This viral Olympics photo was captured by a Brainerd High School grad

By Heidi Holtan

Published August 9, 2024 at 2:28 PM CDT

Two United States gymnasts on the podium at the Paris Olympics in 2024 bow down to gold medal winner from Brazil, Rebeca Andrade — Silver and bronze medalists Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles of the U.S. Gymnastic Team bow down on the podium to gold medal winner from Brazil, Rebeca Andrade, at the floor exercise finals on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024.

Elsa Garrison was the first woman staff photographer for Getty Images and specializes in sports after getting started with the high school yearbook and Brainerd Dispatch.

PARIS — Photographer Elsa Garrison had a feeling something special might happen on the medals podium during the women's gymnastics floor exercise at the Paris Olympics.

When U.S. gymnasts Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles bowed down to Brazilian gold medalist Rebeca Andrade, Garrison captured one of the most iconic images of the 2024 Olympic Games.

"I had the feeling they were going to do something just because that's the type of women they are," Garrison said on the KAXE Morning Show. "The image certainly conveys the Olympic spirit more than anything."

A woman holding a camera at a sport event smiles at the camera. — Elsa Garrison is a staff photographer at Getty Images. She grew up in Brainerd and got her start with the high school yearbook and an internship with the Brainerd Dispatch.

Garrison — a 1990 graduate of Brainerd High School and former Brainerd Dispatch part-timer — was the first woman to serve as a staff photographer for Getty Images, where she specializes in sports photography.

Little did she know when she took photography from Mr. Fitch at Franklin Junior High School or was a high school yearbook staffer with Mr. LaShomb, that she would someday be covering the 2024 Paris Olympics. She was also influenced by her Brainerd Dispatch photography internship, where she started covering local sports.

"He opened my eyes to a whole new world," Elsa said of Brainerd Dispatch photographer Steve Kohls.

From there, Garrison went on to study photography at the Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.

In our conversation, we learned about how she approaches sports photography, her signature style, influences and camera equipment and the changes over the years.

The sun sets by the Eiffel Tower in Paris during the beach volleyball competition, with huge crowds surrounding the court in 2024. — A bird's eye view of beach volleyball under the sunset and iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, in 2024 at the Summer Olympics.

Favorite photos from the Paris Olympics

Garrison spoke about the photos most significant to her at the Olympics. She described the moment of capturing silver medalist Biles and bronze medalist Chiles bowing down to Andrade, noting she earlier overheard the U.S. Olympians discussing how much they respected the Brazilian.

Another favorite of Garrison's was the Eiffel Tower at sunset, featuring a closeup of beach volleyball. Her goal was to not only show the action in the foreground, but to emphasize the sky and iconic Paris setting.

"I had to be really patient to watch for a player diving or serving really close," she said. "At least I got something a little different from the pack on that."

Volleyball at twilight at the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Olympics in 2024 — Beach volleyball at twilight and shadow of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Summer Olympics in 2024.

Listen to our full conversation with Elsa above!