Erica Wiebe is introspective.
Gabriella Papadakis stands tall.
Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk and Misha Romanchuk steal a kiss.
Andrea Vargas found some flowers for some rest time.
David Llorente reps Segovia.
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Could budding Team Great Britain's budding Olympic skateboarding star Sky Brown also compete in surfing at Tokyo 2020?  The Bridge asks if 38-year-old Mary Kom can win boxing gold at Tokyo 2020 after bronze at London 2012. Relive Sturla Holm Laegreid's breakout 2020/21 biathlon season, courtesy of IBU TV'S "Best 5 Moments". Judoka Lioc Pietri reflects on a "small mistake" that pushes him now to focus on Paris 2024. FIVB's Roster 100 series looks at Norwegian stars Anders Mol and Christian Sorum, the current top-ranked beach players. Ever want to go behind-the-scenes of Team Canada's divers in training? Team Canada has you covered. More biathlon: Italian Nicole Gontier retires after two Olympic appearances and two World Championship medals. Brazilian soccer superstar Marta shares her start in the sport with The Players' Tribune. Kyle Dake and Helen Maroulis headline the results of Team USA's Olympic Trials for wrestling. "Leaner and stronger", Irish swimmer Shane Ryan hope his new level of fitness bodes well for Olympic success this summer.  Rikako Ikee: Anyone needing a feel-good story? Start here. And watch this. More swimming: Not all Olympic medals lead to immediate euphoria and satisfaction. Daniel Kowalski's Atlanta 1996 success started a period of depression. Karate star Douglas Brose uses his sport to help his community and support the International Day of Sport for Development and Perace. Beijing 2022 checks in with Guo Dan and her rise in speed skating after a start in roller skating. HIgh jumper Priscilla Frederick-Loomis gives testament to the effects of Covid-19 as she battles through recovery to make it to Tokyo 2020. Middle distance runner Bryce Hoppel reflects on his steady rise in the 800 meters with World Athletics. Athens 2004 medal-winning kayaker Nathan Baggaley found guilty in a drugs case in Australia. Soccer star Alex Morgan and basketball player Sue Bird will produce a retrospective TOGETHXR documentary on Atlanta 1996's role in lifting women's sports. Speaking of film, get to (re) know Rulon Gardner ahead of watching Rulon, an Olympic Channel feature highlighting his championship wrestling beginnings and career.  Russian figure skaters showed their dominance at the World Figure Skating Championships this weekend, as they won three of four events and half of the overall medals. Titles went to Victoria Sinitsina & Nikita Katsalapov (ice dance), Anastasia Mishina & Alexandr Galliamov (pairs), and Anna Shcherbakova (ladies, leading a Russian sweep).  Meanwhile, The New York Times looks at the challenges Black figure skaters face in the sport, and the unque platform they have to address them. Open water swimmer Marc-Antoine Olivier reviews the last year and looks ahead to Tokyo 2020 and beyond with FINA.org. Mexico's women's archery team is better poised to make a good run in the Olympics after a strong showing at the Pan American Championships. Only taking up 49er racing six years ago, Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove overcame youth and relative inexperience to secure an Irish berth at Tokyo 2020's sailing. Rio 2016 medalist with Team Serbia's men's basketball, Nikola Jokic is having a banner year with the NBA. The Olympic Channel offers a look. Best wishes for a speedy recovery to Pyeongchang 2018 gold medalist Daniel-Andre Tande, after a serious fall at a world cup ski jumping competition last week. Artistic swimmer Isidora Letelier is looking forward to the opportunity that Santiago 2023 will provide sport in Chile. Austrian madison cyclists Andreas Graf and Andreas Mueller have waited since 2008 for an Olympic opportunity, and they're trying to take the Tokyo 2020 wait in stride.  ESPN.com checks in with some prominent Tokyo 2020 hopefuls - gymnast Morgan Hurd, volleyball star Kerri Walsh Jennings, diver David Boudia, and soccer player Becky Sauerbruun - as they reflect on the past year that deflected their Olympic dreams. Swimmer Mark Tewksbury, figure skater Eric Radford, and speed skater Anastasia Bucsis are 'proud to play' in a new children's book sharing Canadian LGBTQ athlete stories. Taekwondo star Pauline Lopez leads a new campaign to help inspire future sportspeople in the Philippines. Judoka Sam Chouchi relishes hearing the Belgian national anthem after his gold medal win at the Tbilisi Grand Slam this past week. Team USA profiles Ariel Torres, who took advantage of pandemic restrictions to focus on getting him closer to qualification in karate's Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020. Congratulations go to weightlifter Fernando Reis, belated winner of Brazil's first-ever IWF World Championship medal. He just set the Australian national 1,500 meter track record, but Oliver Hoare may not qualify for the national team for the Olympics. More Australia: Jared Tallent, race walking legend retires.  