Olympic athletes pulling in Olympic numbers through social media

Likes and Tweets aren't new for athletes, but through the 2012 Olympic Games we've seen another trend - the skyrocketing of athlete fanpage numbers. As the games have gone on top athletes are getting more play through social media, and that is bringing more attention to their sports as a whole.

Since the Opening Ceremonies, the top mentioned US athletes include Michael Phelps, Gabby Douglas, David Boudia and Kerri Walsh according to data from Compass Labs.

Meanwhile data from Wildfire finds that, when it comes to Facebook, female athlete fan pages have more fans than male fanpages.

Basketball stars Kobe Bryant and LeBron James top the list for most-liked-on-Facebook list while female athletes Maria Sharpova and Hope Solo are atop their gender list. Venus and Serena Williams are also in the top 4.

Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas saw 100% page growth between July 30 and August 8 while teammake Jordyn Weiber saw her page grow 300% - because people liked her attitude after failing to qualify for the individual all-around competition in gymnastics.

Comparing countries, athletes from Jamaica, Switzerland and Russia have the most active fanpages.

How fans are engaging with these athletes is similar to how fans of brands will engage with brand pages - if the information offered on those pages is relevant. The athlete of the XXX Olympiad are offering their fans images, thoughts, cheers for teammates and information about themselves - this is the kind of relevance fans are looking for. It's also the kind of information that can be used across the social sphere.

Tags: 2012 Olympic trends, Compass Labs, social media trends, social networks, Wildfire