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The 2020 Olympics have begun in Tokyo! Here are some of the photos of Washington Wizards and Mystics players who are in the games below.
Japan
We are obligated to start with the home team, especially when one of the Wizards’ key players is a flagbearer. There were some closer shots in Rui Hachimura’s image above.
And here’s another!
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United States
Washington Mystics center Tina Charles took this photo with guard Ariel Atkins. You can also see more candid shots with the USA Basketball women’s national team in her montage. And here are some more.
Team USA’s flag bearers were Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird who is going for her FIFTH gold medal in basketball, and baseball player Eddy Alvarez, who was part of the silver medal-winning team in the 2014 Winter Olympics in the 5000 meter short track relay.
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Germany
Here’s a montage above by Issac Bonga. And though Moritz Wagner is no longer on the Wizards, you can check out some more shots of Team Deutschland below.
Germany’s flag bearers were beach volleyball player Laura Ludwig and diver Patrick Hausding.
Australia
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I could not find a photo of Mystics guard Leilani Mitchell in the opening ceremonies. While she is certainly excited to play for the Opals in Tokyo, she does miss her son Kash very much. (Insert sad puppy face emoji here, if it exists)
Australia’s flag bearers were swimmer Cate Campbell and San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills.
Belgium
You can see Mystics forward Emma Meesseman on the right-hand side of the image above. Also, former Mystics guard Kim Mestdagh has this photo from the floor.
Belgium’s flag bearers were heptathlete Nafi Thiam, the defending Gold Medal winner, and field hockey player Felix Denayer.
BONUS: Czech Republic!
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I’ll admit that I always had a soft spot for Tomas Satoransky. He was a solid floor general when called upon and was a consistent spot-up shooter. One of the most misutilized players of the Scott Brooks Era, though I digress.
Anyway, the former Wizards (and now-Chicago Bulls) guard was one of the Czech Republic’s flag bearers, along with tennis player Petra Kvitova.
The Czechs are in the Olympics for the first time in men’s basketball as the Czech Republic. Its predecessor state, Czechoslovakia, last made the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union.
If you found more cool pictures of our local players in the Olympic opening ceremonies, share them in the comments below!