Olympics 2016: New York’s Hometown Heroes

By Jeffrey Bradford

The countdown to the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics is well underway with the opening ceremony due to start at 07:00pm EST on August 5th, 2016. For the next sixteen days the best athletes from all corners of the Earth will compete in a range of events. For New York there will not just be a strong Team USA to cheer on but also a number of athletes who hail from the Empire State. So that you can give them an extra boost we would like to present our Hometown Heroes competing for gold in Brazil;

Anita Alvarez
(Synchronized Swimming) Kenmore, NY 2014 East Zone Athlete of the Year competing in her first Olympics in the synchronized swimming event.




Matt Anderson
(Volleyball) West Seneca, NY Outside Hitter competing in his Second Olympics. MVP of the 2015 FIVB World Cup and four time USAV Male Indoor Player of the Year.




Carmelo Anthony
(Basketball) New York, NY hree time Olympian with two gold medals and one bronze medal playing position of forward. Plays in the NBA for the New York Knicks.




Sue Bird
(Basketball) Syosset, NY Three time Olympic gold medalist competing in Basketball playing the guard position. One of the few players to have an Olympic gold medal, World championship gold medal, WNBA title and NCAA title.



Tina Charles
(Basketball) Jamaica, NY 2012 London Olympic games gold medalist and strong philanthropist donating half her 2014 and 2015 WNBA salary to Hopey’s Heart Foundation providing AED devices to schools and gymnasiums.



Maria Michta-Coffey
(Track & Field) Nesconset, NY 20 kilometer Race Walk competitor in her Second Olympic Games.




Vashti Cunningham
(Track & Field) Middletown, NY Daughter of NFL quaterback Randall Cunningham qualified as youngest member of the Track & Field squad for Rio.



Crystal Dunn
(Soccer) Rockville Centre, NY Forward and 2015 Golden Boot winner for number of goals scored.



Phyllis Francis
(Track & Field) Queens, NY Set the American indoor record in the 400m at the 2014 NCAA Indoor Championships.




Justin Gatlin
(Track & Field) Brooklyn, NY Two time Olympian and Four time Olympic medalist in the 100m (one gold, two silver, one bronze).




Melissa Gonzalez
(Field Hockey) Mohegan Lake, NY Competing in her second Olympics in the midfield position. Gold medal winner at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto.




Megan Guarnier
(Cycling) Queensbury, NY Originally a national level swimmer. After being invited to ride in a college bike race she has not looked back – often with a clear track ahead of her. In 2013 Megan held 1st place in the Team World Cup Overall Classification.



Natasha Hastings
(Track & Field) Brooklyn, NY 400m competitor in her first Olympic Games.





Daryl Homer
(Fencing) Bronx, NY Took up fencing after reading the dictionary definition and competed in the 2012 London Olympic games. Serves as a brand ambassador for a charity called Fencing in the Schools.



Molly Huddle
(Track and Field) Elmira, NY Second Olympic Games competing in the 5,000m for which Molly was the 2011 National Outdoor Champion.




Alisa Kano
(Gymnastics) New York, NY Born in Tokyo, Japan Alisa is competing in her first Olympics in the Rhythmic Gymnastics event.




Allie Long
(Soccer) Northport, NY Midfield player for the Portland Thorns.



Beezie Madden
(Equestrian) Cazenovia, NY Three-time Olympian holding two gold medals and one bronze medal in show jumping.




Miranda Melville
(Track & Field) Rochester, NY 2015 USATF Outdoor Champion competing in the Race Walk event.




Delilah Muhammad
(Track & Field) Jamaica, NY 400 meters hurdles competitor and 2013 US Outdoor Champion.



Meghan Musnicki
(Rowing) Naples, NY Won gold in the London Olympics competing in eight member rowing.





Lia Neal
(Swimming) Brooklyn, NY 2012 Olympic Bronze medal winner in 4x100m freestyle event.





Nzingha Prescod
(Fencing) Brooklyn, NY Competing in her second Olympic games in the discipline of foil fencing. 2015 Senior World Championships Bronze Medalist.




Emily Regan
(Rowing) Buffalo, NY Competing in her first Olympics, Emily won a gold medal in the 2015 World Championships.




Henrik Rummel
(Rowing) PIttsford, NY Won bronze medal at the London Olympics in 2012 and competing in his second Olympic Games.




Kristen Shaldybin
(Gymnastics) Brooklyn, NY Rythmic Gymnastics competitor in her first Olympic Games.





Deajah Stevens
(Track & Field) Bayside, NY Competing in the 200m womens dash and first woman to make Team USA while still in college.




Breanna Stewart
(Basketball) North Syracuse, NY Silver medal winner in the 2015 Pan American Games. Breanna is competing in her first Olympics in the position of Forward/Center. First woman to earn 4 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors.



Jenn Suhr
(Track & Field) Fredonia, NY Pole Vault competitor in her third Olympics holding both the Gold (2012) and Silver (2008) medals.



Sarah True
(Triathalon) Cooperstown, NY Ended the 2015 season ranked third in the World and came fourth in the 2012 London Olympic games. At high school ran cross country and track and swam with the boys team as the school lacked a womens team.



Dana Vollmer
(Swimming) Syracuse, NY Competed in the 2004 and 2012 Olympic Games winning three gold medals in London in the 100m Butterfly, 4x200m Relay and 4x100m Relay events.




McLain Ward
(Equestrian) Brewster, NY Three time Olympian, Two time medalist with two gold medals in discipline of show jumping.




Miles Chamley-Watson
(Fencing) New York, NY Won gold medal at the Pan American Games in both 2011 and 2015 for his team. First US men’s fencer to win an individual senior world championship title in 2013.


Rudy Winkler
(Track & Field) Ithaca, NY Competing in his first Olympics in the Hammer throwing event. For more information on the US Olympic team visit www.teamusa.org. Details of television coverage can be found on www.nbcolympics.com