Remember When? (Part I)

I often go back and try to find previous Olympic moments to watch again. The special ones that still give you the chills even though you know what happens. Often, it's the time and place that I was watching this happen that also makes it special to me.

I think I'll start to share some of my favorites as we get closer to the games and maybe even throughout the Olympics as I think of them.

We begin, of course, with the Magnificent Seven. Can you believe this was 20 years ago?! It seems like yesterday to me. We recorded all the gymnastics during the Atlanta Olympics and I just about wore out the types rewatching them over the years. And it should come as no surprise that I still have them and wouldn't hesitate to pull them out and watch once again. I'll never forget watching this at our old house in Stephen's Grant. As an 11-year-old-girl watching this, I was truly mesmerized.

Every year I look through the press profiles of the incoming student-athletes we have at Elon. A few years ago, I started to notice that many of them weren't alive during the '96 Olympics. That's just so hard for me to comprehend. It was such a major moment in my life. I mean, little girls who don't remember watching Kerri Strug land that final vault on a sprained ankle to win U.S. the gold? I impersonated that vault for years to come. And really, what girl my age didn't?!

Go to 1:28:00 for the start of the best part. Also, one of the best opening fluff pieces ever. Can't go wrong with a little Aaron Copland Appalachian Spring!

The Two to Watch

If you'd asked me a year ago, or yesterday, for two names to watch in Rio, I would (and still will) say Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles.

Most people remember Missy Franklin as the swimming darling from the London Olympics. And she was because how can you not love her?! But some injuries and such have kept Franklin from being in the same form she was four years ago. Since then, it's been Ledecky, not Franklin, that's been the most dominant U.S. swimmer. Ledecky is 19 and already competing in her second Olympics. She won gold in the only event she competed in (the 800-meter freestyle) as a 15-year-old in London. Ledecky will now be competing in the 200m, 400m and 800m in Rio and, oh by the way, she's also the reigning world champion in each of those events. More than likely, she will also swim in the 4x200-meter relay, which the U.S. is heavily favored to win. She was the youngest athlete of the entire U.S. delegation in London and is still the youngest member of the swim team. You're going to see her atop several podiums during the Olympics, and more to come, trust me!

People are just now starting to learn Biles' name because it's the Olympics and most people only get interested in gymnastics every four years. However, I keep up with the sport all year, every year, and have been watching this girl since she moved to the senior level in 2013. She is the most dominant women's gymnast ever. EVER! She's won three-straight U.S. and world championship all-around titles, owns 10 world championship golds, which is a record, and hasn't lost a meet in almost as long. The only reason some have a hesitation to say she's the best ever is because she hasn't competed in the Olympics...yet. But that will change in just over a week and she's a favorite to win FIVE gold medals. Just to be clear, only six golds are handed out in women's artistic gymnastics. Her talent is just unreal. She's so good that she could fall and still win. Biles is just that much better than everyone else. Many say the competition is for second place because she's unbeatable. That, of course, remains to be seen and I can't wait to watch! Plus, this 4'9" little bubbly, dynamite is from Houston. So I automatically already love her. She's my pick for this quadrennium's "America's Olympic Sweetheart."

Who will carry the flag?

Countries are starting to announce who their flag bearer will be during the opening ceremony on Friday, Aug 5. The USA has not made that announcement yet but will do so usually a few days prior to the ceremony.

There are many names that have been thrown around as possible picks for the flag bearer. It's very often not someone who people have heard of. Everyone remember fencer Mariel Zargunis who carried the US flag in the London opening ceremony? Yeah, I didn't think so. But just because they are not well known doesn't mean they aren't accomplished. It's the other athletes that vote on the flag bearer and that means it's someone that is well respected and admired by fellow Olympians.

Here are some people who I think could be selected:

Michael Phelps (swimming)
The reasons are obvious and numerous. Rio actually will be his last Olympics (I think) and he's certainly earned the honor. However, since swimming events are in the first half of the Olympics, most swimmers don't walk in the opening ceremony. Not sure if he actually ever has due to the schedule. But he's swimming less events this time around, so maybe his schedule is a little more lenient.

Kristin Armstrong (cycling)
This is her fourth Olympics and she's looking to win her third straight gold. She's the type of person that will often get selected for this honor.

Kim Rhode (shooting)
She's the first U.S. Olympian to win five gold medals in five consecutive Olympics. Think about that for a second. This, 2016, is her sixth Olympics and she's been winning golds since 1996 in Atlanta! Again, she's the type of person that often gets picked for this.

Kerri Walsh Jennings (beach volleyball)
This is Olympics No. 5 for her and she already has three golds. Beach volleyball is also big in Brazil, so it could a local interest type pick.

