Chasing Gold in Rio

Time to look at some of the promising Aussie Olympians on our radar in the 2016 Rio Olympics.

On August 6, 2016, the much talked-about Summer Olympic Games 2016 in Rio will begin.

Australia has 276 athletes from 21 sports selected for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games to date, with the final team expected to be over 400. To date, the team comprises 171 rookies with an age span of 45 years between the youngest athlete, Ellie Carpenter at 16, and Mary Hanna at 61 (the eldest and off to her 5th Olympic Games).

More than 10,000 of the world’s best athletes will arrive in Rio with Olympic glory on their minds. Apart from safety concerns, being in one of the most dangerous cities of the world, all of them will be seeking to win one or more of the 306 gold medals on offer, or at least hoping they can leave Rio with a personal best performance. So, what are our chances?

The Aussie athletes on our radar

According to FOX Sports, a rankings-based analysis by sports data provider Gracenote suggests Australia could win 18 gold medals if the Olympics were held today.

This would surpass the efforts in Athens 2004 (17) and Sydney 2000 (16) as Australia’s greatest Olympic gold medal haul, and cap a stunning turnaround from the London 2012 campaign that yielded just seven gold.

Let’s have a look at some of the predicted Australian gold medalists and who is tipped to be on the top of the podium in Rio.

Bronte Campbell Fast Facts

• Sport: Swimming
• Event/s: 100m Freestyle Women, 4 x 100m Freestyle
  Relay Women, 50m Freestyle Women
• Height: 179
• Weight: 58
• Age: 22
• Born: Blantyre, Malawi
• Lives: Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (100m freestyle) – 2015 FINA World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (50m freestyle) – 2015 FINA World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (4 x 100m freestyle relay) – 2015 FINA World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 2nd (100m freestyle) – 2014 Commonwealth Games (Glasgow, Scotland)
• 3rd (50m freestyle) – 2014 Commonwealth Games (Glasgow, Scotland)

Cate Campbell Fast Facts

• Sport: Swimming
• Event/s: 100m Freestyle Women, 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay Women, 4 x 100m Medley Relay Women, 50m Freestyle Women
• Height: 186
• Weight: 74
• Age: 24
• Born: Blantyre, Malawi
• Lives: Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (100m freestyle) – 2016 Swimming Australia Grand Prix, Brisbane, Australia (new 100m freestyle world record)
• 1st (100m freestyle) – 2015 FINA World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (50m freestyle) – 2015 FINA World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (4 x 100m freestyle relay) – 2015 FINA World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 2nd (100m freestyle) – 2014 Commonwealth Games (Glasgow, Scotland)
• 3rd (50m freestyle) – 2014 Commonwealth Games (Glasgow, Scotland)

Eleanor Patterson Fast Facts

• Sport: Athletics
• Event/s: High Jump Women
• Nickname: Floss
• Height: 182
• Weight: 65
• Age: 20
• Born: Leongatha, VIC, Australia
• Lives: Leongatha, VIC, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (high jump) – 2016 Australian Athletics Championships (Sydney, Australia)
• 1st (high jump) – 2016 IAAF World Challenge (Melbourne, Australia)
• 1st (high jump) – 2016 Queensland Track Classis (Brisbane, Australia)
• 1st (high jump) – 2016 Canberra Track Classic (Canberra, Australia)
• 8th (high jump) – 2015 IAAF World Championships (Beijing, China)

Warren Potent Fast Facts

• Sport: Shooting
• Event/s: 50m Rifle Prone Men
• Nickname: Wazza
• Height: 177
• Weight: 73
• Age: 54
• Born: Parramatta, NSW, Australia
• Lives: Sydney, NSW, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (50m) – 2015 Australia Cup 2 (Sydney, Australia)
• 1st (50m) – 2016 Australia Cup 1 (Sydney, Australia)
• 4th (50m) – 2016 ISSF World Cup Final (Munich, Germany)
• 3rd (50m) – 2015 Shooting Australia Grand Prix (Sydney, Australia)
• 1st (100m backstroke) – 2015 World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (200m backstroke) – 2015 World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (100m backstroke) – 2015

