YOG: In just 24 hours, Australia could be the proud owner of four medals. Numerous Aussie athletes will be on show on day one of the second summer Youth Olympic Games (YOG), with some athletes contesting medals.
One of the Aussies that will compete in the morning session includes Brittany Dutton who will take to the track in triathlon.
“I am very excited to race on Sunday. I can’t wait to get out there and experience it all and experience the awesome atmosphere of the Games,” the 16-year-old said.
“Being one of the first Aussies to compete is good in a way because I can get my race out of the way and enjoy watching others compete.”
The youngster is one of our many gold medal hopefuls and she feels she has done enough to bring it home.
“I think I have prepared well as I can and I can’t wait to see how it all goes on race day!” she said.
“I am looking to gaining experience racing the other countries and being in the village with everyone else.”
Certainly one of the biggest features of these Games will be Badminton. Already the tickets are sold out, proving its popularity at these Games.
Two Aussies that will get to experience the hype of the immense Badminton atmosphere are Daniel Guda and Joy Lai who will take to the court during the day for the beginning of their group matches.
The Badminton draw was released on Friday and the team is pleased.
“The draw is better than I expected, overall I’m pretty happy with it,” Guda said.
“I’m quite excited, it’s one of the biggest junior events and I’m very excited to play in it.”
The Rugby Sevens girls, who are confident in their prospects for the games, will take to the field in their first match against Tunisia at 9am.
The team’s forward, Tayla Stanford feels the team is definitely in medal contention.
“I can’t wait we’re all pretty pumped, I think we have a pretty good chance, we’ve all come together really strongly as a team and I think we have a good shot.”
Since landing in Nanjing, the team have had numerous training sessions to prepare themselves for some of their challenging matches.
“I’m looking forward to Canada, I think they’ll be one of our hardest competitions, which will be good for us and test us.”
The Rugby Sevens competition only goes for four days, but the short roster could be a blessing in disguise.
“I think it’s good that we’re getting it over and done with and then we have the rest of the time to do activities and cultural stuff.”
A total of 12 sports will begin their hunt for a medal on day one of the YOG. They are Badminton, Beach Volleyball, Swimming, Gymnastic-Artistic, Judo, Rowing, Table Tennis, Rugby Sevens, Triathlon and Shooting.
Competition at the second summer Youth Olympic Games commences on Sunday 17 August and runs for 11 days.
Sam Rawlings
Olympics.com.au
@AUSOlympicTeam
