, London City Lionesses. Kang said that “all of the movers and shakers of women’s sports” were in the room: “It’s actually a very impressive gathering.” Among the attendees was American track and field athlete Allyson Felix.
Before the the first lady made her remarks, attendees were mingling over Bollinger champagne, wine, and passed hors d’oeuvres in a small, gilded room with intricate tile floors, gold moldings and several chandeliers.
Biden noted that almost the same number of women and men are competing in Paris this year, saying these games are “the closest we’ve ever come to gender parity.”
“Women's sports are everywhere, and more people are watching than ever before, but even as so many more women take to the court or fly down the field. What we know about women's health, and sports, simply hasn’t kept pace—and that’s because women’s health is understudied and underfunded,” she said.
The first lady spoke about how women have had to navigate a medical world largely designed by men, adding that it’s “not just elite athletes,” but other women, too, pointing to the myriad questions women have.
“Now it’s time for answers. And, that’s why the Biden-Harris administration is fundamentally changing how our nation approaches and funds women’s health research,” she said.
Female athletes “inspire us to work harder, to get back up when we fall. … By investing in women’s health research, we can ensure that our athletes all can keep reaching for those bright tomorrows ahead,” she said, before concluding her remarks.
From the stands
Earlier in the day, the first lady attended the U.S. women’s water polo match versus Greece at the Aquatics Centre, north of Paris. She stayed for the entire game, which ended in a 15-to-6 victory for the United States.
Biden, wearing a white sweater with the American flag and Olympics rings, was seated a couple tiers from the pool with Mareva Grabowski Mitsotakis, wife of Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and other members of the U.S. delegation to the games including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, basketball coach Dawn Staley and former figure skater Brian Boitano.
During the match, a meeting was arranged between the first lady and hip-hop legend Flavor Flav, of Public Enemy, in the stands. Flav is a sponsor and official hype man of the U.S. women’s water polo team. They embraced, and Biden introduced Flav to some of her grandchildren.
After the match, in the athlete’s lounge, the first lady met members of the U.S. women’s water polo team and expressed her astonishment at the skill and strength involved in water polo. She gave coins to the team members; the coins featured the Paris cityscape and the words “PARIS,” “2024 OLYMPIC SUMMER GAMES” and “presidential delegation.” A group photo was taken with team members and delegation members.
Looking ahead to 2028
The first lady started off her day at a reception Saturday morning, at an event at the Chief of Mission Residence in Paris, France, hosted by U.S. Ambassador Denise Campbell Bauer to commemorate the Opening of the Olympic Games and celebrate the upcoming 2028 Olympic Games, to be held in the United States, in Los Angeles, California.
Dr. Biden started a countdown clock on the 1,498 days until the Los Angeles Olympic Games. She thanked the gathered attendees for their efforts toward making the Olympic flame “shine brightly in our nation once again.”
Biden continued by reflecting on Friday evening’s opening ceremony:
“The rain did not dampen our spirits,” she said. Biden noted as she was watching the ceremony, “I was thinking to myself, ‘oh my God, oh my God. How are we going to top this? How are we going to top this?’ So, okay, so Paris has the, you know, Eiffel Tower, but we have Hollywood—right? And the magic of Hollywood that makes all dreams come true. So I think we're gonna be okay.”
Biden was introduced by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who called the opening ceremony “incredible” and recognized the city of Paris and her counterpart, Mayor Hidalgo. “We know that our partnership will not end at the close of the games that will be another amazing legacy of Olympic cooperation,” she said, noting that Hidalgo was a “gracious” host in “showing us around the city” and “telling us what we needed to do.”
Speaking in a gilded state dining room at the US Ambassador to France’s official residence, the first lady looked ahead to the next summer games.
“At the 2028 games, Olympians and fans will see themselves reflected in Los Angeles—add that to our American warmth, hospitality, and leadership, not to mention experience,” she said, noting that this is the third time Los Angeles will host the games.