Emily Seebohm Fast Facts

• Sport: Swimming
• Event/s: 100m Backstroke Women, 200m Backstroke Women, 4 x 100m Medley Relay Women
• Nickname: C-Bomb
• Height: 180
• Weight: 70
• Age: 24
• Born: Adelaide, SA, Australia
• Lives: Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (100m backstroke) – 2016
  Australian Swimming (Adelaide, Australia)
• 2nd (200m backstroke) – 2016
  Australian Swimming Championships (Adelaide, Australia)

Mitchell Larkin Fast Facts

• Sport: Swimming
• Event/s: 100m Backstroke Men, 200m Backstroke Men, 4 x 100m Medley Relay Men
• Nickname: Mitch
• Height: 187
• Weight: 72
• Age: 22
• Born: Buderim, QLD, Australia
• Lives: Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (100m backstroke) – 2016 Australian Open Championships (Adelaide, Australia)
• 1st (200m backstroke) – 2016 Australian Open Championships (Adelaide, Australia)
• 1st (100m backstroke) – 2015 World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (200m backstroke) – 2015 World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 1st (100m backstroke) – 2015 World Cup (Dubai, UAE)

Cameron McEvoy Fast Facts

• Sport: Swimming
• Event/s: 100m Freestyle Men, 200m Freestyle Men, 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay Men, 4 x 100m Medley Relay Men, 4 x 200m Freestyle Relay Men, 50m Freestyle Men
• Nickname: Cam
• Height: 185
• Weight: 75
• Age: 22
• Born: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia
• Lives: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st (200m freestyle) – 2016 Australian Swimming Championships (Adelaide, Australia)
• 1st (100m freestyle) – 2016 Australian Swimming Championships (Adelaide, Australia)
• 1st (50m freestyle) – 2016 Australian Swimming Championships (Adelaide, Australia)
• 2nd (100m freestyle) – 2015 World Championships (Kazan, Russia)
• 2nd (100 & 200m) – 2014 Commonwealth Games (Glasgow, Scotland)

Jessica Fox Fast Facts

• Sport: Canoe/Kayak – Slalom
• Event/s: K1 Women
• Nickname: Jess
• Height: 166
• Weight: 63
• Age: 22
• Born: Marseille, France
• Lives: Leonay, NSW, Australia

Recent Performances

• 2nd (K1) – 2016 Oceania Championships (Penrith, Australia)
• 13th (K1) – 2016 Australian Open (Penrith, Australia)
• 4th (K1) – 2015 ICF World Championships (London, Great Britain)
• 1st (K1) – 2015 ICF U23 World Championships (Foz do Iguassu, Brazil)
• 1st (K1) – 2015 National Championships (Eildon, Australia)

Mathew Belcher Fast Facts

• Sport: Sailing
• Event/s: 470 Men
• Nickname: Matty
• Height: 173
• Weight: 62
• Age: 33
• Born: Southport, QLD, Australia
• Lives: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

Recent Performances

• 1st – Sailing World Cup, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
• 1st – World Championships Haifa, Israel
• 1st – Rio Test Event, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• 2nd – South American Championships, Brazil Iate Clube do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• 3rd – European Championships, Aarhus, Denmark

Tom Burton Fast Facts

• Sport: Sailing
• Event/s: Laser Men
• Nickname: TB
• Height: 180
• Weight: 81
• Age: 25
• Born: Baulkham Hills, NSW, Australia
• Lives: Sydney, NSW, Australia

Recent Performances

• 13th World Cup Miami, 2015, Florida, USA
• 1st Australian Championships, 2015, Lake Macquarie, NSW
• 1st ISAF World Cup Abu Dhabi, 2015, Abu Dhabi, UAE
• 3rd Rio Test Event, 2015, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• 3rd World Championships, 2015, Kingston, Canada