The opening ceremony for the 2024 Paris Olympics begins Friday at 1:30 p.m. For the following two weeks, we’ll all be glued to our TVs waiting for Team USA to bring home the gold. More than ever, we’ll have our eyes on several standout athletes who have called Philadelphia’s western suburbs home.
Given that youth sports are such an intrinsic part of our local culture, it makes sense that the Main Line region would be so well represented in Paris this summer. The following athletes spent years honing their skills in our communities. Now it’s time for us to support them as they compete beneath the stars and stripes against the best in the world.
Ivan Puskovitch
Hometown: West Chester, PA
Competition: Men’s 10km Marathon Swim
Born and raised in West Chester, Puskovitch began his swimming career at Newtown Square’s Episcopal Academy. After placing 14th in the 2024 World Aquatics Championship, he qualified for the 10k open water swim at the 2024 Paris Olympics, becoming only the fifth male in U.S. history to qualify for the event. Easily identifiable for his curly, flowing locks that reach halfway down his back, Puskovitch claims he’s never had a haircut in his life.
Ariana Ramsey
Hometown: Bridgeport, PA
Competition: Women’s Rugby Sevens
Growing up in Bridgeport, Ramsey attended Upper Merion High School and likely never dreamed that she would get to compete in the Olympics once, let alone twice. Ramsey was part of the U.S. women’s rugby sevens national team that placed sixth in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021). Though she only started playing the sport in her sophomore year of high school, her field hockey, wrestling and track and field experience made the transition a little easier. Ramsey also speaks both French and Mandarin Chinese fluently.
Jovanna Sekulic
Hometown: Haverford, PA
Competition: Women’s Water Polo
Sekulic was born in Belgrade, Serbia, but her family moved to the U.S. in 2014 and settled in Delaware County. After the move, she attended Episcopal Academy, where she was a classmate of fellow Olympian Ivan Puskovitch. An advanced athlete from a young age, she competed against boys through college at Princeton University. Paris 2024 will be her first Olympics.
Ashley Sessa
Hometown: Schwenksville, PA
Competition: Women’s Field Hockey
Yet another Episcopal Academy grad, Sessa has been playing field hockey since she was old enough to hold a stick. After joining her local YMCA team at age four, she never looked back. Part of a tradition of local field hockey standouts, she became one of only three players ever to be selected to the U.S. Women’s National Field Hockey Team at age 16 in 2021, joining Katie Bam, selected in 2005, and Chester County native Erin Matson in 2017 (with whom Sessa won two NCAA national titles, one as a teammate and one with Matson as coach).
Allie Wilson
Hometown: Wallingford, PA
Competition: Women’s 800m Race
Hailing from Wallingford, Wilson attended Strath Haven High School in Delco, where she fell in love with the 800m in fourth grade. Now 28 years old, she’ll be competing in her first Olympics this month after posting a qualifying time just .23 seconds off her personal best at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, OR. Now living in Atlanta, GA, she helps run Atlanta Track Club Elite.
Philadelphia Union
Renowned throughout world soccer, the Philadelphia Union’s academy program in Wayne trains children as young as four years old in soccer. It has developed world-class talents like Brendon Aaronson, Mark McKenzie and Austin Trusty (including 14-year-old Cavan Sullivan, who recently broke the record for youngest-ever debut in American professional sports), valued at a combined $25 million on the international transfer market. Though those players won’t be competing in the Paris Olympics, several recent graduates will take the field for U.S. men’s soccer this summer to face off against the top competition in the world.
Jack McGlynn
Born in Queens, NY, McGlynn joined the Union’s academy in 2019, brought in by family ties from Scranton. At 21 years old, he’s known for his inch-perfect long ball passes and exceptional left foot. He scored one of the biggest penalties in Union history under intense pressure during their conference semi-final faceoff with Nashville at age 19 in 2021.
Nathan Harriel
Hailing from Oldsmar, FL, Harriel joined the Philadelphia Union following a trade for homegrown rights from Orlando City in 2018. He broke into the squad on a more permanent basis in 2021 as a full-back following absences from more seasoned players Alvas Powell and Olivier Mbaizo. Since then, he’s impressed with his defensive ability and overlap play going up the right wing.
Paxten Aaronson
The younger brother of U.S. international Brendan Aaronson, Paxten joined the Union Academy as a 12-year-old in 2015 before making his senior team debut at just 17 years old in May 2021. He played only 37 games with the club before a $4 million transfer sent him to Bundesliga squad Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022.
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