The city of Rio de Janeiro has left sports fans unexpectedly satisfied with the 31st edition of the modern Olympic games.
Coming into the competition, dire questions loomed over the Brazilian capital, one of the largest being the safety of athletes and spectators. With the exception of a few stray bullets hitting the equestrian venue, Rio’s reputation of crime took the back seat during the games. That, however, was not the only notable aspect of the games. Here are some of the biggest takeaways from the 2016 Summer Olympics.
The United States’ domination of the Summer Games continued as the American’s decimated the rest of the competitors in the overall medal count, tallying 46 gold, 37 silver and 38 bronze for a total of 121. Great Britain, the next closest country in the medal count, had only 67 total.
Gymnastic phenom Simone Biles’ meteoric rise was the one of the biggest headlines in the first week of the competition. The 19 year-old stole the hearts of viewers all over the world as she flipped, twisted and leaped her way to five Olympic medal; four gold and one bronze.
Michael Phelps used the Rio games to solidify his status as the greatest swimmer of all time. He notched five golds and one silver, bringing his overall total to 28. Phelps, perhaps the most notable international athlete next to Usain Bolt, is the most decorated Olympian of all time.
Bolt took the title as “world’s fastest man” for the third straight Olympics, taking gold in the 100 meters, the 200 meters and the 4×100 meters relay. Bolt, in addition to being the favorite to win, was the crowd favorite. He drew massive cheers from the fans in Rio while American Justin Gatlin received jeers upon hearing his name called.
United States skeet shooter Kim Rhode earned a medal in her sixth consecutive Olympics. She took the bronze in womens skeet and became the first woman to medal in six straight games. The 37 year-old, while not receiving the publicity of Phelps or Bolt, has had an incredible amount of success for the American team.
Lastly, there is Ryan Lochte. The American swimmer who has lived in Phelps’ shadow for all of his life marred what was almost a storybook games for Team U.S.A. After stating that he was robbed at gunpoint along with teammates Jimmy Feigen, Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger, a further investigation revealed that Lochte, in his words, had “exaggerated” the details of his report. In an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer, Lochte confessed to his lies but looked flustered and embarrassed as Lauer probed the 12-time Olympic medalist for a cause to his actions. In the end, “I made a mistake” and “I’m not sure why I did it” were what Lochte left viewers with. Not very convincing, obviously.
So, although there were a few darker moments, the 2016 Olympic Games were arguably the most memorable in the 21st century so far. Tokyo 2020, all eyes are on you.
