Twenty-two years ago, LeBron James was a high school phenom in Ohio still a year away from starting his NBA career and Chari Hawkins was a middle schooler in Idaho when the pair had a photo taken together.
On Friday during the Olympic opening ceremony in Paris, things came full circle as the two again snapped a photo together, this time with both as Olympians representing Team USA.
“Full Circle Moment! Taking it all in! 🇺🇸 #DREAMBIG,” Hawkins wrote on her Instagram story in a post with both the 2002 photo and Friday’s shot. Accompanying the post was the song “Dream Big” by Utah-based Ryan Shupe & the RubberBand.
The post and story behind it have gone viral, with tons of big outlets sharing it. On one post from an Instagram account with 239,000 followers called On Her Turf, Hawkins commented, “This is absolutely a dream come true! 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻”
Hawkins, who competed in track and field at the collegiate level at Utah State, earned her first Olympic berth at the age of 33 in the heptathlon.
James, who was the flag bearer for Team USA alongside tennis star Coco Gauff at the opening ceremony, is making his fourth appearance at the Olympics.