Of all the things U.S. swimmer Tyler Clary was unprepared for in his first Olympic Games, there was the one experience he said he will never forget.Walking that path from the [athletes] village to the opening ceremonies, there were tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of people, simply walking or lining the walkway we were taking there, and little kids were stretching their hands out just because they wanted to touch us, Clary said. It blew my mind.I was just another dude who happens to be a little more water-safe than the average person, and there are all these people sitting there starstruck. They had no idea who we were but they were just amazed to see us because we were Olympians, and thats still not something I can wrap my head around.Whether it was tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands or 100, no one could have adequately prepared Clary for the chills that ran through him or the inspiration it provided.Blown mind or not, Clary gathered himself quickly enough to win gold in the 200-meter backstroke in his Olympic debut at the 2012 Summer Games in London. But it was not without many head-shaking moments for which he and other U.S. Olympians headed to Rio say first-timers should be prepared.And surprise: Its not all parades and medals.Elizabeth Beisel won silver and bronze medals in London, but among her most vivid memories were those not-so-glorious ones during her first Olympics in 2008, when she was the youngest member of the U.S. swim team.I was 15 in Beijing; there was no English whatsoever, and there were problems with the food being contaminated, so we could only eat McDonalds for a certain amount of time, Beisel recalled. The bus schedule was all messed up, and if you miss your bus, the next bus isnt for another hour. Then you miss your final swim and you dont get to swim in the Olympics.Beisel said she was as vulnerable to misconceptions going in as anyone watching TV at home.Its just like every little thing, she said. Youd think youre in the Olympics -- youd have like a limo driving you to the pool and youre in a five-star hotel and you have nothing to worry about. But its the complete opposite. Youre totally on your own. Youre in a different country; nobody speaks your language; and you need to learn how to take care of yourself and roll with the punches.And its really, really scary because its the Olympics; it only happens every four years, and you dont want to mess it up. But its almost like only the strong make it, honestly. Its such a dog-eat-dog environment, and its all or nothing.Food is an especially common theme, when athletes who are accustomed to fine-tuning their bodies with only the purest fuel suddenly having to tolerate fast food. And worse than that, unfamiliar food.Ryan Lochte was famous for eating McDonalds in Beijing because it was what he was comfortable with and it was safe for him, swimmer Connor Jaeger said.It should be noted that Lochte, an 11-time Olympic medalist, joked that he gained 10 pounds at the 2008 Games and has since changed his eating habits, focusing on lean protein, fruits and vegetables. But for Jaeger, the main worry is staying consistent and not being caught off-guard.You think here in the States, no matter where you are, you can find an Olive Garden, right? Jaeger said. So in London, the food was good but you just dont know. I always eat pasta before a race. Are they going to have pasta for me that night? If they dont, theres really nothing else I can do.Also, thinking about the walk to the shuttle, the bus ride to the pool and not realizing you were going to have to walk that much, or whatever it is, throws some people off more than me.Jaeger said the fact that London was his first Olympics made it easier to accept whatever potential distractions came his way.At that time, I was really happy to be there; I was there to enjoy the ride, he said. I was taking it seriously, but it helped me take a step back and say, Who cares if I have to walk a half-mile or whatever it is on the way to a race? But if youre convinced its not going to mess you up, its not going to mess you up.Clary said he was prepared for very little in his first Olympics.I was na?ve thinking it was going to be a lot like a world championships, and Id been to two before, he said. But its a whole different ballgame. Theres an energy in and around the village I wasnt expecting, and it really kind of threw me off a little bit. ...I instantly understood there was something completely different going on and that every four years we have the greatest combination of athletic ability that history has ever seen, and we have almost every person on the planet listening and watching, and theres nothing else in the world like that. Its humbling, its exciting, its scary -- a medley of emotions.Clary said he has added confidence in knowing what to expect in Rio, and it is with that knowledge that some veteran Olympians make it a point to reach out to first-timers with the hopes