Olympic Opening Ceremony 2012: Ranking the Top 10 Flagbearers

The opening ceremony is the world's first taste of the Olympic Games. The flag bearers are our first taste of each individual country. 

They represent an appetizer of sorts, preceding the weeks of competition to come. To be chosen to carry your country's flag is a great honor. It says you represent the image and theme that the nation is trying to present to the world.

There were 205 counties represented in the Parade of Nations last night and 205 athletes were given this prestigious honor. Here are the top 10.

10. Lauren Jackson, Australia

To say Lauren Jackson wants a gold medal in 2012 is an understatement. The 6'5" Australian has finished second to Team USA in the past three Olympiads in women's basketball. 

In 2002, 2004 and 2008, Jackson's Australians have earned the silver medal. This year, she returns for her fourth games and will be once again seeking that first Olympic gold. 

Jackson is a three-time WNBA MVP and two-time WNBA Champion with the Seattle Storm. She was the No. 1 overall pick in 2001 and has been with one team her entire career. The 31-year-old won't have many more chances to get that gold medal and her team is counting on her to carry them.

9. Valentina Vezzali, Italy

Valentina Vezzali is an Olympic fencer who has won seven medals in the games. She competes in individual and team foil competitions and has earned five gold medals. She won two medals in 1996 in Atlanta and two four years ago in Beijing. 

In 2012, she will shoot for her fourth-straight Olympic gold in the women's foil competition. It will not be an easy task as there are numerous competitors, including other Italians who are out for her title. However, if she succeeds, she will join some serious historical company as the only Olympians to win an individual gold medal in four straight Games. 

She is one of the most internationally decorated athletes ever, with 21 World Championship medals, including 13 gold. Now 38 years old, this will almost definitely be her last chance to cement her legacy as one of the greatest Olympians ever.

8. Pau Gasol, Spain

Spain lost its most popular athlete, Rafael Nadal to injury this year. As he was supposed to carry the Spanish flag, they had to find a suitable replacement. They found just that in Pau Gasol. 

Gasol is another internationally recognized Spanish athlete. He walked in Nadal's place last night and raised the Spanish flag a solid two feet higher than any other bearer could.

He is well-known both for his Olympic and FIBA accomplishments as well as his NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers.

He was a part of the 2008 silver-medal winning Spanish team. In the gold medal game, Gasol scored 21 points on 9-of-18 shooting and grabbed six rebounds against the Americans. In 2012 he is again Spain's best hope at unseating the defending gold-medal winners, Team USA.

Also, I might be in the minority here, but I am digging his outfit.

7. Mariel Zagunis, United States

Mariel Zagunis was the perfect selection to represent the United States at the opening ceremony.

She embodies the amateur and underdog spirit of the Olympic Games as well as any athlete in the field; however, she also embodies the championship mentality of Team USA. She will be looking for her third straight Olympic Gold in the individual sabre fencing competition.

Zagunis won the gold in that competition in Athens and Beijing, as well as a team bronze in 2008. It wasn't an easy path to getting there though. She did not even qualify for the 2004 games and was allowed in to compete only when another country was forced to pull out. In 2008, she was seeded sixth, even after winning gold in 2004. Both times she prevailed and at just 27, she will be looking to do so again. 

6. Saori Yoshida, Japan

Probably the best Olympian in the group that you have never heard of, Saori Yoshida of Japan will be looking for her third straight Olympic gold medal this year.

She has dominated the 55kg weight class internationally for the past decade. Yoshida defeated all challengers in each of the past two Summer Games, winning gold in Athens and Beijing. 

At just 29 years old, she has a solid chance for a third gold medal. The Tsu, Mie native has won every world or international tournament in which she has entered. She followed up her career-opening 119-match winning streak with a streak of 58 wins that was busted earlier this year in May's World Cup in Tokyo.

Her winning streaks and undefeated record in tournaments show that she thrives under pressure. She was the perfect selection to represent Japan at the opening ceremony.

5. Sir Chris Hoy, Great Britain

The host nation's selection was a four-time Olympic gold-medal cycler with five total medals. 

Sir Chris Hoy won three gold medals in the 2008 Games in the Keirin, individual and team sprint competitions. He is one of the most decorated cycling athletes in history, with 25 World Championship medals (11 gold). 

At 36 and a veteran of three Olympiads he was a great choice to lead both the British cycling team as well as the nation itself as the final country to enter the arena in 2012. 

4. Kirsty Coventry, Zimbabwe

One of the more recognizable names on the list of flag bearers was Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe.

She swam in the USA during college at Auburn University, but was born in Harare, Zimbabwe. If you don't recognize her from her days tearing up the NCAA, you probably have heard of her for her Olympic triumphs. 

The 28-year-old Coventry has earned medals in each of the past two Summer Games. These games have big historical significance for her as she is already one of a few female athletes to ever win seven Olympic medals.

Her two gold medals came in the 2004 and 2008 Games in the 200-meter backstroke. In 2012 she will begin her second title defense. Coventry also holds the world record in that event.

3. Maria Sharapova, Russia

Maria Sharapova carried the flag for her native Russia in the 2012 opening ceremony. 

The 25-year-old is one of tennis' most recognizable stars and is currently ranked No. 3 in the world by the WTA. 

Her professional record stands at 451-110 and she has won 27 WTA titles. Her 2012 win at the French Open made her just the sixth woman in the Open era to complete a career Grand Slam. She won Wimbledon in 2004, the US Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2010.

Her win at the French Open made her a no-brainer to carry Russia's colors in London.

Forced to miss the 2008 Games in Beijing due to injury, Sharapova will be playing hard to win her first Olympic medal.

2. Novak Djokovic, Serbia

Men's tennis will be one of the highest viewed events in London this summer and a lot of that has to do with Serbia's flag bearer, Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic fell to No. 2 in the world rankings after his early Wimbledon exit, but remains a favorite to land on the podium in London. His rivalry with Roger Federer, who knocked him out of Wimbledon, will be one of the top storylines over the next couple weeks. 

In 2008, Djokovic finished with the bronze medal but with 2008 gold medalist Rafael Nadal pulling out of the Games for Spain due to injury, his chances for the top spot have increased dramatically.

Despite his early exit at Wimbledon, Djokovic has been having a great year. He won the Australian Open and was runner-up in the French Open, both times meeting Nadal in the finals. 

1. Usain Bolt, Jamaica

The best known Summer Olympian not named Michael Phelps led his native Jamaica into the arena during the London opening ceremony. 

Usain Bolt burst onto the Olympic scene in 2008 with three gold medals in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 4x100-meter relay. He has not stopped since, winning two gold medals in the 2011 World Championships as a primer for this summer's main event. 

Bolt's image is synonymous with the green/yellow/black color scheme of the Jamaican flag, making him the most perfect selection as flag bearer of any nation in these Olympics. His popularity, personality and skill have made him an Olympic legend in just one Olympiad. He will use 2012 and beyond to cement that legacy and maybe even break a few more world records while he is at it.