The Rio Olympics 2016 has only begun and top athletes from around the globe have arrived in the Brazilian City to take the center stage. They are all one of the bests, if not the best, at what they do. Some have to maintain their legacy while many are looking to surprise the world on their debut.
A few have excluded themselves from the average Olympian to rise further and beyond any competitor to book a permanent slot for the gold in their respective events. These are the superhumans that the world has a keen interest in. Some of them are looking at their final Olympics this year, while others are just 19 and getting started.
Here’s a look at the 5 superhumans that’ll grace the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
Michael Phelps
A classic superhuman’s tale starts off with an anomaly or a disorder, something that humans don’t deem “fit” or “normal”. When Phelps was in the sixth grade, he was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). By the age of 10, he held a national swimming record for his age group.
The swimmer is the most decorated Olympian of all time, with 22 medals in total in 3 Olympiads. Phelps’ record of 18 Olympics gold medals is double that of the second highest record holder. In the 2012 London Olympics, Phelps became the most successful athlete of the Olympics games after winning 4 gold and 2 silver medals.
The American is the world record holder in the 200m butterfly, 100m butterfly and the 400m individual medley as well as the former long course world record holder in the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley.
The seven-time World Swimmer of the Year Award recipient and a nine-time American Swimmer of the Year Award recipient, Phelps boasts a staggering 77 medals to his name from all major international long-course competitions.
His medal tally includes 61 gold, 13 silver, and 3 bronze from the Olympics, the Pan Pacific Championships and the FINA World Aquatic Championships.
Lin Dan
The Chinese badminton star is considered to be the greatest badminton player of all time. As a 28-year-old, Lin became the first and only player to win the 9 major titles of the badminton world: Olympics Games, World Championships, World Cup, Thomas Cup, Sudirman Cup, Super Series Masters Finals, All England Open, Asian Games, and Asian Championships.
The two-time Olympic champion is looking to add a third Olympic gold to his list of gold medals.
Lin is the only player to defend his men’s single gold in badminton from the 2008 Olympics in the London 2012 Olympics. In recognition of his achievements, Lin was nicknamed “Super Dan” by his opponent Peter Gade.
On October 17 2012, Lin became the first active Chinese badminton player to accept a master’s degree. With a record 62 career titles and 585 career wins, Lin is indeed a superhuman who will be looking to shine at Rio.
Katie Ledecky
In 2016, Ledecky was the youngest person on the Time magazine’s Time 100 list. Katie Ledecky is the past, present, and future of women’s swimming. As a 15-year-old when Katie Ledecky stepped up at the Olympics, no one thought she was about to shock the world.
“She has a chance” was the best the commentators had for the 15-year old who made it to the final of the 800m freestyle event. The girl had no records or medals that year. It took 8 minutes and 15 seconds for her to transform into a gold medalist.
Ledecky is the current world record-holder of the 400m, the 800m and the 1500m freestyle (long course). Other freestyle events in which she has the fastest times ever are the 500-yard, 1000 yard and the 1650 yard.
The American swimmer has won 15 medals in major international competitions, all of which have been gold in events like the Summer Olympics, the World Championships, and the Pan Pacific Championships. The 19-year-old has broken 11 world records till date.
Serena Williams
“Not thinking I reacted (hence the superwoman photo) I jumped up, weaved my way in and out of the cozy restaurant (leaping over a chair or two) and chased him down. He began to run but I was too fast. (Those sprints came in handy) I was upon him in a flash!” – Serena Williams on Facebook.
Although this isn’t the superhuman power we are talking about, it only helps make the point. Serena Williams is the pioneer of athleticism. Her body, workout regime, and practice play second fiddle to her skills as a tennis star.
The American is ranked No. 1 in women’s singles tennis and has been named No.1 by WTA on six different occasions. Most sports writers, players, and commentators regard the American powerhouse as the best female tennis player of all time.
Williams holds the most major singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles combined amongst active players, male or female. She is also the most recent player to have held the big 4 major single titles simultaneously (2002-03 and 2014-15).
She is also the most recent player, together with her sister Venus Williams, to have held all four Grand Slam women's doubles titles simultaneously (2009–10).
Usain Bolt
The Jamaican has broken most of the records in short distance running’s history. Bolt is currently regarded as the fastest man ever timed, since automatic time measurements became mandatory in 1977.
Along with his teammates, Bolt and the other three Jamaicans set the world record in the 4x100m relay. The Jamaican is the first man to win 6 gold medals in sprinting at the Olympics. The eleven-time World champion was the first ever to achieve the “double triple” of winning 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay at 2 consecutive Olympics, the 2008 Beijing and the 2012 London.
In 2009, Bolt beat his older record for the 100m to take it to 9.58 seconds from his previous 9.69.
Bolt’s achievements in sprinting have earned him the title of “Lightning Bolt”, and multiple prestigious awards like the IAAF World Athlete of the Year, Track and Field Athlete of the Year and the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year (3 times). He is also the highest paid in track and field ever.
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