rafalgorka

My Top 10:
 
Ran Takahashi  (Volleyball)
Yuki Ishikawa  (Volleyball)
Micah Christenson  (Volleyball)
Brayelin Martinez  (Volleyball)
Luciano De Cecco  (Volleyball)
Chloe Covell  (Skateboard)
Nora Mork  (Handball)
Gustavo Ribeiro  (Skateboard)
Humana-Paredes & Brandie  (Beach Volleyball)
Fiji Rugby Team 
 
 

Shorttrack speedskating - Kim Boutin  
Tennis - Stan Wawrinka  
Tennis - Aryna Sabalenka  
Athletics - Miltiadis Tentoglou  
Athletics - Natalia Kaczmarek  
Road cycling - Wout van Aert  
Gymnastics - Rebeca Andrade  
Judo - Lukas Krpalek  
Speedskating - Isabelle Weidemann  
 
 
 

most of the athletes I used to support are no longer competing...  
 
however, I still admire all the champions in each sport I follow, so, there are way too many to be named
 
so, among those still in activity I love watching play "pound for pound" there are:
 
Baseball:  Shoei Ohtani,  Roki Sasaki,  Clayton Kershaw,  Mookie Betts
 
Hockey:  Anze Kopitar,  Alexander Ovechkin,  Leon Draisaitl,  Roman Josi
 
Alpine Skiing:  Mikaela Shiffrin,  Marco Odermatt
 
Speedskating:  Jutta Leerdam (well, maybe that's not because of her -however great- skills  )
 
Short Track Speedskating:  Hanne Desmet
 
Athletics:  Mondo Duplantis,  Yulimar Rojas,  Shaunae Miller-Uibo,  Faith Kipyegon,  Tom Walsh
 
Swimming:  Ariarne Titmus
 
Judo:  Uta Abe
 
Wrestling: the  and  athletes in general
 
Boxing:  Vasyl Lomachenko,  Oleksandr Usyk and  Naoya Inoue
 
Basketball:  Luka Doncic
 
Shooting:  Alessandra Perilli (and the  team in general)
 
and many, many more...

Forgot about  Alicia Schmidt, however it may not be for the reason you think it is… 

Not a big list like the others, but I have a few athletes I grew fond of because I watched them live at events in the Netherlands. In Paris I will cheer for:
 
 Volleybal Men team and Bartosz Kurek.
 
 Javelin thrower Anderson Peters
 
Other than that I am a big fan of  Nafi Thiam and  Kevin Mayer in the athletics multi events.

No. Mostly useless. The reason Ivanusa Gomes Moreira is so high on them is mostly because she was one of only 2 entries at the African Championships in 2022. She lost that fight.
Boxrec's rankings are also flawed but they are more accurate than the IBAs so if thats what you were basing your picks off then I would probably use boxrecs or maybe an aggregate of the two.

Cakiroglu, almost for sure
then, I think it's quite open and many contenders might get it

I think I'do correction in my predictions for cycling road - M Ind Time Trial now (Sat Day 1).
 
I said 1. Evenepoel 2. Pogacar 3. Ganna
 
But if Slovenia has only 1 quota in this event and Pogacar rides TDF I think he will skip this one to have some rest and concentrate fully on road race next weekend (and I think he'll win it) and Roglic will ride TT as a Tokyo champ and then he helps Pogacar in a road race...
 
So now I have to think a bit but 4 top contenders would be Evenepoel, Ganna, Tarling and Roglic... Maybe Kung as well...

TEAM SPORTS on Day 12 Wed 07.08
 
BASKETBALL - W Quarters
HANDBALL - M Quarters
HOCKEY - W Semis
VOLLEYBALL - M Semis
WATER POLO - M Quarters

Day 12 Wed 07.08
 
198. ARTISTIC SWIMMING - Team
199. ATHLETICS - Race Walk Mixed Relay
200. ATHLETICS - W Pole Vault
201. ATHLETICS - M Discus Throw
202. ATHLETICS - M 400m
203. ATHLETICS - M 3000m Steeplechase
204. BOXING - M 63.5kg
205. BOXING - M 80kg
206. SAILING - Mixed Dinghy 470
207. SAILING - Mixed Multihull Nacra 17
208. SKATEBOARDING - M Park
209. SPORT CLIMBING - W Speed
210. TAEKWONDO - M 58kg
211. TAEKWONDO - W 49kg
212. TRACK CYCLING - M Team Pursuit
213. TRACK CYCLING - W Team Pursuit
214. WEIGHTLIFTING - M 61kg
215. WEIGHTLIFTING - W 49kg
216. WRESTLING GRECO-ROMAN - M 77kg
217. WRESTLING GRECO-ROMAN - M 97kg
218. WRESTLING FREESTYLE - W 50kg
 
 
 

Day 11 ctd. - BOXING bronze medals
 
W 50kg - Ingrit Valencia COL, Wassila Lkhadiri FRA
 
W 66kg - Charlie Cavanaugh CAN, Ivanusa Moreira Gomes CPV (first ever olympic medal for Cape Verde - is it possible in real word???)
 
M 71kg - Marco Verde MEX, Aslanbek Shymbergenov KAZ

Partial Medal table in the end of day 11 (197 events, additional boxing bronze medals in W 50kg, W 66kg, M 71kg  will be added later on)
 
27-20-17---64
25-34-19---78
16-15-16---47
16-8-14---38
13-11-10---34
10-11-7---28
9-6-6---21
7-9-10---26
6-7-9---22
5-6-11---22
5-6-1---12
4-7-4---15
4-1-2---7
3-6-3---12
3-0-3---6
3-0-2---5
2-3-2---7
2-2-4---8
2-2-1---5
2-1-5---8
2-1-4---7
2-1-3---6
2-1-1---4
2-1-1---4
2-1-1---4
2-0-6---8
1-4-3---8
1-3-3---7
1-2-5---8
1-2-3---6
1-2-2---5
1-2-1---4
1-1-2---4
1-1-2---4
1-1-1---3
1-1-1---3
1-1-1---3
1-1-1---3
1-1-1---3
1-1-0---2
1-0-1---2
1-0-1---2
1-0-1---2
1-0-0---1
1-0-0---1
1-0-0---1
1-0-0---1
0-2-2---4
0-2-1---3
0-2-1---3
0-1-3---4
0-1-2---3
0-1-1---2
0-1-1---2
0-1-0---1
0-1-0---1
0-1-0---1
0-1-0---1
0-1-0---1
0-0-3---3
0-0-2---2
0-0-2---2
0-0-2---2
0-0-2---2
0-0-2---2
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1
0-0-1---1

Day 11 Tue  06.08.
 
183. ATHLETICS - W Hammer Throw
 
1. DeAnna Price USA
2. Camryn Rogers CAN
3. Janee' Kassanavoid USA
 
Anita Włodarczyk 6th
 
184. ATHLETICS - M Long Jump
 
1. Militiadis Tentoglou GRE
2. Wayne Pinnock JAM
3. Jeswin Aldrin IND
 
Tentoglou wins it with awesome jump in Round 2. No need to wait for final round. Aldrin wins bronze by 0,02 cm. Jianan Wang CHN 4th.
 
185. ATHLETICS - M 1500m
 
1. Jakob Ingebrigtsen NOR
2. Mohamed Katir ESP
3. Yared Naguse USA
 
Surprisingly fast race. No cocky gestures from Ingebrigtsen this time, he stays focused and wins big. Josh Kerr GBR 6th.
 
186. ATHLETICS - W 3000m Steeplechase
 
1. Winfred Mutile Yavi BRN
2. Beatrice Chepkoech KEN
3. Faith Cherotich KEN
 
Budapest 2023 top 3 becomes Paris 2024 top 3.
 
187. ATHLETICS - W 200m
 
1. Sharicka Jackson JAM
2. Gabrielle Thomas USA
3. Julien Alfred LCA
 
Sharicka Jackson beats Flo-Jo WR here. Run of the games so far. Sha'Carri nervous as hell, finishes 5th. NBC W sprint drama continues, Simone Biles who??? First ever olympic medal for LCA.
 
188. BOXING - W 60kg
 
1. Beatriz Ferreira BRA
2. Kellie Harrington IRL
3. Estelle Mosselly FRA
3. Yang Wenlu CHN
 
Bronze medals have been already counted in the medal table here ofc.
 
189. DIVING - W 10m Platform Ind
 
1. Quan Hongchan CHN
2. Chen Yuxi CHN
3. Gabriela Agundez MEX
 
Traditonal 4th for Canada here - Caeli McKay.
 
190. EQUESTRIAN - Jumping Ind
 
1. Henrik von Eckermann SWE
2. Ben Maher GBR
3. Steve Guerdat SUI
 
von Eckermann with 2 golds - both team and individual.
 
191. SAILING - M Dinghy ILCA 7
 
1. Matthew Wearn AUS
2. Michael Beckett GBR
3. Pavlos Kontides CYP
 
First medal for Cyprus in Paris.
 
192. SAILING - W Dinghy ILCA 6
 
1. Charlotte Rose USA
2. Anne-Marie Rindom DEN
3. Maria Erdi HUN
 
Gold for an instagram star.
 
 
193. SKATEBOARDING - W Park
 
1. Kokona Hiraki JPN
2. Hinano Kusaki JPN
3. Sky Brown GBR
 
Sky Brown 3rd coming back from injury. Minna Stess USA 4th.
 
194. TRACK CYCLING - M Team Sprint
 
1. Netherlands
2. Australia
3. France
 
Relatively easy win for NED here.
 
195. WRESTLING GRECO-ROMAN - M 60kg
 
1. Zholaman Sharshenbekov KGZ
2. Islomjon Bakhromov UZB
3. Cao Liguo CHN
3. Gevorg Gharibyan ARM
 
First ever olympic gold for Kyrgyzstan.
 
