Originally appeared on E! Online
This Closing Ceremony character deserves a gold medal — literally.
During the 2024 Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony Aug. 11, fans on social media immediately took note of the Golden Voyager figure that stole the show.
The masked extraterrestrial character, which was designed by the ceremony’s artistic director Thomas Jolly, descended from the top of the arena donned entirely gold armor with a spiked headpiece. One user on X, formerly Twitter, described its look as a “space wasp.”
Thomas designed the artistic character to represent the Voyager Golden Record, or the record of humanity sent to space by France in 1977, per the Associated Press, and it kept audiences very entertained during a section of the ceremony that paid homage to the history of France and the Olympics itself.
In addition to floating down from the rafters, the Golden Voyager completed a lengthy interpretive dance around the Closing Ceremony stage. Many viewers shared mixed reactions on the creative element to social media.
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“‘Sleep paralysis demons’ is an interesting theme for the closing ceremony,” one X user wrote. “Let’s see where it goes.”
Meanwhile others compared the look to an episode of "The Masked Singer," and even shared their theories as to who could be under the elaborate costume.
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“Plot twist,” another user added. “The Golden Voyager at the Paris 2024 Closing Ceremony is actually the Australian breakdancer.”
But not everyone was into the character’s flair. As another person on X noted, “Pretty sure this golden voyager is going to figure in my nightmares for the next four years.”
And while the Golden Voyager earned its fair share of attention during the Olympics send-off, it was far from the only noteworthy appearance. After all, the indie rock band Phoenix made a surprise appearance, along with Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig, to perform some of its biggest hits for the crowd of 2024 Olympic athletes, including “Lisztomania” and “1901.”
In terms of athlete appearances, Team USA rower Nick Mead and 14-time Olympic medalist swimmer Katie Ledecky acted as flag bearers for the ceremony, and Katie even teased her plans for the next summer games in Los Angeles.
“I’d love to swim in 2028,” the 27-year-old told NBC’s Mike Tirico and Jimmy Fallon during the Closing Ceremony. “I think swimming in front of a home crowd would be incredible.”
