Community News
Spotlighting CA-45 Olympians
by: Rep. Michelle Steel
Published: July 22, 2024
ORANGE COUNTY...This week marks the beginning of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. This historic event has long been hailed as a hallmark of sportsmanship and global cooperation. I am so proud to celebrate the six Olympic and Paralympic athletes from California's 45th District who will be representing the United States in Paris.
Kelly Cheng comes from Fullerton and will be returning to the Olympics to claim gold in Beach Volleyball. She was a standout player for El Dorado High School before spending three years at USC, and has since won the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championship.
Megumi Field came to Cerritos at a young age to chase her passion of Artistic Swimming. Megumi is already making her mark on the sport, placing first place in the 2022 FINA Artistic Swimming World Series. After Paris, she will continue to compete with her teammates at Stanford University.
Chris Joslin comes from Hawaiian Gardens and has quickly become a staple of the world’s top skateboarding competitions. He's claimed two world championships and numerous Street League Skateboarding contests and is eager to represent the United States on the world stage.
Kevin Nguyen is a local hero, attending Westminster High School before joining the U.S. Army. As a Staff Sergeant, Kevin valiantly served during the U.S. campaign in Afghanistan until a tragic IED explosion resulted in severe injuries to his right leg. Nonetheless his relentless drive led him to continue his Army career, finding a place with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit which competes in a variety of high-level competitions. This will be Kevin’s second Paralympic games competing in Para Shooting.
Lilia Vu comes from Fountain Valley and is ranked the second best female golfer in the world. The daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, Lilia played at both Fountain Valley High School and UCLA before joining the LPGA and winning eight professional titles, including the 2023 Chevron Championship and Women’s British Open.
Justine Wong-Orantes is from Cypress and she will be returning to the Olympics to claim her second gold medal with her teammates in Indoor Volleyball. She began playing volleyball at age 6 and has since claimed an NCAA championship and was named Best Libero at the 2021 Tokyo games.
Congratulations to these prestigious athletes and all those representing the United States in Paris this summer. We look forward to cheering you on here at home!