ATHENS, Greece — While some Olympians prepared to travel 1,600 years back in time, U.S. gymnast Paul Hamm instead focused on the future — and expanding his Athens medal collection.
His first came when the Americans took the silver in the team competition, only the third medal for the men's team in the last 72 years. Hamm, 22, has a shot at a five more in Athens, since he'll compete Wednesday in the all-around and four individual events.
"I'm taking it very seriously," Hamm said Tuesday. "I feel as if I want to get another medal. I'm going into that competition very aggressively."
And though swimmer Michael Phelps' failed pursuit of Mark Spitz's seven golds has generated most of the Olympic headlines, the men's program director for the U.S. gymnasts thinks Hamm may shift the media's attention from the pool to the mat.
"He could be the most successful male athlete we've seen at these Olympic Games," Ron Galimore said.
Take that, Mr. Phelps.
Before Hamm gets his next chance, it's throwback time at the Summer Games. The shot put was to go off at the original Olympic Stadium in Olympia, the first time in 1,611 years that it will host an athletic competition. The American men arrived there with an eye at sweeping all three medals.
"I'm extremely excited," Reese Hoffa said after arriving at the site five hours outside Athens. "It was kind of an awe thing, getting here. . . . It was amazing. I can't wait."
About 15,000 fans, all with free tickets, will watch as Americans Hoffa, Adam Nelson and John Godina take on the rest of the world's shot putters. The odds of a U.S. sweep?
"I'd put the chances at 50-50," said Godina, a two-time Olympic medalist.
The stadium housed the ancient Olympic Games from 776 B.C. through A.D. 393. NBC will highlight the classic Greek facility throughout its programming, beginning with a middle-of-the-night broadcast of the shot put competition on its MSNBC outlet.
The women's shot put final from the same site will air during NBC's afternoon show, with the men's final providing one of the prime-time highlights Wednesday.
The rest of the network's nightly four-hour block features swimming, with the American women defending their 800-freestyle relay gold and the gymnastics.
Hamm, now in his second Olympics, arrived in Athens as the all-around world champion. Increased expectations typically mean increased pressure, although Hamm appears impervious.
"The bigger the event, the more on the line, the better this guy seems to get," NBC analyst Tim Daggett said.
Hamm, whose twin brother Morgan is a teammate, said he won't be disappointed if the rest of his Olympics aren't as productive as the start — but he's confident that won't be a problem if he stays consistent.
"I'm going to try to keep doing what I'm doing here," he said. "If I have a performance like I did on the first day of competition, it's not going to be a problem to get on the podium."
There's lots of other action, too, on a day when 21 medals will be awarded.
The U.S. softball team, undefeated and unscored on at these Olympics, plays Canada live at 10 a.m. on MSNBC. And the women's basketball team, seeking its third straight gold medal, plays South Korea at 7:30 a.m. on the USA Network.
There's a wild card in Wednesday's television coverage. NBC deemed the surprising Iraqi soccer team worthy of a live spot on its afternoon lineup, rearranging its plans to squeeze the squad in. Iraq won its first two games in the Olympic tournament, and takes on Morocco in its next contest.
The Iraqis were flown out of Baghdad by the Royal Australian Air Force, and arrived in Athens without much hope of a medal. The country's only Olympic medal was a weightlifting bronze in 1960.
But the soccer team, once threatened with torture or jail for athletic failure when Odai Hussein — Saddam's son — ran the operation, came to the Summer Games with a different outlook. Odai was killed by U.S. troops in July 2003.
"We can play without any fear," said Tiras Odisho, director of the Iraq National Olympic Committee. "We can shoot at the goal and miss and not be afraid."
Olympics Wednesday
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Let the games resume. The big happenings at the 2004 Summer Games for Wednesday:
UNSATISFIED: With one silver medal already in hand, defending world all-around gymnastics champion Paul Hamm goes after his first individual medal.
CAN'T HARDLY WAIT: The U.S. shot put team gets fired up for the first athletic event at the Olympic Stadium in Olympia since A.D. 393
TALENT SHOW: Natalie Coughlin and Jenny Thompson lead the Americans in the 800-meter freestyle relay.
PRIME TIME: The shot put competition airs on NBC, along with Hamm's gold medal chase and more from the Olympic pool.