Great Britain has been having a great time at the Rio Olympics, and the women’s hockey team has ensured that the country is sure of at least another silver medal with their entry into the finals, where they’ll face the Netherlands. If the Netherland’s women’s hockey team win this event it will be their third consecutive win in the Olympics.
Great Britain is trailing behind the US in their total medal count. The Great Britain women’s hockey team saw defender Crista Cullen come out of retirement for the Olympics. She said that the very thought of winning an Olympic medal is what makes them get up in the morning. To go ahead and secure gold for the country would be the icing on the cake.
Britain’s hockey team didn’t make a good start to the Olympics. They slipped in their world ranking and started the Rio games from the seventh position.
However, they have secured a 100% win in the group stages where they beat Australia and Argentina. The win over these two countries was a huge boost to the morale of the whole team, since Australia is the current world No.2 while Argentina is ranked third.
After the British team had defeated Spain in the quarter-finals, they entered the gold-medal mentality, according to BBC. The team has transformed themselves during the Olympics and are now fully prepared to topple the world champions, Netherlands and secure gold for their country. The team has seen injuries, but they have overcome every little obstacle with their resilience and strength.
India has been able to secure bronze in Olympics thanks to Sakshi Malik’s impressive show during the women’s wrestling match. The country had sent their largest ever contingent to the games this year, but the majority of them are now out of the Rio Olympics.
While some of the athletes were a letdown, given their performances in the Commonwealth Games, there were some like Dipa Karmakar who missed by a whisker.
A lot is being reported on the officials and ministers who have accompanied the athletes to Rio, in the name of supporting and cheering for them. Quartz reported that Vijay Goel, India’s Sports Minister, has constantly been uploading photos of himself with the athletes from the country, but he has accidentally mis-spelt their names or has mixed up their names in the posts.
India had managed to secure six medals at the London Olympics, but they have only managed one so far this time around. The country is placing all their hopes on P.V Sindhu, who has been exceptional in the women’s singles in badminton. She has entered the semi-finals after defeating Yihan Wang of China.
The Olympic basketball match between Argentina and the United States saw the great rivalry between Argentina and Brazil coming alive in the stadium. The entire Brazilian crowd joined with the Americans in cheering the US.
The Americans won the match 105-78, and the whole stadium erupted with joy when the Argentinian basketball team left the Carioca Arena 1. According to NY Times, the Americans couldn’t understand what was happening in the stadium.
The crowd at the Rio Olympics has been very vocal about their dislike for some athletes who competed with their countrymen. One of the lowest moments of the games was when French pole vaulter Renaud Lavillenie broke down after being booed by the crowd as he competed against Brazil’s Thiago da Silva.
Thiago da Silva went on to win the second gold for the country, but Lavillenie was left in tears as he stood to receive his silver medal. This behavior of the crowd has been condemned by many great athletes.