Riding the top of the wave, golf experiences the most exciting moment in its history with a return to the Olympic Games

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Riding the top of the wave, golf experiences the most exciting moment in its history with a return to the Olympic Games

By Rio 2016 15/04/2013 00H00

The sport counts more than 60 million practitioners worldwide and is growing thanks to its inclusion in the Olympic programme

Riding the top of the wave, golf experiences the most exciting moment in its history with a return to the Olympic Games — Thinkstock

The month of April counts two golf events. The Brazil Classic, Brazil´s main golf tournament, attracted 7,000 people at the São Paulo Golf Club and was held from the 4th to the 7th. The second, the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia (USA), held from the 11th to the 14th, is the year´s first Major, and was attended by 120,000 people. rio2016.com prepared a special series of three reports on the sport, which is returning to the Olympic Games after 112 years.

In an exclusive interview, 18 year old Cristian Barcelos, 2012 Brazil Youth Champion, speaks about the importance of Rio 2016™´s golf course. It will open to the public after the Games. Alexandre Rocha, from the State of São Paulo, is the first Brazilian to compete in a PGA Tour after 29 years of no Brazilian athletes competing in the world´s main golf circuit. He also comments on the great opportunity to develop the sport in Brazil.

In the second special report, you´ll read the opinions of some of the best golfers of all times - Australian athlete Greg Norman and some of the best current athletes, like South african athlete Charl Schwartzel, show the importance of the sport on an Olympic level.

To wrap up this series, the Rio 2016™ website publishes preliminary information on the Olympic Games Golf Tournament and data on the sport´s growth. It now counts more than 60 million practitioners worldwide in more than 120 countries according to International Golf Federation data.

In addition to Golf, there will also be a Handball special report with three exclusive articles in 2013. Check out the different Olympic and Paralympic sports specials like Athletics, Basketball, Wheelchair basketball, Boxing, Boccia, Goalball, Judo, Olympic Wrestling, Swimming, Paralympic canoeing, Modern Pentathlon, Rugby, Taekwondo, Shooting, Triathlon, Sailing, Volleyball and Beach Volleyball.