The time has come. Passing daisy chain-like from hand to hand, the torch has made its way from Athens and is finally waiting in the wings at Maracanã stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
It’s been years in the making and mired in controversy, but The Olympics is finally here, and despite the hullabaloo, we’re really excited. Rio 2016, which will begin tonight with a traditional opening ceremony, is set to be a wonderful affair – here are five reasons why.
- There’s a refugee team. For the first time in the Games’ history, the 200+ countries competing at Rio will be joined by a small team of refugees. The ten men and women, who are all currently displaced from their homes due to ongoing conflicts, will compete for the ultimate sporting title. United under the Olympic rings, this group of athletes represent the hope and unity that international events like Rio 2016 can bring.
- There’s a raft of inspiring women doing amazing things for equal representation. There’s the USA’s swimmer extraordinaire Katie Ledecky who won gold at just 15 in 2012. Then there’s Team GB’s Nicola Adams, who believes she is “unbeatable” in her event, boxing. Not forgetting Ibtihaj Muhammad, a fencer from America who will be the first Muslim woman to represent the States while wearing a hijab. These three are of course just a cross section of the 5,000 or thereabouts women who will be competing on a world stage as heroes with equal coverage to their male counterparts. No doubt this is representation that will inspire millions.
- Modern legends Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps and Jessica Ennis-Hill are coming back – perhaps for the last time. Charismatic tour de force Usain Bolt is back to make love to the camera and attempt a ‘triple triple.’ That is: he’s aiming to bag gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay for the third Olympics in a row. Meanwhile, Phelps – the most decorated Olympian of all time – is looking to add to his already bursting trophy cabinet. Then there’s Sheffield-born Ennis-Hill, who took home the World title last year just over a year after giving birth to her son, Reggie. This being the last time we’ll see Olympians like these on the greatest stage of all, make sure you don’t miss their events.
- It will help unite a Britain split by the Brexit vote in June. After a month of animosity in the UK, The Olympics is set to unite the nation again under the infectious atmosphere of competition. Team GB will consist of 372 athletes competing in 31 different sports. This year’s flag bearer will be recent Wimbledon champ Andy Murray.
- It’s great telly! Humanitarian breakthroughs and progressive representation aside, there’s also the fact that The Olympics makes for 16 days of unbeatable TV. In 2012, 3.6 billion people tuned in to watch coverage of the world’s greatest sporting event and it’s no surprise – the broadcasts are always spellbinding. When the daily highlights ended in 2012 it was hard to know what to do with ourselves…so we’re excited to spend the next fortnight glued to our TV’s again!
