Alexander Smith is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital based in London.
STADE DE FRANCE — As the ball tumbled out of the Saint-Denis sky, it seemed destined to reach the hands of one man: French rugby superstar Antoine Dupont. In a thrilling rugby sevens final against holders Fiji, Dupont scored two tries and teed up another to clinch his country’s first gold of Paris 2024. But the man nicknamed “The Gifted” also cemented himself in the eyes of many as the sport’s best player — and possibly the greatest of all time.
Straight from the halftime restart, the ball fell to him — his first touch — and in an instant he had covered 20 yards and was skipping round the veteran Fijian captain Jerry Tuwai before darting 40 more and offloading to Aaron Grandidier Nkanang for the score. Dupont would take two slightly less dazzling tries himself, by which time the arena had caved into joyful madness. “He’s why we came here,” said Jerome Faffe, 50, dressed in a France jersey and tricolor wig.
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