Oklahoma Sooners Will Be Well Represented At Olympics In Numbers And Character

When the Olympics begin July 27, there will be 11 current and former student-athletes, and six staff members from the University of Oklahoma participating in London.

There are many colleges and universities represented on Olympic teams across the world, but it's significant when such a large number of athletes and coaches come from a single institution.

Oklahoma is sending five gymnasts, four track and field athletes, and two wrestlers.

The gymnasts include 2008 high bar silver medalist Jonathan Horton and 2012 NCAA all-around champion Jake Dalton. Both of them made the five-man squad, while fellow Sooners Steven Legendre, Chris Brooks, and Alex Naddour were named as the three alternates for the team.

Jared Frayer, a current OU assistant coach, and 2012 Pan Am gold medalist Sam Hazewinkel make up the wrestling contingent. Frayer was 2nd at U.S. World Team Trials in 2006, 2009 and 2010.

The track stars are all females, and will be representing a total of three countries. Brittany Borman and Tia Brooks will be representing the U.S., while Latoya Greaves will be running for Jamaica, and Laverne Jones-Ferrette will run for the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Borman scored a first-place finish in the javelin toss, while Brooks took third in shot put at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Greaves will run the 100 meter hurdles for Jamaica, while Jones-Ferrette will run both the 100 and 200 meter dashes.

No matter what way you look at it, OU is going to be well represented in London. There is a lot of pride involved in the Olympics, whether that is national pride or pride in the school where the athletes were trained.

Every Sooner fan out there can be proud of how well the school is represented as far as numbers are concerned, and based on the nature of the individuals, Sooner fans will be able to be proud of how they conduct themselves in London as well.

As for the athletes themselves, it's impossible to forget the opportunities a university allowed them to partake in while they were in school, especially for those who will return to school, or just finished school.

Greaves graduated in December of 2011, while Borman just finished her collegiate career in May. Dalton and Brooks will return to OU in the fall, possibly with an Olympic medal (or several in Dalton's case) in hand.

For Brooks and Dalton, they will be performing on the biggest stage for their respective sports, while still being at OU. The lessons they can take back to Norman with them will be invaluable for how they approach their senior seasons.

The Olympics is a spectacle in every sense of the word; a worldwide event that is brought to the local level through the many connections the athletes have with people all over the country, and the world.

Norman, Oklahoma is normally just another college town on the outskirts of a big city, but this year, the Olympics are making the town, and the University of Oklahoma, a center of attention.