As many Americans are preparing for this weekend’s Super Bowl — arguably the biggest annual sporting event in the United States — Brazilians are looking ahead to 2014, and 2016, when they’ll host the World Cup and the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
In December 2012, I led a dynamic delegation of sports and entertainment business leaders to Sao Paulo and Brasilia. At the request of Brazil’s Ministry of Sports, my office assembled this delegation to expand U.S.-Brazil cooperation in preparation for Brazil’s hosting a series of major international sporting events, including the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our efforts to expand U.S.-Brazil cooperation in this area were met with great enthusiasm from all we met with in Brazil.
The delegation of 15 experts from the U.S government and the private sector — including national football… more »
London Olympics Make the Case for Unleashing the Potential of Women and Girls
There’s been a lot of talk about how the London Olympics will best be remembered as the Women’s Olympics. Not only because of the individual performances of gymnast Gabby Douglas, or swimmer Missy Franklin, or heptathlete Jessica Ennis, but because of the collective achievements of women who participated in these London Games.
The statistics are amazing: Two thirds of the gold medals, and more than half of all medals won by Team USA, were won by American women. And this was despite the fact that women were eligible for 30 fewer medals than the men! The American women did not stand alone in leading their countries to the top of the medal tables. Women from China and Russia (#2 and #3 behind the U.S. in the total medal count), also took home more medals than their male counterparts.
Forty-four percent of all athletes at the games were women, and with the… more »
Ambassador Rice at the London Olympics
About the Author: Alex McPhillips serves as Associate Director for Digital Media at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations.
Thanks to continuing innovations in sports broadcasting and social media, it was easier this year than ever before to catch a glimpse of the Olympic Games from just about any vantage point — from above the mat to underwater to behind the scenes with the First Lady. Over a brilliant final two days in London, Ambassador Susan E. Rice, the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, used technology to give fans a view from the crowd.
About the Author: Benjamin Baird serves at the U.S. Embassy in London. Senior Airman Amanda Wowk with the 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office at RAF Lakenheath provided the video.
Sixteen active duty U.S. military personnel are competing in the London 2012 games. But, they’re by no means the only American troops taking part in the games. Some 300 service members, stationed at UK Royal Air Forces bases, are getting to take part in the games from behind the scenes.
Captain Kurt Nemmer serves in the 501st Combat Support Wing. But, for the Olympics, he’s serving in an athlete support role as a volunteer. Prior to the Opening Ceremony he worked to make sure Team USA looked its best when it took the field in Olympic Stadium. “We just have them try everything on,” he said. “If anything needs fitted, there’s a team of tailors that come in and adjust sizes. We’ll switch sizes and just work from there to make the team look the best they can for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies.”
Most Olympic junkies will be glued to the TV for the next few weeks. Senior Airman Amanda Wowk shows us how U-S service members from UK Royal Air Force bases get right into the action.
London 2012 Olympics Countdown Calls for Friendly Competition
Today marks 75 days until the start of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in London. As London prepares to welcome the world for the Olympics, the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. organized a medley of sports activities or “Embassy Olympics,” in recognition last month of the “100 Days To Go” mark. On April 18, international colleagues from the diplomatic community joined to compete in the “Embassy Olympics.” SportsUnited representatives from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs along with their colleagues in the Bureau of International Information Programs and Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs were key “players” in the event.
Even the rainy weather — true to form for a British activity — did not dampen the spirits of the participants. Embassy teams enthusiastically represented countries that have previously hosted the Olympics… more »
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![Rio de Janeiro's Mayor Eduardo Paes, third right, Brazilian Olympic Committee president Carlos Arthur Nuzman, center, and representatives from civil society wave the newly arrived Olympic flag in front of the Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Aug. 19, 2012. In 2016, Rio de Janeiro will host the Olympic Games. [AP File Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2013_0131_brazil_sports_m.jpg)
![United States' Missy Franklin, United States' Dana Vollmer, United States' Allison Schmitt and United States' Shannon Vreeland pose with their gold medals for the women's 4x200-meter freestyle relay swimming final at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, on August 1, 2012. [AP Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0921_olympics_women_m.jpg)
![Members of the U.S. Presidential Delegation to the Closing Ceremonies of the London Olympic Games -- Ambassador Susan Rice, White House Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes, Michelle Kwan, Curtis Pride and Reggie Love -- pose for a photo tweeted by Ambassador Rice in London, August 11, 2012. [USUN photo/ Public Domain]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0813_rice_olympics_m.jpg)
![U.S. Department of State employees pose for a photograph after participating in Embassy Olympics at Reeves Field American University in Washington, D.C., on April 18, 2012, to mark 100 days until the start of the London Olympics. [Photography copyright Tony Powell/ British Embassy]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0513_team_usa_m.jpg)