of preparing them for an experience many say is indescribable.Beisel joked that you can spot a rookie from a mile away trying to blend in, as she once did, trying not to throw up as she often did before big races.Especially for the young swimmer, and I was the same way. Its Oh my God, this is the Olympics. Its the biggest thing in my life, she said. And yes, it may be the biggest thing in your life, but there are other moments in life that are going to be just as amazing, and dont let nerves take that away from you because you only have one shot to do this, so have fun doing it. Love the fact that youre here and enjoy that you can actually have this moment and dont take it for granted. Dont ever take it for granted.This Olympics will be the first for Kayla Banwarth, libero on the U.S. womens volleyball team, but she said she is not expecting it to be much different from every other international tournament she has played in -- which is to say not great.We travel together and we play in other countries a lot, she said. And every tournament we go to, theres always something. Our hotel is awful or Oh, were going to eat rice and beans again. Like, Heres my tuna packet. Ugh.Theres always adversity at every tournament we go to, so I dont know that theres going to be anything too different thrown at us in Rio.Water polos Maggie Steffens tells rookies to embrace the chaos, a lesson she learned from veteran teammates in London.Some people say to ignore the distractions, which you should once the competition begins, Steffens said. But you get there, and theres the opening ceremonies, theres the village, and that means theres inspiration everywhere. If you ignore those, youre losing the inspiration and the opportunity to be inspired by even the smallest things, like a [United States] sticker on your door.So my teammates told me, Soak it all in. Get it all in there early so that once the competition begins and your performance needs to happen, youve taken in all that inspiration ... and now you can just perform. You no longer have to worry about the media or the food or all the athletes around because you dealt with it right away. And that would be my biggest advice.Accept it, love it, be inspired from it, and then let it fuel you. Let it be your energy. Let it build and try to have fun through it all. This is your moment to just play the sport you love on the biggest stage against the biggest opponents and represent the best country there is. Cheap Harold Landry Jersey . Jon Montgomerys gold medal in skeleton at the Whistler Sliding Centre and his subsequent auctioning off of a pitcher of beer in the village square elevated him to folk-hero status. Cheap Tennessee Titans Jerseys . Now tied for second in the league in shootout goals, the 24-year-old likes to see what the opposing goaltender has in store before he ultimately lands on a move. http://www.titansjerseyscheap.com/cheap-rashaan-evans-jersey/ .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Tennessee Titans Jerseys . During the athletes parade, the 23-strong Ukrainian team was represented by a lone flagbearer in an apparent protest at the presence of Russian troops in Ukraines Crimean peninsula. Discount Titans Jerseys . -- There were a lot of firsts for the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. Rather than savour the sight of Brisbane teammates fighting at training, North Queensland prop James Tamou admits it is not a good sign for the Cowboys ahead of Friday nights NRL semi-final in Townsville.NRL finals tensions sensationally boiled over on Tuesday when Test prop Josh McGuire and Broncos squad member Salesi Funaki came to blows at training at Red Hill in full view of a stunned media contingent.Some rivals would see it as a chink in the Broncos armoury ahead of a sudden death final but Tamou reckoned it was a show of force before the NRL grand final re-match.I think that shows the passion they have, Tamou said.In a league team it is a dog eat dog world. You are striving for a position.But I think coming into the finals it may be just passion - they cant wait to play.The incident was sparkedd by an overzealous tackle from McGuire on reserve grader Funaki.ddddddddddddcGuire had to be dragged away by teammates while other second-string Broncos, including Herman Eseese, tried to calm Funaki down.Brisbane hooker Andrew McCullough claimed the players - and the club - had moved on from the incident.It was very hot and a pretty intense session. It was two young forwards going at it, things got a bit heated but nothing major, he told Fox Sports TV.It was blown out of proportion - the boys have moved on.Those two guys were not going to back down but that is good for the club.The Broncos will fly to Townsville after their final training session of the week on Thursday. Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Cheap NFL Jerseys Throwback Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Hoodies Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '