Viewers at the Summer Olympics 2024 believe an Italian archer resembles Eminem

Italian archer Mauro Nespoli has earned the moniker “Italian Eminem” from spectators who noticed the rapper’s uncanny likeness during an archery duel.

Viewers of the 2024 Summer Olympics are noticing how strikingly like one archer resembles a particular American rapper.

Italian archer Mauro Nespoli, 36, looks a lot like Eminem, as watchers in Italy, France, and the United States noted after he entered the Paris Esplanade des Invalides archery range on Monday, July 29.

One Olympic spectator wrote, “Italian Eminem,” as the caption for a photo that X uploaded of Nespoli’s match versus French archer Thomas Chirault, in which he wore a bucket hat and had a beard like Slim Shady’s.

A commenter on X joked, “Yeah, it’s Marcello Mathers,” in response to the post.

Another joke said, “Now that Eminem is eating mom’s spaghetti, everything makes sense.”

Over the next few days, Nespoli—who had previously won a gold medal in an Olympic competition against the United States in London in 2012—engaged with fans on his Instagram page, joking about his appearance and sending a message to his Instagram Stories referring to him as “Italian Eminem.”

“If you had one shot, or one opportunity/To seize everything you ever wanted, in one moment/Would you capture it, or just let it slip? 🎯🇮🇹” joked the Italian journalist, who was interviewing him while he posed like the “Houdini” rapper in one of his posts.

During his match on Monday, Nespoli and Team Italy suffered a 6-2 loss to France; however, during the next few days, he won against Bangladesh, Uzbekistan, and France and also suffered a further 6-2 loss to South Korea. The next match is scheduled for Sunday, August 4, between Nespoli and Canada.

Rap has been well-represented at the Paris games so far, even though Eminem was only there in spirit. Snoop Dogg has assisted NBC in anchoring parts of the network’s broadcasts and acted as a torchbearer, encouraging Simone Biles and Coco Gauff from the sidelines.

This year at the games, fellow rapper Flavor Flav has also created a stir. He has shown himself to be a committed sponsor and supporter of the U.S. women’s water polo team, helping the women pay for their Olympic preparation.