There are no permanent places in the team, only temporary ones— This is one of the biggest rules of soccer. USWNT’s Lynn Williams also echoed a similar sentiment as she faced tough competition from Sophia Smith in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Mostly, it was the Triple Espresso, with Smith completing the trio alongside Mallory Swanson and Trinity Rodman, who represented the attacking ranks of the Star and Stripes ft. ladies in the summer games.

Meanwhile, Williams was mainly introduced by Emma Hayes as a super substitute. Yet, she didn’t have a negative outlook towards it and this was evident in her conversation with US icons Sam Mewis and Becky Sauerbrunn.

Denying the feeling of playing second fiddle to the USWNT’s new-age attacking trio, Williams said, “Sophia, being her best Sophia, is going to make me my best Lynn. Of course, we’re playing the same position, but if we both didn’t compete every day, then we wouldn’t be as good. You push each other,” Lynn Williams shared on The Women’s Game on YouTube.

One day a player is a hero, but chances are they may be no longer the next day—Lynn seems to be living with this principle.

“There is this notion that there isn’t enough to go around for everybody, [but] there is. You can have success and I can have success. Your success has nothing to do with me, my success has nothing to do with you. They just happen to be on the same team,” concluded the Gotham FC star.

Such a mentality only helped Williams. The 31-year-old came off the bench during the Olympics group stage fixture against Germany to make her contribution to USA’s 4-1 tally. On the plus side, she also got her first-ever Olympic medal, that too a gold one! However, might we interest you with an intriguing backstory that wouldn’t have seen Williams make it even in Hayes’ roster in the first place?

Lynn Williams confronted Emma Hayes over the 2024 Paris Olympics roster selection

Following Emma Hayes’ arrival, the USWNT assembled for a pre-Olympic camp to concentrate on tactical details, strategies, and fitness monitoring in preparation for the event. Unfortunately, Lynn Williams missed this meet-up, as she was sidelined due to injury. Fearing that may jeopardize her place in the final selection, she confronted the English tactician by dialing her up.

During the conversation of trying to talk her way in, Williams said, “You haven’t seen me there and you can’t see me now because I am still injured. But don’t write me off because I will be ready come the Olympics.” Well, did it work?

A week later, Lynn got a call to France; the only catch was the Gotham forward got the place as an alternative- basically one of the four extra players in the 22-player squad.

Well, she was definitely happy. Expressing her shock, she asserted, “I walk into the room after the phone call. Marley and our two friends are looking at me and I’m kind of in shock. I’m going as an alternate and so Marley’s like that’s incredible,”

“I genuinely thought ‘There is no way I’m going, she doesn’t know me. I wasn’t in the last camp, I’m injured. I just felt like there’s just no way and I was obviously so excited.” In a bittersweet moment, Catarina Macario picked up an injury in the eleventh hour, seeing Lynn get into the first team and Emily Sams taking the alternative place.

Rest, as you all know, is history. However, Lynn Williams certainly won’t be stopping as she would surely like to work her way into the starting XI, while also maintaining the healthy competition. But hey, did you know that she damaged her hard-earned 2024 Paris Olympics gold medal?

YES! The soccer player was at a Nike celebration party with several other Olympians earlier this month. As she danced and jumped with joy, her medal, which was on her shoulder like a purse, fell off. She scrambled around in search of it and when she found the medal, it had a dent in it. Well, her team then contacted the International Olympic Committee and shared proof of the damage so that Williams’s medal could be repaired or replaced.