As the Paris Summer Olympics get underway, there will be 8 storylines
Parais-Olympics: Opening Ceremony of the New Paris Summer Olympics and First An Outdoor Parasailing Event at the Eiffel Tower
A group of boats carrying more than 10,000 athletes and performers will go down a 3.6 mile stretch of the River Seine during the opening ceremony on July 26. It’s the first time in the history of the modern Olympics that’s being held outside of a stadium, officials say.
The 16 day sporting events kicked off with an outdoor ceremony that was expected to be the largest one yet.
Outside of Paris, the Palace of Versailles is home to equestrian events, while in Teahupo’o, it is home to surfing.
The US is expected to take home the most medals in Paris followed by China, Great Britain, France and then Australia. Russia is sending just a small number of athletes to Paris due to punishments related to their country’s drug scandal and invasion of Ukranian.
300,000 people will watch the parade from the upper embankments and most of them will not pay an admission fee.
The parade will travel east to west, starting at Austerlitz Bridge, and then pass by major landmarks and event venues like the Grand Palais. The finale show at the Trocadéro opposite the Eiffel Tower will precede the parade’s end at Pont d’Ina bridge.
The parade’s route also offers a sightseeing tour of some of the temporary sports venues, including an outdoor arena abutting the Eiffel Tower where beach volleyball games will take place.
The U.S. women’s gymnastics team at the IOC is hopeful of winning gold in the individual all-around competition in Paris
Recent testing of the water has turned up unsafe levels of E. coli bacteria caused by fecal matter, but tests earlier this month showed acceptable bacteria levels. In an effort to silence skeptics, last week Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo followed through on her promise to take a dip in the Seine and declared the waters perfectly safe.
The counterculture sport of skateboarding will be included in the Olympics for the first time in Paris. Breaking — best known to the uninitiated as “break-dancing” — is a dance style said to have originated in the 1970s from the streets of New York City’s South Bronx and inspired by the break beats and hip-hop tracks played by DJs and MCs. The act of acrobatics, which includes head-spins, back flips and other acrobatics, is impressive in its athletic prowess.
Although it’s an American export, other countries including Japan, Canada and The Netherlands boast talent that’s been known to surpass the U.S. competitively.
In Paris, 16 b-boys and 16 b-girls will fight for supremacy in the outdoor public square, Place de la Concorde. The men and women will compete on the same day. Team USA should look out for Victor Montalvo andSunny Choi in medal contention.
The same U.S. women’s gymnastics team that took home a silver medal at the Tokyo Games all-around final in 2021 is hoping to rewrite their Olympic ending in Paris.
Three years ago, when she was the mostdecorated gymnast of all time, there was a case of the “twisties” that forced her to withdraw from many gymnastic events and focus on her mental health. In her place, Suni Lee had emerged as the unlikely champion, and went on to earn a gold medal in the individual all-around competition in Tokyo.
Now, with Biles in top form and the team united in its goal of “redemption,” the women’s squad is the favorite to win gold. And especially so, given that Russia, the defending gold medalist, won’t be there. The IOC plans to allow only some Russian athletes to compete as “individual neutral athletes” under strict conditions it set in response to Russia’s war in Ukraine. The men’s medal chances in a sport that is usually dominated by Russia, China and Japan increase as a result of the country’s absence.
Entering her fourth Olympics, Katie Ledecky continues to dominate the 800- and 1,500-meter freestyle events, in both of which she still holds the world records. Seven of her Olympic medals are gold, putting her just two wins away from earning the most Olympic gold medals of any female athlete in history. Younger swimmers have Ledecky beat in the 400-meter freestyle: Australia’s Ariarne Titmus (who took gold in Tokyo and also reigns in the 200-meter event) and Canada’s Summer McIntosh have each knocked down Ledecky’s world record, which Titmus currently holds. The Titmus-McIntosh-Ledecky 400-meter race should make for a thrilling watch.
Caelb Dressel is the man that the US hopes will be its next swimming star. The 27-year-old won five gold medals in Tokyo — joining an elite few of swimmers that have won that many in a single Games, including Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz. At the Olympic trials last month, Dressel showed that he is still fast in the sprints after taking an eight-month break from the sport.
The two fastest swimmers in the world are not from Australia and the U.S., but from Canada and France, which is what they are headed to Paris for.
The U.S. Justice Department has opened a criminal probe into the case involving the swimmers. Meanwhile, China is expected to send 11 of the 32 swimmers who had the performance drug in their system in 2021 to compete in Paris.
The agency’s handling of the positive tests has sowed doubt deeper among critics who question whether the regulatory body responsible for curbing cheating holds some countries to a lower standard than others.
Source: 8 storylines to follow as the Paris Summer Olympics get underway
Team USA in the 100 meter and 200-meter: Opening Ceremony for the Women’s Olympic Soccer Tournament (the Men’s Basketball Tournament)
In the men’s 100 meter race, Team USA will have a chance to set a world record as they face off against Jamaica and Kishane Thompson. The field has talent that can affect podium predictions. Other top contenders include reigning Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs of Italy, Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo and a former world champion American Fred Kerley.
In the 200-meter, there’s a real chance we could see the fall of Flo-Jo’s world record set that same year when she ran 21.34 seconds. Team USA will be going head-to-head with Jackson and Elaine Thompson-Herah.
Lyles also racing in the 200-meter — his better event — a race that won’t be as wide open as the 100. He’s the favorite, ahead of Tebogo, who won the men’s race last week at an international meet in Monaco.
The Games officially start with the opening ceremony. The bronze medal that the U.S. women’s national team earned in Tokyo should be upgraded. Since the 2012 London Olympics, the four-time gold medal winning athletes have not taken first on the podium. After the retirement of many major stars, a younger squad is being led by a former manager at the women’s club team. Spain is the favorite to win the gold medal.
The United States men’s soccer team returned to the Olympics after a 16-year absence and opened with a 3-0 loss to host France in group play in Marseille.
The men kick off their tournament on Wednesday in a game against host country France, a favorite to win it all. The women’s squad will play on Thursday.
U.S. 2-1 lead in the final of the epoch of World Cup physics: Walker Zimmerman, 38, an overage player
Lacazotte had an assist in the 69th minute. He moved around the American defense and passed to Michael Olise who doubled the French lead.
The U.S. missed a chance to get on the board first. In the 59th minute, Djordje Mihailovic fired a blistering right-footer that smashed off the crossbar.
The US and France started the second half in the same way they ended the first, attacking in their own half of the field. The French crowd went crazy when their squad finished 13th at the Tokyo Olympics.
All players on the Olympic roster must be under the age of 23. Most of the U.S. squad has been in Major League Soccer or an MLS academy club. Walker Zimmerman, age 31, is one of a trio of “overage” players. He played in all four of the US matches at the World Cup.