Brad Gushue won curling gold at Turin 2006, but has Beijing 2022 dreams, despite studying for an MBA and running a business at the same time.  Team New Zealand wins sailing's America's Cup, with Rio 2016 gold medalist Peter Burling at the helm. Swiss ice hockey star Lara Stalder is the subject of "The Mind Behind" short documentary feature ahead of the start of her professional season. Ukrainian gymnast Petro Pakhniuk has two elements confirmed into the FIG's Code of Points after successful execution of the original skills in competition. "The world's most successful paddler", Jess Fox, is up for a new challenge in Tokyo as she eyes canoeing's Olympic debut. 2020 UCI time trial world champion Filippo Ganna hopes to use the Giro d'Italia as preparation for Tokyo, "the real peak of (my) season". Alice Dearing could become Great Britain's first Black female Olympic swimmer at Tokyo 2020. She's well aware of the signifcance of the opportunity. Qatari Cherif Younousse shares his beach volleyball ambitions with FIVB, including his target of Olympic qualification with new partner Ahmed Tijan.  Get to know newly-minted U.S. national soccer team member Yunus Musah, who had three other national team options. Badminton star Viktor Axelsen is preparing for Tokyo 2020 with a strong start to the 2021 season, thanks to a new mental approach and a complete comeback from an ankle injury. Professional footballer Nate Ebner of the New York Giants is looking to return to the U.S. rugby sevens team to help avenge a group stage end at Rio 2016. U.S. speed skater Conor McDermott-Mostowy is having "the most rewarding season of his career", and he just came out publicly as gay. Three field hockey players - Aki Yamada, Janne Muller-Wieland, and Hollie Pearne-Webb - are awarded spots in the EY Women Athletes Business Class of 2021. Congrats! Wealthy Olympians: looks like an exclusive club on the Rio 2016 Danish equestrian dressage team. Weightlifter Maria Fernanda Valdes is one of her country's leading hopes for a Tokyo 2020 medal. "The Strongest Woman in Chile" is determined to try for it at her third Games.  In a preview for the event's Olympic debut at Paris 2024, Gil Cohen and Noam Homri make history as the first-ever mixed 470 world champions at Vilamoura, Portugal this weekend.  Ahead of Brazil's successful push for Tokyo 2020 qualification, IHF spoke to Thiagus Petrus of the men's handball team for a quick Q&A. Figure skating champion Brian Boitano gets a feature in Mr. Feel Good, discussing life after competition, using his athletic experience, and more. Meanwhile, current men's world champion Nathan Chen is ready to defend his title despite lingering Covid-19 concerns. Dustin Johnson: the world's top-ranked men's golfer doesn't have Tokyo on his calendar this year. Forbes asks if Zoi Sadowski-Synnott is the "world's best all-around female snowboarder"? Argentine tennis great Juan del Potro, double Olympic medalist, is using Tokyo 2020 as motivation to return from injury. Habiba Marzouk looks forward to representing Egyptian gymnastics at Tokyo 2020, after securing her nation's place on the rhythmic program in 2019. Two of the standout performances from the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships came from Matthew Boling's fastest 200 meters this year and JuVaughn Harrison's rare high jump/long jump double (!). The 14th seeded pair of Czechs Ondrej Perusic and David Schweiner take down some goliaths en route to their maiden FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour win.  No poles and a broken hand? No issue for star freestyle skier Eileen Gu as she wins two golds at the World Freestyle Ski and Snowboarding Championships. 57 (!) players are finalists for the United States' men's basketball team for Tokyo 2020. The final selection will be down to 12, to be determined during the late-ending NBA season this summer. Can trampolining "legend" Dong Dong make it four Olympic podiums in a row at Tokyo 2020? From Mongolia and the Philippines to the United States and France (and more), FIBA3x3.com shares 10 women and 10 men to watch in 2021. Weightlifting: the Covid-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on Olympic qualification and preparation goals. Volleyballer Ivan Zaytsev and his power for aces is the latest "Roster 100" feature from FIVB. Six-time Olympic fencing medalist Valentina Vezzali gets a new challenge...overseeing sports in Italy. Brothers Attlia and Miklos Ungvari make a special visit to inspire aspiring judokas in Uzebkistan. World-ranked John Epping and his club scored more than a curling victory at the 2021 Tim Hortons Brier last week, with an opportunity to raise LGBT awareness.  |
About This BlogHighlights from the world of Olympic sports, focused on the athletes, and as seen through the cheeky lens of this one particular, passionate fan.
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