“Planning the Olympics and the Paralympics is not a solo sport. It takes a lot of work to welcome 15,000 athletes, prepare for millions more spectators, and outfit venues for more than 50 sports. But with our phenomenal team, the LA games will allow the world to unite a generation of athletes to soar,” she said.
Biden also recognized the upcoming 2034 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, joking, “if you're like me, I was like, okay, how old am I going to be?”
For now, though, she encouraged the gathering to savor the singular beauty of Paris.
“Let's celebrate not only the split-second victories and breakout stars, but the years of your effort, and teamwork that made this all possible,” she said.
Calendar
Tonight: FLARE to host a virtual program on the former first lady’s role in establishing the President’s House and her role in uniting the country during the War of 1812.
The First Ladies Association for Research and Education will host the virtual program “Dolley Madison and the War of 1812” with Libby McNamee and moderated by Christopher Leahy. The event will take place at 7 p.m. EDT on July 29, 2024, and will discuss the vivacious Dolley Madison, wife of the fourth President James Madison.
Beloved by all, she also was known as the "Queen of Hearts," and named “America’s First Lady” at her funeral. Learn about her instrumental role in establishing the President’s House as the social center of Washington City, as well as creating many national customs which remain to this day. We will explore her pivotal role in bringing our bitterly divided country together during the tumultuous events of the War of 1812, America’s Second War of Independence.
Libby McNamee is a lawyer, speaker, and award-winning author of two upper middle grade novels, "Susanna’s Midnight Ride: The Girl Who Won the Revolutionary War" and "Dolley Madison and the War of 1812: America’s First Lady," and their Study Guides. She is also the co-editor of "The Epic Story of 1776" and "The Epic Story of America 1777-1779." Currently she is writing a third novel, "The Union Spymistress: Elizabeth Van Lew."
Christopher J. Leahy is professor of History at Keuka College, a liberal arts institution located in the Finger Lakes region of New York State. He is the author of President without a Party: The Life of John Tyler (LSU Press, 2020), a biography the Wall Street Journal praised as a “deeply researched, gracefully written reappraisal” of the tenth president.
Leahy has also published scholarly articles and essays on first ladies, including two he co-authored with his wife, Sharon Williams Leahy: “The Ladies of Tippecanoe, and Tyler Too, in A Companion to First Ladies (Wiley Blackwell, 2016) and “Reclamation of a First Lady: Julia Gardiner Tyler’s Pursuit of a Federal Government Pension,” in Southern First Ladies: Culture and Place in White House History (University Press of Kansas, 2020). Currently, he and Sharon Leahy are at work on a biography of First Lady Julia Gardiner Tyler, which is under contract with the University Press of Kansas.
Watch the program on Facebook or YouTube.
Aug. 6, 2024
BOOK RELEASE: A New, Revolutionary Look into the Brilliant Life of Pat Nixon
The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon: The Life and Times of Washington’s Most Private First Lady by Heath Hardage Lee goes on sale Aug. 6, 2024. In America’s collective consciousness, Pat Nixon has long been perceived as enigmatic. She was voted “Most Admired Woman in the World” in 1972 and made Gallup Poll’s top ten list of most admired women fourteen times. She survived the turmoil of the Watergate scandal with her popularity and dignity intact. The real Pat Nixon, however, bore little resemblance to the woman so often described as elusive, mysterious and “plastic” in the press. Pat married Richard Nixon in June of 1940. As the couple rose to prominence, Pat became Second Lady from 1953-1961 and then First Lady from 1969-1974, forging her own graceful path between the protocols of the strait-laced mid-century and the bra-burning Sixties and Seventies. Read more
Aug. 6, 2024
Heath Hardage Lee Launches New Pat Nixon Biography: ‘The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon: The Life and Times of Washington’s Most Private First Lady’
The Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda, California, will host Heath Hardage Lee, the author of a new Pat Nixon Biography: The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon: The Life and Times of Washington’s Most Private First Lady at 7 p.m. (PT) on Aug. 6, 2024. Lee will discuss the life and times of this remarkable first lady: an empathetic, adventurous, self-made woman who wanted no power or influence, but who connected warmly with both ordinary Americans and people from different cultures she encountered world-wide. The event is free. Read more
Aug. 11, 2024
First Ladies Fine Dining: Contemporaries 21st Century
Author and lecturer Andrew Och aka “The First Ladies Man” will present a hands-on cooking experience on Aug. 11, 2024, for Cookology at Ballston Quarter in Arlington, Virginia, with a focus on First Ladies Dr. Jill Biden, Melania Trump, Michelle Obama and Laura Bush.
