Between Friday's Opening Ceremonies and Aug. 29, athletes will compete for a total of 301 gold medals in 31 event fields in Athens, Greece. Below, The Dartmouth presents some of the most compelling events of this year's international sports showcase:
Basketball
WHEN: Aug. 15-28
OUTLOOK: The United States is a perennial favorite, but has struggled in recent international appearances. In 2002, the squad stumbled to a sixth place finish at the World Championships. The squad was also shocked by Italy on its recent training tour, falling 95-78 to a squad that had no current NBA players on its roster.
PREDICTION: Despite its recent struggles, the United States should bring home the gold again this year. Although the U.S. team spent only a month playing together, whereas other teams have played as a unit for years, and while the international style-of-play differs greatly from that of the NBA, this year's version of the "Dream Team" has enough depth and talent to repeat as champions.
Anchored by Lebron James, Allen Iverson and Tim Duncan, the team will demonstrate enough offensive versatility and defensive tenacity to combat the up-tempo international style. Moreover, head coach Larry Brown is brilliant at adapting a game-plan to fit his personnel, and this group will be no exception.
While Lithuania and Argentina should make this year's Olympic basketball competition much closer than those held at Sydney 2000 and Atlanta 1996, the U.S. has the talent, coaching and experience to win yet another gold.
Swimming
WHEN: Aug. 14-21
OUTLOOK: American star Michael Phelps hopes to challenge Mark Spitz's record of seven gold medals at the 1972 Munich games. On the women's side, Natalie Coughlin and Amanda Beard lead the American team.
PREDICTION: Eight gold medals? Phelps' pursuit of sporting history is one of the biggest stories heading into the Olympics and is not out of the question if he can procure a spot on the 4 x 100 freestyle relay team, an event for which he did not qualify. If he does compete, Phelps should easily capture five gold medals (400 Individual Medley, 200 IM, 200 fly, 4 x 100 IM relay, and the 4 x 100 free relay) and has an above-average shot at three others (200 freestyle, 100 fly, 4 x 200 freestyle relay). Phelps will have his work cut out for him, but he has a good shot at unrivaled Olympic glory.
While the women's team is inexperienced -- it features two teenagers -- the presence of Coughlin, Beard, renowned veteran Jenny Thompson and Kaitlin Sandeno should lead the team to a double-digit medal count. The team should challenge the Australians for the gold medal in most events.
Track and Field
WHEN: Aug. 20-29
OUTLOOK: A five-medal winner in the 2000 Olympics, Marion Jones qualified only in the long jump at the U.S. trials, where doping stories dominated the headlines. Experts predict that the young United States team will battle Russia in the medal count. In the shot put event, Adam Nelson '97 is looking to medal for the second time in his Olympic career. In 2000, Nelson won the silver medal in the event.
PREDICTION: On the men's side, Nelson should medal again for the United States, as should many other athletes. Look for dominant performances from Tom Pappas in the decathlon, Maurice Greene or Sean Crawford in the 100 meters (an event the US should sweep), Sean Crawford in the 200 and Alan Webb in the 1500.
In the women's events, many headlines will go toward Jones, who should medal in the long jump. However, there are many other compelling stories as well, such as 37-year-old Gail Devers, who should medal in the 100 hurdles. Look for fan-favorite Stacy Dragila to pull an upset in the pole vault and take home gold and Paula Radcliffe to literally run away with the gold medal in the marathon. All in all, the track and field events should be the most highly contested of all the Olympic events, but look for the United States to end up with a few more medals than Russia in the end.
Tennis
WHEN: Aug. 15-22
OUTLOOK: A who's who of the professional tennis world, including big names such as the Williams sisters, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick, will compete in the hard court events in Athens with ATP and WTA ranking points on the line. Following the Olympics, the tennis stars will then head to Queens, N.Y. for the final leg of the tennis grand slam. The U.S. Open is slated to begin on Aug. 30.
PREDICTION: In the men's singles event, Federer -- who beat Roddick earlier this year in the Wimbledon finals -- should take the gold, with Roddick coming in at a respectable second. In the doubles event, identical twins Bob and Mike Bryan should take the gold for the U.S., an event in which the U.S. has failed to medal since 1988.
On the women's side, Russia will again challenge the United States for supremacy. In singles, Elena Dementieva of Russia and Amelie Mauresmo will provide strong competition for the Williams sisters, though Serena Williams should take the gold. In the doubles, the Williams sisters should again take the gold, but not without strong competition from the Russians as well as fellow Americans Lisa Raymond and Martina Navratilova.
Dartmouth Athletes in Action:
Canoe and Kayak
WHEN: Aug. 17-20 (slalom) and Aug. 23-28 (sprint)
OUTLOOK: Manmade Helliniko venue, which is hosting the kayaking events, pumps in water from the Mediterranean Sea, making it the first Olympic whitewater course to use saltwater. That makes the boats more buoyant and causes more eye irritation from splashing; it also creates more foam, making it difficult to judge water surface. Benjie Lewis '05 is gunning for gold in the K-2 event.
Women's Soccer
WHEN: Aug. 11-12, 14-15, 17-18, 20-21, 23-24, 26-28
OUTLOOK: The U.S. men failed to qualify. The U.S. women's squad, which includes veterans Brandy Chastain and Mia Hamm, as well as goaltender Kristin Luckenbill '01, is looking to repeat its 2000 gold medal performance.
In the general standings, the United States should barely surpass its goal of 100 medals, ending with around 105 as the overall medal count leader. Russia, China, Australia and Germany should round out the top five, in that order.
