All it takes is one moment to obtain greatness at the Olympics, and Mallory Swanson took full advantage of her opportunity in the gold medal match.
The USWNT forward paced past Brazil's backline when Korbin Albert delivered a through ball in the 57th minute. Swanson buried the goal, giving the United States a 1-0 lead that it would hold onto for the remainder of the match.
The United States won the women's soccer gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the program's first Olympic gold since the 2012 London Games.
Here's a look at the winning goal that put the USWNT back on top of the world.
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Mallory Swanson goal today
The United States entered yet another halftime with a 0-0 score. It had won the previous two knockout round games with late goals, but Swanson didn't keep fans biting their nails for too long into the second half.
Swanson scored what proved to be the winning goal in the 57th minute off an assist from Albert. Brazil initiated a VAR review, and video confirmed Swanson was onside.
TEAM USA STRIKES FIRST—AND IT'S MALLORY SWANSON AGAIN!
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 10, 2024
1-0 IN THE GOLD MEDAL MATCH.#ParisOlympics | 📺 NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/rCEQNIbR68
To no surprise, head coach Emma Hayes was quite excited.
EMMA HAYES WAS PUMPED AFTER MAL SWANSON'S GOAL FOR THE USA 😤 pic.twitter.com/7PgW0qgh2e
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 10, 2024
Sophia Smith was also on the same run, but it seemed that she was offside. Because she didn't touch the ball, the play went on and resulted in a goal for the United States.
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This was Swanson's fourth goal of the Olympics, leading all USWNT players. Smith and Trinity Rodman, the other two members of the self-proclaimed "Triple Espresso" scored three apiece.
It's fitting Swanson scored the winning goal since Rodman and Smith scored the winning goals in the last two knockout games.