Sport

Rio 2016: Day one preview – Froome goes for gold as Olympics get underway

Team GB will look to get their 2016 Olympic Games campaign off to a successful start on day one, with medal opportunities up for grabs across several sports.

After Friday night’s colourful opening ceremony – which included flag bearer Andy Murray leading in Team GB – shooter Jen McIntosh will be the first British athlete competing for a medal in Rio when she goes in the women’s 10m Air Rifle qualification at the National Shooting Center.

The 25-year-old Edinburgh shooter is appearing in her second Games following London 2012 with the qualification event starting at 12.30pm.

Attention will then switch to the Copacabana later in the day for the men’s road race, which features Great Britain’s Chris Froome.

The Brit comes into the race fresh from picking up his third Tour de France victory last month and is part of a five-strong team alongside Stephen Cummings, Ian Stannard, Geraint Thomas and Adam Yates. The race is expected to conclude around 8pm BST.

World champion James Guy will also be on the hunt for a first swimming medal in the 400m freestyle.

He will be one of seven Brits in action in the pool with Stephen Milne also going in the same event while three-time World champion Adam Peaty will be aiming to put a marker down in the 100m breaststroke heats alongside Ross Murdoch.

Max Litchfield, Hannah Miley and Aimee Willmott also compete with the latter two going in the 400m individual medley and Litchfield in the 400m heats.

Team sports get up and running with rugby sevens making it’s Olympic debut.

Team GB women will take to the field twice with a match against hosts Brazil and then Japan.

While over at the Olympic Hockey Centre, Team GB women will be looking to start their mission to upgrade on the bronze won four years ago in London by putting in a good performance against Australia in their opening pool match.

Opening rounds are scheduled in the tennis, table tennis and boxing while Ashley McKenzie in the first judoka in action at the Games.

Over at the Lagoa Stadium, which is overlooked by the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue, Team GB’s rowers will take to the water in the first session of heats beginning at 12.30 BST.

And finally, men’s qualification in the artistic gymnastics takes place at the Arena Olimpica de Rio while equestrian dressage’s Gemma Tattersall and William Fox-Pitt round off an action-packed opening day at Rio 2016.

Image courtesy of British Cycling via YouTube, with thanks.

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