Ibtihhaj Muahmmad (fencing)
You've probably never heard of her but you might have seen a picture. She will be the first U.S. Olympian to compete in a hijab. This is her first Olympics and the flag bearer is typically someone who has previously been an Olympian. However, this is an historic moment for a U.S. Olympian and with the comments that have been made in our current political climate, it could be a statement by the U.S. athletes.

Carli Lloyd (soccer)
You should all know who she is. If not, then you watch a very minimal amount of sports. The USA women's soccer team has won gold in the past two Olympics and is the reigning World Cup champions. Lloyd, who is team captain, scored the winning goals in the finals in 2008 and 2012 to go along with her hat trick in the WC finals last summer.

Tony Azevedo (water polo)
He was born in Rio but is obviously now a U.S. citizen. While he's only won one medal previously, this is his fifth Olympics. He could be a sentimental pick as he'd be caring the U.S. flag in an opening ceremony in the country and city he was born in.

Steven Lopez (taekwondo)
His name has been thrown out a as a possibility because of his and his family's influence in the sport. The Lopez family is a fixture in taekwondo with several of them competing at one time or another in the Olympics. He's 37 and competing in his fifth Olympics, also probably his last, after previously winning three medals. I also include him because he's from Sugar Land!

Serena Williams (tennis)
Another name you should know or you really live in a non-sport's cave. She's arguably one of the best athletes ever and I'm not just confining that proclamation to her sport or her gender. She already has four gold medals and could easily add another two in Rio.

Then there's the hundreds of other U.S. Olympians that have poured so many blood, sweat and tears into their sport and their road to the Olympics. Anyone could be selected as the flag bearer and be worthy. We shall find out soon!

Opening Ceremony Uniforms

The USOC revealed Team USA's opening ceremony uniforms on the Today show on Friday morning. Per usual, people are making plenty of comments about the uniforms. Make your own judgement but I like them. Pretty typical Ralph Lauren and I'd love some of those red, white and blue boat shoes!

There is one athlete that will have a special feature in his/her uniform. Whoever is chosen to carry the flag in the opening ceremony will have a built in light in their jacket that lights up the Olympic team patch on the front and USA on the back. Now, that's pretty cool!

The Omaha Trail

I recently read this story in Sports Illustrated about a recent graduate collegiate swimmer and now current med school student who fulfilled a dream of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic Trials. I encourage you to read it. It's just one of those very humanizing Olympic stories that really makes you identify and feel for someone like this. It's also very well written (journalism shoutout!).

Click here to read

The Dreaded Zika Virus

Note: These thoughts only pertain to the reason of people not competing in/going to Rio due to the worry of Zika. If Zika starts to spread in the U.S. that's a much bigger problem.

I feel like everything in the news over the past few months has led us to believe that Zika is the new deadly plague. I admit that outside of what they said the effects of the virus are, I kind of ignored what exactly Zika was. I finally figured that I should do some research to figure out just how harmful it is to most people.

The results of my research conclude that if you are not currently pregnant, or do not have immediate plans to conceive, you are safe.

Based on available evidence, the CDC says, "We think that Zika virus infection in a woman who is not pregnant would not pose a risk for birth defects in future pregnancies after the virus has cleared from her blood. From what we know about similar infections, once a person has been infected with Zika virus, he or she is likely to be protected from a future Zika infection."

I also researched how long it takes for the Zika virus to clear from one's blood. The answer is about two weeks. But to be safe, if someone gets Zika and would like to get pregnant soon, she should wait about eight weeks to be safe.

It has been proven that Zika can be sexually transmitted, so males are at risk of passing along the virus. Researchers are actually more worried about the virus lasting longer in men. The testes is a part of the body where viral diseases can persist for a longer period of time. Advice is for men who are infected to wait six months before having unprotected sex.

Now, to be clear, Zika has the potential to be very harmful to that currently pregnant/soon-to-be pregnant demographic. The risk of Zika is microcephaly, a birth defect for which there is no cure. And of course, no one would willingly want to put themselves in harm's way of that. Completely understandable and validated why people in this group is skipping out on Rio.

I'm certainly no doctor or anything close to a medical professional, but unless you fall in that certain demographic, I think athletes should start citing something else besides Zika as their reason to withdraw from the Olympics.

Are the numerous other issues to worry about in Rio? Absolutely! But it doesn't seem like Zika, with a few exceptions, should really be one of them.

Articles explaining Zika:
CDC
STAT

#RioReady

The count down is in the single digits, y'all! Nine days and counting. Another Olympics means another blog. Still not sure how active I will be writing posts this time around. But once the games start, I typically have an abundance of things to share.

In the meantime, I'm #RioReady to start cheering on #TeamUSA. Want some USA gear yourself? You can find these and just about everything else at teamusashop.com. (No, they didn't pay me to advertise. But they should!)