Favourite: Penny Oleksiak wins at Twitter, Olympics
Posted August 22, 2016 1:12 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s no surprise which Canadian athlete had the most mentions on Twitter: Penny Oleksiak was tops both in and out of the pool.
The 16-year-old Toronto girl took home four medals from Rio – one gold, one silver, and two bronzes – and also kept track of her victories on social media. She used Instagram to ask Drake for concert tickets, and shared photos of her “speaking” with her dog back home in The Beaches.
Over the course of the games, she was the most-mentioned Canadian athlete on Twitter, with her name in the No. 1 spot for six days of the 16-day competition.
Twitter Canada said Monday that Oleksiak also gained the most followers, with more than 47,000 people signing up to see what she had to say.
Oleksiak is just getting used to winning: her four-medal haul is the most medals ever won by a Canadian at a single Summer Games. And, according to the Canadian Olympic Committee, she’s also the country’s youngest ever gold medal winner at the Olympic Games.
She may have contributed to another Twitter victory: swimming was the most-mentioned sport during the Rio Olympics.
After Oleksiak, the next most-mentioned athlete was sprinter Andre De Grasse. And the second most-mentioned sport? Track and field.
See the full Twitter Canada lists below:
See the full Twitter Canada lists below:
The 10 most mentioned #TeamCanada athletes during #Rio2016:
1. Penny Oleksiak, swimming – @OleksiakPenny
2. Andre De Grasse, sprinting – @De6rasse
3. Brianne Theisen-Eaton, heptathlon – @Btheiseneaton
4. Rosie MacLennan, trampoline – @RosieMacLennan
5. Genie Bouchard, tennis – @geniebouchard
6. Derek Drouin, high jump – @ddrouin10
7. Erica Wiebe, wrestling – @ericawiebe
8. Christine Sinclair, soccer – @sincy12
9. Adam van Koeverden, kayaking – @vankayak
10. Jen Kish, rugby – @jen_kish
Top athletes, day by day
Day 1: Genie Bouchard, tennis (@geniebouchard)
Day 2: Penny Oleksiak, swimming (@OleksiakPenny)
Day 3: Penny Oleksiak, swimming (@OleksiakPenny)
Day 4: Roseline Filion, diving (@Roselinefilion)
Day 5: Penny Oleksiak, swimming (@OleksiakPenny)
Day 6: Penny Oleksiak, swimming (@OleksiakPenny)
Day 7: Penny Oleksiak, swimming (@OleksiakPenny)
Day 8: Brianne Thiesen-Eaton, track and field (@btheiseneaton)
Day 9: Andre De Grasse, sprinting (@De6rasse)
Day 10: Andre De Grasse, sprinting (@De6rasse)
Day 11: Derek Drouin, high jump (@ddrouin10)
Day 12: Derek Drouin, high jump (@ddrouin10)
Day 13: Andre De Grasse, sprinting (@De6rasse)
Day 14: Andre De Grasse, sprinting (@De6rasse)
Day 15: Andre De Grasse, sprinting (@De6rasse)
Day 16: Penny Oleksiak, swimming (@OleksiakPenny)
The 10 most mentioned sports during #Rio2016
1. Swimming
2. Track and Field
3. Gymnastics
4. Soccer
5. Tennis
6. Basketball
7. Volleyball
8. Badminton
9. Wrestling
10. Judo
Who gained the most Twitter followers?
Penny Oleksiak gained 47,000-plus followers
Andrew De Grasse gained 39,000-plus
Brianne Thiesen-Eaton gained 17,000-plus followers