The role of first lady has certainly changed and developed over the years. No one knows this more than the most recent first ladies of the 20th and 21st Centuries. However, one thing has remained constant…entertaining. The success of a State Dinner or any number of other celebrations or events could be the difference in passing an important bill or keeping a diplomatic relationship in good standing. These first ladies do so much more than entertain or serve a meal when they host these events. Enjoy a modern day history lesson over a beautiful meal made up of modern day first lady favorites. Read more
Aug. 15, 2024
In-Person Third Thursday Night Out with the First Ladies
The National First Ladies Library & Museum for the August Third Thursday, will discuss “going back to school” with a deep dive into the world of one room schoolhouses—the main stage where First Ladies like Abigail Fillmore and Lucretia Garfield got their start. Attendees will enjoy the museum after hours as expert staff highlight the legacies of First Ladies Roosevelt, Fillmore, and Garfield and early education in America. Read more
Aug. 16-18, 2024
Third Annual Butterfly Daze to Honor Rosalynn Carter
The Friends of Jimmy Carter will host the Third Annual Butterfly Daze, a weekend-long event celebrating the life and legacy of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter in Plains, Georgia. The former first lady, who would have been 97 on Aug. 18, died at age 96 last November. The weekend will include an auction preview, an evening at Plains High School, a Rosalynn Carter Memorial Food Distribution, a butterfly release, the 2024 Carter Historical Auction and stay for church at Marantha Baptist Church on Sunday morning! Read more
Aug. 17, 2024
FREE Book Giveaway with Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) Honors Rosalynn Carter
The Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta will host a special event on Aug. 17 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (EDT) commemorating Mrs. Carter’s birthday with the partnership of Reading Is Fundamental (RIF). RIF will be onsite to give out FREE books to kids.
Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) is celebrating nearly 60 years of inspiring the joy of reading for children. This legacy of impact has inspired a group of unprecedented literacy champions since our founding in 1966. Join the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum to celebrate the life and legacy of Rosalynn Carter, a steadfast champion for children’s literacy.
RSVPs are strongly encouraged. Please complete this form to RSVP by August 10th
Aug. 17, 2024
First Ladies and Their Legacies with Andrew Och
Author Andrew Och, aka “The First Ladies Man,” will present "First Ladies and Their Legacies" with Andrew Och at the Maranatha Baptist Church "Coffee & Conversations Inspired by Rosalynn Carter" at the 3rd Annual Butterfly Daze Festival in Plains, Georgia. Read more
Aug. 17, 2024
In-Person Fun with FLOTUS: A Sensory Voyage Through Grace Coolidge's Legacy
The National First Ladies Library presents “FLOTUS: A Sensory Voyage Through Grace Coolidge’s Legacy” for children ages 6 to10. The event takes place from 11 a.m. to noon EDT and includes sensory stations that tells the story of the former first lady’s impact. Read more
Aug. 19, 2024
Virtual First Ladies on the Page Book Discussion: White Houses by Amy Bloom
Join the National First Ladies Library & Museum from 7 to 8 p.m. EDT on Monday, Aug. 19, for a discussion of author Amy Bloom’s White Houses. In this historical fiction, Amy Bloom aptly explores the friendship and romance between Lorena Hickok and Eleanor Roosevelt. The discussion meets live on Zoom. This interactive program will not be recorded. Zoom info, questions, and pertinent links will be sent out to participants before the meeting. Read more
Submit calendar items, announcements and press releases to East Wing Magazine at jtaylor@eastwingmagazine.com.