The 2016 Olympic Games athletics programme gets underway on Friday with two busy sessions of action as the Games really come alive out in Rio de Janeiro. British attention will be on the Olympic Stadium right from the off as the women’s heptathlon gets the action underway.
Gold Medal Events
- Women’s 10,000m
- Men’s 20km Walk
- Women’s Shot Put
Other events to begin
- Women’s 100m
- Women’s Heptathlon
- Men’s Long Jump
- Men’s 400m
- Women’s 1500m
- Women’s Hammer
- Men’s 800m
By and large I’m going to play a little safe on Friday and just see how the track is racing and how the stadium plays to the field events before I get too involved but there are a couple of events I’m happy to bet in from the start. Both are in the women’s track and field.
I will keep an eye on the rest of the events and we’ll reassess them in later previews if there is anything that materialises that we like the look of betting wise. I have my eye on a couple of athletes in the events that begin on Friday but we can have a look and get involved later in their respective events.
Women’s Heptathlon
This is a pretty big event for Team GB as we have the defending champion Jessica Ennis-Hill. In the past Denise Lewis has won this event as well so Britain’s heritage in this event is clear for all to see.
If you look at the odds then this gold medal is between three athletes. Jessica Ennis-Hill is the favourite, Katarina Johnson-Thompson is the second favourite and then Brianne Theisen-Eaton is the third favourite. They are all 7/2 or shorter with the next lady in the betting at 20/1.
The incredible Ennis-Hill won the world title in Beijing last year. KJT would surely have medalled until she went too big on the long jump and fouled three times and exited the competition. That let Theisen-Eaton in to land the silver and I fancy this could be a British 1-2 with the Canadian in third.
Jessica Ennis-Hill is the best in the field over the hurdles and that puts the pressure on her rivals right from the off and while she still has weaknesses they are nowhere near as weak as they once were. Johnson-Thompson is a serious danger but on the biggest stage she’s still too prone to a poor error for my liking. I’m with the Briton to defend her Olympic title this weekend.
Women’s Shot
This should be a good event too. The qualifying is in the morning session with the final in the evening. Valerie Adams goes into the competition as the favourite to win a third successive Olympic title with the German world champion Christina Schwanitz the second favourite and the leading thrower in the world Lijiao Gong the third favourite. Once again it is 33/1 bar the three favourites so the medals should be safe.
Adams missed the World Championship last year through injury but she had won four titles in a row before that and she has won the last three Commonwealth Games as well. Putting it simply she is a major championship winning machine.
Gong has a leading throw of 20.43m this season but with her having missed much of the season her next best is just 19.77m so how much we can take from that remains to be seen. I’m prepared to have this between the Olympic champion and the world champion.
There isn’t much between Adams and Schwanitz in terms of best throws this season. Adams is slightly ahead at 20.19m with Schwanitz at 20.17m so this should be a really good battle for the gold medal. I respect the German but it is hard to go against Adams in a major competition. She looks like she is peaking again at just the right time so it is Kiwi gold for me.
Tips
Back J.Ennis-Hill to win Heptathlon for a 4/10 stake at 2.25 with 888sport
Back her here:
Back V.Adams to win Women’s Shot for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Coral
Back her here:
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