OLYMPIC COVERAGE

Twenty-seven current or former student-athletes from American Athletic Conference schools will be competing in the Rio 2016 Olympics. The Olympic Games kick off today, August 5, and will run until August 21.

The 27 athletes will be representing 12 different countries with eight athletes competing for the United States. Along with the 27 athletes, five coaches will be heading to the Olympic Games. In total, nine American Athletic Conference schools will be represented by an athlete or coach in the Olympics.

UConn leads American Athletic Conference schools with nine current or former athletes competing while SMU has seven athlete representatives and both schools are also sending a coach to Rio. UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma leads USA women’s basketball while SMU’s head coach for swimming, Steve Collins, is a coach for the Bulgarian national swimming team.