Mens Journal

SUMMER

OLYMPICS

12 REASONS

TO CARE

2

OLYMPIANS

HAVE THEIR

OWN TINDER

It’s an open secret that the
Olympic Village is basically
a sexual Valhalla: U.S. soccer
goalie Hope Solo famously
told ESPN in 2013 “There’s a
lot of sex going on.” And
because the Sydney Village
ran out of its 70000 condoms
this year’s supply was upped
to 350000. The Rio Games
have made it even easier to lay
the groundwork thanks to a
digital Olympic Athletes’ Hub
which lets participants create
profiles upload well-chosen
pics share “training tips” and
“connect with fellow athletes.”
All of which seems like thinly
veiled code for hooking up.
One Canadian former
Olympian thinks this will
“streamline” things — and it
makes sense she says since
Olympians are “always trying
to do things faster.”

The Must-See Warm-Up

In 2012 at the World Junior Champion-

ships in Barcelona 19-year-old Australian

hurdler Michelle Jenneke burned down

the internet after her warm-up routine —

a suggestively charming hip wiggle — went

viral. (She finished fifth in the race.) Now

23 she qualified for her first Olympics

making the women’s 100-meter hurdles

along with her starting-block shimmy

(^5) a surprising can’t-miss.
One Arizona Man
Has Produced
More Medalists
Than Most Countries
Mark Verstegen 46 is the
founder of EXOS a one-stop
shop for elite athletes that
has exploded in recent years
to include 400 locations around the
world. “In the ’90s” he says “if an athlete wanted to get really good they had
to find a strength coach a flexibility person a nutritionist a chiropractor a
psychologist.” Verstegen’s idea was to bring all these disparate elements under
one roof — and it worked. Pros like a Marshawn Lynch and Nomar Garciaparra
came to train under him in Phoenix and the floodgates opened. Olympians
who have no choice but to maximize their potential — “We’re talking about
hundredths or even thousandths of a second determining whether you’re even
going to go” he says — have become one of EXOS’s biggest client groups and
its success has been staggering. “If EXOS was a country at the last Summer
Olympics” Verstegen says “we would’ve finished sixth.”
4
HANDBALL
Considering that handball is a combo
of basketball and lacrosse with a dash
of water polo the U.S. should be a
powerhouse. We’re not. Adding insult
to injury in 2006 the USOC decertified
the sport’s federation for lack of funds.
We haven’t qualified since 1996 and
that was a host’s automatic bid.
Our Great Hope:You. Just grab a
few ringers from your hoops game and
start training; there are open tryouts.
TAB LE TE N N IS
Even though ping-pong’s popularity
has risen in hipster clubs and church
basements we’re still not China
South Korea or even Sweden which
is weirdly good at some random
sports like canoeing.
Our Great Hope:American prodigy
Kanak Jha 16 qualified for the world
championships in 2014 and will be
our second singles player ever in the
tournament. Bring on 2020!
BADMINTON
Despite being the second-most-
playedsportintheworldandtherage
in much of Asia namely Indonesia and
Singapore badminton here is usually
relegated to gym class and modestly
funded children’s birthday parties.
Our Great Hope:Luck be a lady in
badminton circa 2024. Our top male
player is ranked 64th in the world
but three American women are cur-
rently in the top 45.
IN A FEW SPORTS WE’RE STILL THE UNDERDOG
3
FROM TOP: AFP PHOTO/CHRISTOPHE SIMON/GETTY IMAGES; MARTIN ROSE/BONGARTS/
GETTY IMAGES; CHRIS MCGRATH/GETTY IMAGES FOR ATHLETICS AUSTRALIA
France versus
Sweden in
handball a game
the U.S. sucks at
BY KEVIN ALEXANDER