Tevez first came into prominence with Argentina while playing in the 2001 FIFA U-17 World Championship. At the 2004 Olympic Games in Greece, he won the gold medal – Argentina's first in any event since 1952 – and scored eight goals in six matches to be the top scorer of the competition. This included the winner in the final against Paraguay, two in a 6–0 group-stage rout of Serbia and Montenegro, and a hat-trick in a 4–0 quarter-final win over Costa Rica. Tevez represented Argentina's senior team in the 2004 Copa América, where the team reached the final, only to lose out to rivals Brazil on penalties; he scored a goal in both of the preceding rounds. He was the world's second-highest goalscorer of 2004 in overall international competition with 16 goals, one fewer than Iran forward Ali Daei.