Team USA's Evy Leibfarth celebrates with fans after winning canoe slalom bronze during the Paris 2024 Olympics at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium. | Sarah Phipps-USA TODAY Sports

Evy Leibfarth scraped into the final of the Paris Olympics women’s canoe slalom on Wednesday.

But within hours, the 20-year-old from North Carolina was celebrating on the podium, having captured the first Olympic medal of her career.

It was a remarkable turnaround for Leibfarth, who is taking part in three separate events at what is her second Games.

She posted succinctly on Instagram: “No words, just a lot of tears.”

Before Paris, she spoke of being inspired by other paddlers who are LGBTQ and the boost an athlete gets from being in a welcoming space.

“Just seeing other really successful people who are queer and knowing that it doesn’t make any difference is so great to see and just really reassuring, especially as a young woman in sports,” Leibfarth added to Teen Vogue.

Now with a bronze medal to her name, and with a very strong social media game, she is sure to be a role model to many more young women and girls. She is one of 33 out LGBTQ athletes known to be part of Team USA at these Games so far.

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Leibfarth came into the C-1 competition having already missed out on the K-1 final last weekend.

In the semis, she only just pipped France’s Marjorie Delassus to the 12th spot, taking her through — but it also meant she would go first in the final.

She put down a much better time and had to wait to see how many of the other canoeists would overtake. In the end, only two did — Australia’s Jessica Fox and Germany’s Elena Lilik.

“Both of these girls I’ve looked up to for so long,” said Leibfarth afterwards. “I think they’re amazing paddlers, they’re beautiful to watch on the water and I feel very proud to be up here with them.”

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Not since Rebecca Giddens took kayak slalom silver in Athens in 2004 — the year Leibfarth was born — has an American woman won a medal in a solo canoe event at the Olympics.

There’s more fun to come too, with the Games’ inaugural kayak cross competition getting underway at Vaires-sur-Marne on Friday.

This promises to be a thrilling spectacle, as four kayakers get dropped from a raised platform at the same time and battle their way through the gated course against each other.

@evykayak Replying to @♡maddie♡ something a ton of yall asked! ill try to answer more qs this week #genzolympics #paris2024 #teamusa ♬ original sound – evy leibfarth 🙂

“You’ve got to really want it,” added Leibfarth to USA Today. “It’s kind of a contact sport so you’ve got to be fricking going for it!”

It promises to be essential viewing, just like snowboard cross has become a firm favorite at the Winter Olympics.

Two down, one to go, and a medal in the bag. Forget “Emily in Paris” — “Evy in Paris” is the show to see this summer.