This summer, a former elementary school teacher will introduce a sport to the Olympics. A woman who picked up boxing at 17 so she could do something new will lace up her gloves and fight for her country. A 21-year-old Floridian will break a sports unwritten color barrier.These are women of the world, making their Olympic debuts in Rio by nature of their own unique paths.Olympic athletes have always been symbols. Symbols of the very streets they grew up on, the very people who helped them along the way -- and yet, they also symbolize the highest form of athletic achievement. The Games offer a strange, remarkable dichotomy, between an athletes place among her fellow countrymen, and her status as an elite competitor.With these photos, we hope to capture both the awe-inspiring beauty of athletic grace, and the everyday, universal nature of these first-time Olympians. They are shot in the foreground of some of the worlds greatest treasures, and in the middle of crowded city streets. In sailboats and canal boats. Places you know and places you dont. But all feature women who have earned their ways to compete on the worlds biggest stage.Katy McLean, 30Rugby, Great Britain ? StonehengeI started in a very small town in South Shields that lots of people have never heard of, playing a sport that girls didnt play. It was a sport for men, and women didnt do it. Id like [my former students] to take away that you can do whatever you set your mind to -- it makes no difference who you are, where youre from or your family background, as long as youre prepared to work hard and not back down. I really dont care what people think.Rani Rampal, 21Field Hockey, India ? BangaloreWhen I was 7 years old, I didnt know what the Olympics were, what the meaning of the Olympics were. And when I was first representing my country in 2008, I still didnt know what the Olympics were, I was too young. When we lost, most of the senior players were crying because we didnt qualify, but I just thought, Why are they crying? I dont know what the Olympics are. I dont know what the meaning of the Olympics is. Four years later, in 2012 in India we lost a qualifying game very closely in the finals, and I cried so much. I had realized what the Olympics were -- and why they were crying four years back.Ashleigh Johnson, 21Water Polo, U.S.A ? Seal Beach, CaliforniaWhen I first found out I was going to be competing in Rio, it was the most amazing moment in my life. It was like everything Id been working for was coming true. And it was tangible. I could see my Olympic dream coming true, and it was just so amazing. There are so many things that can derail you as a young female athlete, and you just have to believe in yourself -- everyone who supported me and pushed me to be my best, Im doing this for them.Lisa Darmanin, 24Sailing, Australia ? Sydney HarbourThe hard thing for female sailors is that life beyond the Olympics in sailing is quite challenging. Professional sailing is majorly dominated by men. We have the Americas Cup, where theres no females. We have the Extreme Sailing Series, where theres maybe one female. The Volvo Ocean Race is the other pinnacle of sailing, and you just dont see females there. The problem is that we dont have the experience because we havent had the opportunities. [In the Olympics], we get to race men out there. We can do this. We can race you. Give us the opportunity.Itzel Manjarrez, 26Taekwondo, Mexico ? Xochimilco, Mexico City[Taekwondo] is not practiced by women where I come from. I went on my own to the school where they practiced taekwondo; I liked staying distracted and also feeling free. My parents always gave me the freedom to do what I wanted, and after a month of practicing taekwondo my parents found out because I asked them for money to pay the tuition. After that they always supported me.Mikaela Mayer, 26 Boxing, U.S.A ? Lake Superior, MichiganPeople have to realize that there are going to be challenges. There are going to be times when you fail. There are going to be times when you feel like, maybe I cant do this, or that the world is against you. Thats when you have to persevere. Thats when you have to hold your head up and keep going.Charley Hull, 20Golf, Great Britain ? Wrest Park - Silsoe, EnglandIm in every event to win it. I wouldnt step on the first tee if I didnt think I could win it. I want to win gold. My dream ever since I was a young kid was to be world No. 1. So if I can get there, the smile on my dads face will be brilliant. He has not been a pushy parent at all -- my dad has been so relaxed and thats the reason that I love the game. I think more parents need to be like that.Shi Jinglin, 23 Swimming, China ? Norwalk, ConnecticutThere are two types of people [who inspire me]. 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