Olympic Games

Olympic Games

The modern Olympic Games or Olympics are leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athlets from around the world participate in a variaty of competisions. The Olympic Games are considered the world's foremost sports competition with more than 200 nations participating. The Olympic Games are held every four years alternating between the Summer and Winter games every two years in the four-year period.

Hosting a major sporting event like the Olympics can give a city, and by extension a country, many economic, social and cultural benefits. Here are just a few advantages:

1. 
   Raise City’s Profile
   

Cities which host the Olympics can be assured of a persistent increase in recognition and tourism – Barcelona, Sydney, Atlanta and Beijing have all seen this from hosting the Olympics. For a country like China, which is perceived to boast a controversial human rights record, hosting a major sporting event can be a way to gain greater international acceptance and change perceptions. This raised profile can be important for obtaining economic benefits, such as attracting tourists and business investment.

2. 
   Long Term Investment
   

The long-term investment which comes from preparing for a major event will ensure that the city and country will have a legacy of improved sporting venues. Also, cities will usually have to invest in infrastructure and transport to cater for the influx of visitors. For example, there has been significant investment in public transport projects around London. This will leave a lasting legacy for residents of London, especially those in the East End.

3. 
   Job Creation
   

The Olympics require years of planning, investment, building and event managing, which means thousands of jobs directly linked to the occasion will open up. This can completely revitalise a city or district, such as Stratford in London. It is estimated that the Olympics in 2012 created 70 thousand jobs for residents of the English capital.

4. 
   Enthusiasm
   

A major sporting event can create enthusiasm and excitement ahead of the occasion, during the event and for months or even years afterwards. It can also help promote uptake of sport which has lasting benefits for the nation’s health and lead to a rise in volunteerism, which promotes civic virtues.

5. 
   Economic Benefits
   

The Olympics always see a surge in visitors and media as the greatest sportspeople on earth come to town. This will provide a sudden increase in spending and injection of money into the local economy for a number of weeks.

Uzbekistan competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan fielded a team of 70 athletes, 47 men and 23 women, across 15 sports at the Games.It was the nation's second-largest delegation sent to the Olympics, just a single athlete short of the record achieved in Sydney 2000. Uzbekistan made its Olympic debut in women's boxing, men's table tennis, and the rhythmic gymnastics group all-around, as well as returning to artistic gymnastics, women's judo, and rowing after their absence from London 2012.

Leading the Uzbek roster lineup were Oksana Chusovitina, who created history as the oldest ever female gymnast and the first to participate in a record seventh Olympics, and Ekaterina Khilko, who became the only trampolinist to be featured in every Olympic competition since her sport was added to the program in Sydney 2000. Chusovitina's fellow gymnast Anton Fokin, along with judo legends Rishod Sobirov and Abdullo Tangriev, also highlighted the Uzbek team for being the only medalists returning to these Games.

Other notable athletes on the Uzbek roster included world's top-ranked taekwondo fighter Dmitriy Shokin in the men's +80 kg division, American-based freestyle wrestler and Asian Games champion Bekzod Abdurakhmonov, tennis player Denis Istomin, Asia's top female high jumper Svetlana Radzivil, and super heavyweight boxer Bakhodir Jalolov, who was nominated by the committee as the nation's flag bearer in the opening ceremony.

Uzbekistan left Rio de Janeiro with a total of 13 medals. It was 4 gold, 2 silver, and 7 bronze, signifying the nation's most successful outcome in Olympic history. Seven of these medals won by the Uzbeks came from boxing, including three golds. The remainder of the nation's overall tally were awarded to the team in weightlifting, wrestling, and judo. Among the medalists were Hasanboy Dusmatov, who became the nation's second boxer in history to claim an Olympic gold since Mahammatkodir Abdullaev topped the podium in 2000, Ruslan Nurudinov, who successfully set a new Olympic clean and jerk record to hand the Uzbeks its first ever weightlifting title, and Sobirov, who wrapped up his judo career by achieving a bronze-medal feat for the third straight time, before retiring from the sport.