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Top 10 Performances from the 2016 Rio Olympics

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For the past 16 days, the sports world has been captivated by the events of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, the first ever Olympics to take place in South America. We have seen thrilling victories, record-breaking achievements, devastating defeats, and heart-warming acts of sportsmanship. Despite all of the negative headlines coming in about the Zika virus, police strikes, polluted water, and all of that other nonsense, Rio was able to put together a terrific games. All of those fears were quickly put to rest, and we were able to see the best that this city and the athletes inhabiting it had to offer. Sadly, the games of the XXXI Olympiad have already drawn to a close, but not before we were able to witness performances that will go down in the record books forever. Here are the top 10 performances from the 2016 Olympics:

  1. USA Women’s Basketball
Image courtesy of AFP

Image courtesy of AFP

The USA women’s basketball team was dominant in Rio, winning its eight games by an average margin of 37.2 points, including a 101-72 dismantling of Spain in the gold medal match. They have now won six consecutive gold medals and 49 games in a row, a streak of dominance that is unmatched in any sport. As the rest of the world struggles to catch up, it is a streak that should continue for some time.

  1. Monica Puig (PUR)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

The tennis schedule was a bit of a whirlwind, with singles, doubles, and mixed doubles tournaments all packed into the first week of the Olympic schedule. Monica Puig reigned supreme in the women’s singles bracket, making history in bringing Puerto Rico their first ever gold medal in 68 years of competition and also becoming the first Puerto Rican woman to medal. She defeated French Open champion Garbine Muguruza, bronze medalist Petra Kvitova, and #2 seeded Angelique Kerber en route to the title.

  1. Wayde van Niekerk (RSA)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

Wayde van Niekerk is the defending world champion in the men’s 400M, but he entered the Olympic final as a significant underdog against reigning gold medalist Kirani James and 2008 gold medalist LaShawn Merritt. Plus, van Niekerk was running out of lane 8, a lane which had never produced an Olympic champion in the 400M. With everything stacked against him, van Niekerk shocked the world by not only winning the gold medal, but doing so in 43.03 seconds, breaking a world record that had stood for 17 years and that many had seen as untouchable.

  1. Mo Farah (GBR)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

Distance running is not one of the most popular events on the track & field schedule. Nevertheless, Mo Farah emerged as one of the premier stars of the sport at the 2012 Olympics, winning the men’s 5,000M and 10,000M in front of his home crowd in London. Farah completed the double-double in Rio, overcoming an early fall to win the 10,000M and holding off a couple of late chargers to win the 5,000M. He is only the second athlete in history to repeat as Olympic champion in both events.

  1. Neymar (BRA)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

For many Brazilians, the success of these Olympics rested solely in the hands of the men’s soccer team. After being embarrassed 7-1 on home soil by Germany in the 2014 World Cup, Brazil was seeking redemption. Anything short of a gold medal would be a colossal failure. The team started off slow with two 0-0 draws, but then Neymar showed everyone why he is among the world’s best. He scored four goals over the remainder of the tournament and capped it off with the winning penalty kick in the gold medal match against (you guessed it) Germany, sending fans at the Maracana into a frenzy and cementing himself as a Brazilian soccer icon.

  1. Allyson Felix (USA)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

Things did not start off the way Allyson Felix wanted them to. She was unable to attempt the 200-400 double after failing to qualify for the 200M at the U.S. trials, missing out by .01 of a second. Then in Rio, she narrowly lost in the 400M final after Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas dove at the finish line to win gold. However, Felix bounced back and helped the U.S. win the women’s 4x100M and 4x400M relays. She leaves these games as the most decorated female track & field athlete in history, with six gold medals and nine total medals over the course of her career.

  1. Katie Ledecky (USA)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

At the 2012 Olympics in London, Katie Ledecky burst onto the scene at age 15, pulling off a shocking upset to win gold in the 800M freestyle. Back for more at age 19, Ledecky was one of the biggest stars in Rio. It wasn’t just the fact that she won five medals (four gold), but the nature in which she won, especially once she got into her comfort zone in the longer distances. She set world records in the 400M and 800M freestyles and had such a big lead in the 800M final that when she touched the wall for the victory, no other swimmer was even in the picture. She now holds the 13 fastest times ever in that event. It’s scary to think that Ledecky probably hasn’t hit her prime yet and should be dominating this sport for a long time.

  1. Simone Biles (USA)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

Simone Biles entered these Olympics with incredibly high expectations. Many people were already calling her the greatest female gymnast ever, despite the fact that she had yet to take part in an Olympic competition. After winning three consecutive world all-around titles (the first woman to ever do so), all she was missing was Olympic gold. Well, Biles leaves Rio with four gold medals, putting forth dominant victories in the team, all-around, floor, and vault events. She also picked up a bronze medal on balance beam (though she was favorite in that event as well). Biles’ achievements were enough to make her the first female gymnast to be given the honor of carrying the USA flag at the closing ceremony.

  1. Michael Phelps (USA)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

To Michael Phelps, the 2012 Olympics were a bit of a disappointment. He still won four golds and two silvers in London, but he felt that he didn’t put forth the necessary training to accomplish all of his goals. Phelps decided to return to swimming and make one final Olympic run. Even at age 31, he still proved to be the most dominant swimmer in the sport, winning five gold medals and tying for silver in the 100M butterfly. With a mind-boggling 28 Olympic medals (23 of them gold), Phelps now leaves the sport on his own terms as the most decorated Olympian of all-time.

  1. Usain Bolt (JAM)
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

In 2012 at the London Olympics, Usain Bolt accomplished a feat that had never before been done: he successfully defended his titles in the men’s 100M, 200M, and 4x100M events. In his final Olympics, what would the greatest sprinter of all-time do for an encore? Win the gold medals again, of course. Bolt successfully completed his triple-triple, winning gold in the 100M, 200M, and 4x100M relay, an unprecedented achievement that will likely never again be done. He won his races with ease, seemingly jogging to the finish line and taking joy in how easy he was making it look. Bolt is now 9-for-9 in winning gold medals at the Olympics. He has been the king of sprinting since 2008 and remains the world record holder in all three of his events. Now, Bolt exits as not just the greatest sprinter ever, but one of the greatest athletes in any sport to ever walk this Earth, achieving a level of immortality that few ever have.

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