On Friday the 27th of July 2012 the 30th Summer Olympic Games will kick off in London in the United Kingdom. An estimated 10,500 athletes from 204 countries will be competing in this year’s games. There will be 302 events in 26 sports with 39 disciplines. It will be the third time in history that London hosts the Olympics. London also hosted the Olympic Games in 1908 and 1948. The closing ceremony for this year’s games will take place on the 12th of August.
Sports fans can expect to see the following sports events at this year’s Olympic Games: Diving, swimming, synchronized swimming, water polo, archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, boxing, sprint canoeing, slalom canoeing, BMX cycling, mountain biking, road cycling, track cycling, equestrian dressage, equestrian events, equestrian jumping, fencing, field hockey, football, artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline, handball, judo, a modern pentathlon, rowing, sailing, shooting, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, a triathlon, volleyball, beach volleyball, weightlifting, freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling.
Women’s boxing has been allowed as an event for the first time at the 2012 London Olympics. 36 athletes will be competing for medals in three different weight classes.
In case you did not know, 125 South African athletes will be going to the 2012 Olympic Games to compete in 17 sports. South Africa will have competitors in archery, athletics, badminton, boxing, sprint canoeing, road cycling, track cycling, mountain biking, BMX cycling, equestrian eventing, field hockey, football, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, the triathlon, beach volleyball and weightlifting.
For those of you who were wondering, the 2012 London Olympics will be broadcast on SABC and DSTV in South Africa. Check your local TV guide for broadcast times for your favorite events.
The host nation (Great Britain) will have the most athletes at the games (542). The United States, Russia and Australia will each have more than 400 athletes at the games.
The official song for this year’s games is sung by British Rock band Muse and is entitled “Survival”, check out the music video below, it’s bound to get you into the Olympic Spirit:
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Watch this space for regular updates in the Events category on the Junk Mail Blog.
