Close
Enter your
text here

olympics

rio, olympics, opening ceremony, nbc, live, coverage
What to Expect from The Rio Opening Ceremonies: And Why They Won’t Be Covered Live
 What to Expect from The Rio Opening Ceremonies: And Why They Won’t Be Covered Live 960 640 Emilie
By:

I love the Olympics. Every time Olympic season rolls around I get excited about the new emerging athletes, my favorite returning athletes, and our best competitive teams. Although there has been a lot of concern about Rio as a host country, it does provide one benefit: the Rio time zone is only one hour ahead of Eastern Time. That means that we should be able to get loads of live coverage- right? Well, kind of.

Why the Opening Ceremonies Won’t Be Shown Live

NBC is marketing their Olympic coverage as “The Most Live Olympics Ever.” What does this mean? As Awful Announcing and Philly.com explain, it means that not all coverage is live, but that there is more live coverage than ever before. Specifically, there is over 6,000 hours worth: some of it available on your TV, and some is available through NBC’s app. The one thing that isn’t live? The Opening Ceremonies.

As you may know, the past two Olympic Opening Ceremonies (London and Sochi) have not been covered live. The last ceremonies we watched live were in 2010 for the Vancouver Olympics. The ceremonies this Friday will be shown on NBC at 8 PM Eastern Time, but would be shown at 7 PM if they were covered live. 7 PM certainly does not seem like a bad time to show the ceremonies, so why are we waiting until 8 PM to actually broadcast them?

NBC is offering three primary reasons for delaying the opening ceremonies:

  1. More people can watch the ceremonies if they are broadcasted during prime time.
  2. Most people like the added commentary and storylines that NBC can edit in if the ceremonies are shown at a delayed time.
  3. NBC has a responsibility to their shareholders to include commercials in the broadcast. If shown live, commercials could not be added without cutting out parts of the ceremonies.

While some understand the viewpoints of NBC, others are still frustrated that NBC has the chance to edit our viewing experience. Perhaps the most frustrating thing for the latter group is that NBC is not providing any way to watch the coverage live- even on your laptops. NBC believes that it is their right to benefit their shareholders to the best of their abilities, especially considering the great cost it will take for them to cover the Olympics.

What to Expect at the Opening Ceremonies

So what should we expect during the ceremonies? According to Chicago Tribune, the ceremony will emphasize the originality of Brazil, going back to the country’s roots. Thousands of dancers will make an appearance, and some speculate that rollerbladers will be present (When The Rio Times called for volunteer auditions, it announced the Olympic organizing committee’s search for dancers, rollerbladers and singers).

Supermodel Gisele Bundchen (wife of Tom Brady) will be a part of the show, and The Daily Mail expects it to be the “Sexiest Opening Ceremonies Ever.” In exceptional Brazilian fashion, tributes will be made to the rainforest and Carnival. Despite a budget that’s only a fraction of London’s Opening Ceremonies, it’s sure to be a show impossible to miss.

 

rio, olympics, 2016, athletes, mikaela mayer, boxing, april ross, volleyball, kerri walsh jennings, steele johnson, diving, david boudia, simone biles, gymnastics
Top 5 New U.S. Athletes to Watch in Rio
 Top 5 New U.S. Athletes to Watch in Rio 960 640 Emilie
By:

With the 2016 Rio Olympics just around the corner, we can’t wait to watch some of our most impressive athletes. With a huge variety of sports, we have a large number of athletes that will be competing in their first ever Olympic games this summer. Here is our top 5 list of new Olympic athletes to keep your eye on during the Rio games.

Simone Biles: Gymnastics

Although the Olympic Gymnastics team has not yet been officially selected (the Women’s team trials will occur on July 8th and 10th), Simone Biles is a complete lock for the team. This past weekend Biles won the United States Nationals all around title for the fourth consecutive year. She has also won the World all around championship for three consecutive years, and has been decorated with World floor and beam championships for years. Not only is she considered the best gymnast in the world today, many consider her the greatest gymnast of all time. Rio will be Biles’ first Olympics, although she is likely to be accompanied by returning Olympic athletes Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas. Powerful and consistent, she is quite a sight to watch. Check out her floor routine at the 2016 P&G Championships here.

Steele Johnson: Diving

You may recognize the name David Boudia, as he was the first U.S. male to receive an Olympic gold medal in diving, which occurred just last year at the 2012 London Olympics. Rio will be Boudia’s third Olympics (in 2008 and 2012 he was with synchronized diving partner Thomas Finchum). However, this is the first year Boudia will be diving alongside Johnson. Johnson and Boudia actually grew up diving together in West Lafayette, Indiana (with Johnson a few years behind Boudia). Not only are Johnson and Boudia a force to be reckoned with in synchronized diving (easily clinching the position as our Olympic team during the recent trials), Johnson will also prove to be very competitive in the individual 10 m platform event. During the semifinals of trials he actually led in front of Boudia, and by the end of trials he was not far behind his synchronized partner. Check our Johnson and Boudia’s third round Olympic Trials semi dive here.

April Ross: Beach Volleyball

Yet another old teammate with a new partner is Kerri Walsh Jennings, who used to partner with Misty May-Treanor. The two of them were considered by many to be the best beach volleyball team of all time. The moment Walsh Jennings grabbed the gold medal with May in the London Olympics (with Ross and her partner at the time, Jennifer Kessy, grabbing the silver), Jennings immediately talked to Ross about continuing with her after Misty’s retirement. She identified Ross as the next best athlete in the sport, and the two have been working tirelessly in preparation of the Rio Olympics. Since London, the new pair has managed several impressive wins: including gold medals at the Fuzhou Open in China and the Moscow Grand Slam.

Morgan Craft: Skeet Shooting

At only 23 years old, Craft has been shooting since age 14 and will be heading to her first Olympics in Rio. Craft’s success has rocketed over the past few years. In 2013 she won the Junior National Championships and the Bronze medal at Nationals, and by 2015 she was the World Champion (also winning the 2016 World Cup Cyprus). She grabbed the spot to Rio by beating fellow teammate Caitlin Connor, who was the previous reigning National Champion. Craft has just been getting more and more successful, and could very easily scoop up another medal for the U.S.

Mikaela Mayer: Boxing

Heading into the 2012 London Olympics, Mayer narrowly missed out on making the Olympic Team. Ever since she has proven to be more and more successful, until she eventually scored a gold medal at this year’s Olympic Trials. She was the National Gold Medalist in 2012, 2014 and 2015. She will be sure to keep fighting as the Olympics gets closer to be the best athlete she can be.

olympics, olympics games, first modern olympics, athens, rio, olympic games
Where did the Olympics Start?
 Where did the Olympics Start? 855 900 Emilie
By:

With the Rio Summer Olympics rapidly approaching, we are sure some of you are wondering where and how the Olympics began. Interestingly enough, the Olympics date all the way back to the summer of 1896 and, unsurprisingly, was located in Athens, Greece. The 1896 Olympics brought back the Olympic games after it was banned for over a thousand years. It was also the first Olympics to be held in modern times. Participants came from many countries, and events included many sports we still compete in today, including gymnastics, fencing, cycling, and tennis.

Looking for a taste of Olympic fame yourself? You’re in luck! United EVENTures can create and individualize an Olympic Games specific for you and your group. Contact us for more information!