196. WRESTLING GRECO-ROMAN - M 130kg
 
1. Amin Mirzazadeh IRI
2. Riza Kayaalp TUR
3. Oscar Pino CUB
3. Meng Lingzhe CHN
 
First gold for Iran in Paris.
 
197. WRESTLING FREESTYLE - W 68kg
 
1. Koumba Larroque FRA
2. Zhou Feng CHN
3. Enkhsaikhany Delgermaa MGL
3. Yuliana Yaneva BUL
 
First medals for BUL and MGL in Paris.
 
 

TEAM SPORTS predictions ctd.
 
Tue Day 11
 
M BASKETBALL - Quarters (best M olympic tournament ever, team rosters are pretty amazing, almost everybody says yes)
 
beats
beats
beats
beats
 
out in group stage:

 
W FOOTBALL - Semis
 
beats
beats
 
W HANDBALL - Quarters
 
beats
beats only by 3 goals
beats
beats
 
out in group stage:
 
 
M HOCKEY - Semis
 
beats
beats
 
W VOLLEYBALL - Quarters
 
beats 3-0
beats 3-2
beats 3-1
beats 3-2
 
out in group stage:

 
 
W WATER POLO - Quarters
 
beats
beats
beats
beats  
 
out in group stage:
 

TEAM SPORTS predictions (fake draws ofc)
 
Fri Day 7
 
M FOOTBALL - Quarters
 
beats
beats
beats
beats
 
out in group stage:

 
Sat Day 8
 
W FOOTBALL - Quarters
 
beats
beats
beats
beats
 
out in group stage:

 
Sun Day 9
 
M HOCKEY - Quarters
 
beats
beats
beats
beats
 
out in group stage:

 
Mon Day 10
 
M FOOTBALL - Semis
 
beats
beats
 
W HOCKEY - Quarters
 
beats
beats
beats
beats
 
out in group stage:

 
M VOLLEYBALL - Quarters
 
beats 3-1 (POL back in Top 4 after 5 consecutive QF loses in Athens, Beijing, London, Rio and Tokyo). Tough match though, POL loses 2nd ser here.
beats 3-2
beats 3-2 (match of the day, 18-16 in 5th set)
beats 3-02
 
out in group stage:

 
 
 
 
 

Day 11 Tue  06.08.
 
183. ATHLETICS - W Hammer Throw
184. ATHLETICS - M Long Jump
185. ATHLETICS - M 1500m
186. ATHLETICS - W 3000m Steeplechase
187. ATHLETICS - W 200m
188. BOXING - W 60kg
189. DIVING - W 10m Platform Ind
190. EQUESTRIAN - Jumping Ind
191. SAILING - M Dinghy ILCA 7
192. SAILING - W Dinghy ILCA 6
193. SKATEBOARDING - W Park
194. TRACK CYCLING - M Team Sprint
195. WRESTLING GRECO-ROMAN - M 60kg
196. WRESTLING GRECO-ROMAN - M 130kg
197. WRESTLING FREESTYLE - W 68kg
 
Bronze medals in BOXING: W 50kg, W 66kg, M 71kg
 
TEAM SPORTS:
 
M BASKETBALL - Quarters
W FOOTBALL - Semis
W HANDBALL - Quarters
M HOCKEY - Semis
W VOLLEYBALL - Quarters
W WATER POLO - Quarters
 
 

let me think… it may take a while

There is a big expectations for the match, with a little hope for a surprise.

Last two times played a semifinal the match was basically over after 20 minutes. I don't see any reason to think it won't be like that this time as well.

I think  Adam Peaty will probably be pretty pleased with how his World Cup series has gone having shown good progression through the 3 legs, particularly given he obtained the Olympic qualifying standard today.
 
Among the positives to take away I would say is the fact that in Budapest, both his heat and final time were under 1:00.00 - something he didn't achieve in either Berlin or Athens - and the gap between himself and  Qin has gone from over 2 seconds in Berlin to 1.43 seconds in Budapest.
 
He still has a huge fight on his hands to successfully defend his title, but given he has had limited training and preparation, he has got himself back into the kind of shape where he would be in the mix to make the final. But if he is looking to get a medal, then he will need to drop at least another second and if he wants to take home gold, he's probably going to need to drop close to 2 seconds. I don't know if he will be able to do that, but I have a feeling that he will at least enjoy the challenge. 

I update this daily . Hope that kind of helps.
 
World Aquatics also has this but it takes a long time for some results to be uploaded.

No, the 3 universality will count in the 48 athlete total so to be truly safe you need to be in the top 45.

Rugby Time tonight CET!
 
How's the mood in your countries @Wanderer @LDOG @konig ??? :-) I wonder how many people will watch this match in Argentina...

This Polish website i mentioned before naszosie.pl now admits POL has only 3 quotas in W road race.
 
Ok... good luck Team GB! Kasia Niewiadoma will win a medal here by 0,0001 sec and your rider will be next, you'll see... heh

let me think… it may take a while