The 30-year-old, a member of the United States women's teams which struck gold at London 2012 and Rio 2016, attended the 118th Annual Golden Dragon Parade in Chinatown.

Also representing Los Angeles' bid for the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics were badminton playing sisters Iris and Rena Wang, who are both Olympians.

Thousands of people took to the streets for the celebration which bid leaders described as a "celebration of our unity in diversity".

Young athletes from the Irvine Kahuna Water Polo Club joined the Olympians as well as three badminton hopefuls - Vinson Chiu, Jamie Hsu and Timothy Lam.

The event was hosted by the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles.

The Lunar New Year - also known as the Chinese New Year - is celebrated by about 700,000 Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese Americans who call the Los Angeles area home.

LA 2024 chairman Casey Wasserman said: "The parade was far more than floats, convertible cars and marching bands - it was an inspiring celebration of our city’s unity in diversity. 

"On behalf of LA 2024, I would like to thank the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles for organising this wonderful celebration and thank Courtney, Iris and Rena for representing LA 2024 at the Golden Dragon Parade. 

"LA 2024 is honoured to have joined the LA area’s thriving Chinese American community in celebrating the day of the Lunar New Year.

"It’s days like these that reinforce our belief that Angelenos are ready to warmly welcome athletes, fans and all members of the Olympic Family in 2024."

Budapest and Paris are also bidding for the 2024 Games.

The International Olympic Committee will elect a host at its Session in Lima on September 13.

Diversity is a hot topic in the US at the moment, following President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration.

This prohibited citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries - Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen - from being granted entry to the US for a 90-day period.

A Federal Judge blocked the ban but the Trump administration has vowed to fight to overturn this.

Los Angeles 2024 chief executive Gene Sykes has expressed his confidence that the city’s 2024 bid will not be affected by the President's order.