A view of the Aquatics Stadium.
The Mararcana stadium.....Ready for Soccer.
Rio Olympic arena.....Ready for gymnastics.
Gold...Silver...Bronze.
There are six women's soccer matches on Day 1 of the Rio Olympics.
In the premier matchup of the women’s Olympic soccer tournament group stage the U.S. takes on France in Group G play on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. ET.
Both teams won their opening matches at the Olympics with the U.S. defeating New Zealand 2-0 and France dismantling Colombia 4-0 to set up a showdown for the top spot in Group G.
The U.S., the top ranked team in the world, and France, ranked third, are considered two of the gold medal favorites at the Olympics.
The two sides last faced each other in March 2016 in the SheBelieves Cup. The U.S. came away with a 1-0 victory as Alex Morgan scored a goal in stoppage time.
The U.S. and France also have recent Olympic history together as both were in Group G of the 2012 London Olympic tournament.
That year, the teams faced off in the first group stage match in what proved to be a pivotal game for the U.S. France took the early lead through goals by Gaetane Thiney and Marie-Laure Delie within the first 15 minutes.
Then in the 17th minute, Carli Lloyd
came on for the U.S. as a substitute for an injured Shannon Boxx.
That change was the turning point for the U.S. in the match and for the rest of the tournament. The team came back to beat France 4-2 in the match and went on to win Olympic gold. Carli Lloyd played in every Olympic match following the France game and scored both the team’s goals in the Gold Medal Match.
Four years later, Carli Lloyd is the captain and face of the U.S. women’s soccer team as it looks to win its fourth straight gold medal.
The Heir To The Throne 18 Year Old Wonderkid Mallory Pugh joins the squad as a Newcomer at Forward with massive promise and desire. She will be the 2nd Youngest to ever play Olympic Soccer for Team USA Women and is Ready to Attack.
Expect the intensity of a knockout stage match as both the U.S. and France are very very good teams that are quite familiar with one another.
French midfielder Amandine Henry plays club soccer in the U.S. with the Portland Thorns of the National Women’s Soccer League alongside U.S. national team players Tobin Heath, Meghan Klingenberg, Lindsey Horan and Allie Long.
Additionally, Lindsey Horan and Tobin Heath have played in the French professional league with Paris Saint-Germain where they were teammates with many French international players.
Other top matches:
Germany vs. Australia 5:00 p.m. ET
Germany looks to continue its strong play after defeating Zimbabwe 6-1 in its opening match while Australia looks to get on track after a 2-0 loss to Canada. Germany is ranked second in the world while Australia is ranked fifth.
Brazil vs. Sweden 9:00 p.m. ET
Both Brazil and Sweden won their opening matches. Sweden struggled against South Africa, but was able to come away with three points while Brazil handled China in its 3-0 victory. This match could decide the winner of Group E.
It's Day 1 at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Here's a quick look at five things to watch as the U.S. looks to take a spot on the medal podium in several events.
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Gymnastics
The U.S. men begin their quest for a medal in the team competition after a disappointing performance at the 2012 London Games, where they placed fifth. The top eight teams in qualifying advance to Monday night’s team finals, while the top 24 individual gymnasts make the all-around final.
Swimming
Medals are up for grabs, starting with Chase Kalisz — a training partner of Michael Phelps — in the 400 individual medley, an event dominated by Phelps and his longtime rival, Ryan Lochte, in past Games. Keep an eye on the U.S. women’s 4x100 freestyle relay, too, which has a good shot at reaching the podium. If that happens, and Katie Ledecky contributes with a preliminary heat swim, she'll lock up her first (of many) medals here this week.
Basketball
The Americans take the court against China, which is led by Yi Jianlian, who played for the Milwaukee Bucks for five seasons. You probably don’t need an upset alert for this game, however. China might have the least star-studded team in the men’s tournament, with U.S. assistant coach Jim Boeheim saying the Americans are “100 years ahead.”
Archery
The U.S. men won the silver in London, led by Brady Ellison. Though it was their best finish since winning gold in Atlanta, they still feel the sting of the oh, so close, one-point loss to Italy in the finals, and will be looking for a better finish this time around.
Rugby
The U.S. women open against Fiji as rugby sevens makes it Games debut. The last time the sport was in the Olympics, rugby 15s was played in 1924.
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Gymnastics
The U.S. men begin their quest for a medal in the team competition after a disappointing performance at the 2012 London Games, where they placed fifth. The top eight teams in qualifying advance to Monday night’s team finals, while the top 24 individual gymnasts make the all-around final.
Swimming
Medals are up for grabs, starting with Chase Kalisz — a training partner of Michael Phelps — in the 400 individual medley, an event dominated by Phelps and his longtime rival, Ryan Lochte, in past Games. Keep an eye on the U.S. women’s 4x100 freestyle relay, too, which has a good shot at reaching the podium. If that happens, and Katie Ledecky contributes with a preliminary heat swim, she'll lock up her first (of many) medals here this week.
Basketball
The Americans take the court against China, which is led by Yi Jianlian, who played for the Milwaukee Bucks for five seasons. You probably don’t need an upset alert for this game, however. China might have the least star-studded team in the men’s tournament, with U.S. assistant coach Jim Boeheim saying the Americans are “100 years ahead.”
Archery
The U.S. men won the silver in London, led by Brady Ellison. Though it was their best finish since winning gold in Atlanta, they still feel the sting of the oh, so close, one-point loss to Italy in the finals, and will be looking for a better finish this time around.
Rugby
The U.S. women open against Fiji as rugby sevens makes it Games debut. The last time the sport was in the Olympics, rugby 15s was played in 1924.
This is the FIRST medal event of Rio Olympics.
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