American Profile 2012 Summer Olympics Guide

Featured Article, Festivals, People, Seasonal, Sports, Traditions
on July 24, 2012
london-bridge-olympics
Courtesy of London Olympics 2012
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And they’re off! With the Summer Olympic games just around the corner, spectators around the world are gearing up to watch their favorite athletes and events. It’s a time of both national pride and international respect as people come together to find who is, truly, the best in their league. American Profile is thrilled to see our men and women compete, and to help you enjoy the games, we have compiled this guide the 2012 London Olympics. Keep it handy to make sure you don’t miss anything!

BEGINNER STATS:
The Olympics have taken place every four years since 1896. The three exceptions are 1916, 1940, and 1944 when we were in world wars, and the likelihood of bombings or attacks was too great.

The United States is the top nation in the competition, having placed in 25 of the 26 years. Collectively, Team U.S.A. has won 930 gold, 728 silver and 639 bronze medals for a total of 2,297 medals. The Soviet Union, although no longer active, still holds the second place record at 1,010 medals, and in third is Germany with 851.

Over 40 different sports have been included in the Summer Games at one point or another.

Don’t know what to watch when? NBC has a calendar at nbcolympics.com, as well as stats on different athletes and how many gold medals will be awarded on which days.

OPENING CEREMONY: July 27, keep your night free—unless it’s to have people over to watch the opening ceremony with you! The ceremony entitled “Isles of Wonder” will represent all the best the United Kingdom has to offer, and is sure to thrill.

Who to watch in each of our favorite sports: Swimming, gymnastics and tennis

Lesser-known sports you should be watching