The 2016 Olympics

The+2016+Olympics
As the 2016 summer Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil approach, many excited viewers are getting ready to root for their favorite athletes.
 
Possibly the most exciting fact that has been presented about the upcoming Olympic games is that Michael Phelps is coming back for one more set of games. Phelps has been awarded the most Olympic medals in the history of the Olympics.
 
At the 2012 Olympic games in London, Phelps swore that he would not participate in another year of games. As a result, the media focused on covering Phelps and only Phelps for a majority of the games.
 
SIKE! He’s back, so get ready to watch him all over again. It’s likely that the media will continue to obsess over his every backstroke.
 
Be ready to watch epic showdowns of Phelps and his Olympic teammate Ryan Lochte.
 
The women’s swim team for the US is also a force to be reckoned with as Missy Franklin is back and better than ever. In the 2012 games, Franklin was only 17 and was still able to be the undoubted fastest swimmer in the games, setting world records left and right. Now 21, Franklin is ready to continue her dominance in the pool in Rio.
 
Also returning to the Summer Olympics in Rio are the USA women’s gymnastic dream team, containing Gabby Douglas, McKayla Maroney, Kyla Ross, Jordyn Wieber, and Massachusett’s own Aly Raisman.
 
The dream team brought back the gold medal for the first time in the team event since 1996. The young athletes definitely have an exciting career ahead of them if they can manage to get past the USA Olympic trials, which determine the 2016 team.
 
Sophomore Hayley Palermo says, “I am most excited to watch gymnastics. It is amazing what the gymnasts are able to do.  I’m also excited for tennis since I play it and love to watch it, too.”
 
The United States Men’s Olympic Tennis Team’s shot at winning a gold metal are less than slim, for Serbia’s Novak Djokovic is currently on the top of his game and is ranked number one in the world.
 
However, if the women’s team is able to snag a gold medal, it would certainly not surprise anyone. One of the most famous tennis players to ever live, Serena Williams, is never considered an underdog and her talents should not be doubted during this year’s Olympic games.
 
The women’s soccer team is ready to win back-to-back Olympics games. The Japanese team is no doubt out for revenge after an embarrassing 5-2 loss in the FIFA World Cup final in August.
 
The men’s soccer team, however, is not being considered in the gold medal conversation as of right now, for they are competing against Brazil’s “Neymar” da Silva Santos Jr, Argentina’s Lionel Andres “Messi,” Portugal’s Cristiano “Ronaldo” dos Santos Aveiro, and, of course, the defending FIFA World Cup Champions, Germany.
 
For the first time since 1904, “The greatest sport to ever exist,” according to Brielle Ruscitti, is back in the Olympics. That’s right, golf. Brielle is excited to see how the Olympics approach golf and whether they are going to do team scoring as well as individual scoring.
 
The men’s basketball team hopes to continue their dominance this summer and win the gold medal for a 3rd consecutive Olympics. The USA team will have to do so without the current best player in the world, Stephen Curry, as he plans to rest his knee and ankle injuries this summer in order to be 100% healthy when the NBA season begins in October.
 
Even more likely to win a gold medal than the United States’ Men’s Olympic Basketball Team, is the women’s team. The women’s team has not lost the gold medal since 1992, and it would be shocking to see that streak end with many of the great WNBA players prepared to play this summer.
 
In track and field, “the fastest man alive” is expected to lose… to an AMERICAN! That’s right, Usain Bolt is expected to lose the 100 meter race to American Justin Gatlin. Even if Bolt does end up losing, the simple thought that he could be dethroned from his title is enough anticipation to make a lot of televisions tune into track and field.
The women’s track and field team are coming off of a world record performance in 2012 and hope to surpass people’s expectations once again.

The 2016 Olympics will be an exciting event. Be sure to watch opening day on August 5th to see if  your favorite athletes will grab the gold!