Is anyone more excited than TODAY's Hoda Kotb to be at the Tokyo Olympics?
We're not sure — and that includes the Olympians!
Hoda shared a slew of photos and videos from her time at the Summer Games on Instagram over the weekend, and it almost feels like we were standing with her. Her week-one roundup (click to scroll through the pictures below) included behind-the-scenes shots with the new TODAY mascot, a fun selfie with Savannah and Michael Phelps, candid moments with Al and Craig, and more:
Plus, who could forget her special breakfast on Sunday morning? How do you say "they're grrrrreat!" in Japanese?
Hoda also leaned even harder into her head cheerleader for Team USA persona when she watched swimmer Robert Finke win gold in the 1,500 meter ("Bet your dad Joe could use more kleenexes!!" she wrote) and shared in the joy of the U.S. winning the men's 4x100 medley relay, breaking the world record in the process.
She also had the chance to flag down gymnast Jade Carey ("Excuse me miss... am I speaking to a "GOLD MEDALIST?" Yessss I ammmm!!! Go Jade Go!!!!") who won the gold in the individual floor exercise, an especially happy occasion as the 21-year-old stumbled the day before on the vault. And Hoda sat down with MyKayla Skinner, who clinched the silver even though she was ready to head back home to Arizona just a few days before.
"It means everything to me. This is all I've ever dreamed of," gymnast Carey told Hoda later on.
Finke, whose big wins were also a big surprise, also shared with Hoda, "Coming in, I wasn't even expecting a medal. ... To come out of this with two medals and two golds ... it's a massive dream come true."
Keni Harrison won silver in the 100-meter hurdles and opened up to Hoda about her mantra for keeping tough: "You have faith, I'm confident, and you got this."
During Skinner's chat with Hoda, she took a moment to acknowledge Simone Biles, who withdrew from from several events she had qualified for. "She's definitely inspired me," Skinner explained. "I said, 'You know what, you were supposed to have this opportunity, but I'm so grateful to step in for you, and I wanted to do this for us.'"
Hoda wasn't the only member of the TODAY team sitting down with top members of Team USA. Co-host Craig Melvin chatted with five-time gold medalist in swimming Caeleb Dressel.
Since the weekend in Tokyo ended, Hoda's been quick to share new pictures, one with Finke in the wake of his big victory.
"I-FINKE-I-CAN!!! Bobby finke comes from behind ! TWICE! 2 GOLDS!" she wrote.
All that energy and enthusiasm from Hoda hasn't gone unnoticed, either. On one of her Instagram posts, a fan wrote, "These olympians probably appreciate so much having such a motherly and parental presence there right now. When you can’t hug your own family after such a life changing event, having Hoda there so be everyone’s cheerleader is so special and wonderful!"
We couldn't agree more.
Check back Tuesday for more of our TODAY in Tokyo digest!
Related: