News They are coming from every corner of the world, from all ethnicities, all religions and all social backgrounds In just 50 days' time, more than 10,000 athletes from 206 countries will begin competing in Rio de Janeiro for the biggest prize in sport – an Olympic medal The lucky few will go home clutching one or even more of the medals But the Olympic Games is about more than podiums, medal ceremonies and national anthems It is the world's single greatest celebration of human achievement and endeavour, of the diversity of our cultures and of the goals and dreams we all share Today, with 50 days to go, Rio 2016 celebrates the diversity of the thousands of athletes who will be sharing the athletes' village this August, from all the five continents represented by the Olympic rings, and including a special team of 10 stateless refugees Living in peace "The Olympic Games are about a lot more than sport They go beyond competition," Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, said in Rio this week   "The main symbol for this is the Olympic village, where athletes who will be competing against each other live peacefully together " ​At a time when divisions between different peoples and countries seem ever more apparent, the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will be an important reminder of the hopes and dreams that we all have in common "Brazil will send a message of unity, respect and tolerance to the world," Bach told young Brazilians this week  "The Olympic Games show that people can compete with each other respectfully and in peace " "Diversity is one of the pillars of our society," Bach said "We are so proud that 206 nations from the whole world will be participating in Rio " Short, tall, black, white, skinny, strong: the Olympic Games are open to all (Photos: Getty Images) With 42 different sport disciplines, the Olympic Games give athletes of all shapes and sizes the chance to shine  "You see sports dominated by short people, like gymnastics; by people who are more muscular, like weightlifting; or by tall people, like volleyball Everyone has their place," said Giovane Gávio, Rio 2016 volleyball manager and two-time Olympic champion The athletes in our main picture, 50 shades of Rio 2016, represent all backgrounds and each of the 42 Olympic sport disciplines Click on their name below to discover more about each one (from top-left to right, row by row, in the picture): 1 - Svetlana Romashina, Russia (synchronised swimming) 2 - Usain Bolt, Jamaica (athletics) 3 - Katie Taylor, Ireland (boxing) 4 - James Nyang Chiengjiek, Olympic Refugee Team, born in South Sudan (athletics) 5 - Genzebe Dibaba, Ethiopia (athletics) 6 - Lee Chong Wei, Malaysia (badminton) 7 - Simone Biles, USA (artistic gymnastics) 8 - Isaquias Queiroz, Brazil (canoe sprint) 9 - Emilie Fer, France (canoe slalom) 10 - Maris Strombergs, Latvia (BMX) 11 - Mariana Pajón, Colombia (BMX) 12 - Nairo Quintana, Colombia (road cycling) 13 - Anna Meares, Australia (track cycling) 14 - Tom Daley, Great Britain (diving) 15 - Julie Bresset, France (mountain bike) 16 - Neymar, Brazil (football) 17 - Marta, Brazil (football) 18 - Anderson Varejão, Brazil (basketball) 19 - Yana Kudryavtseva, Russia (rhythmic gymnastics) 20 - Dong Dong, China (trampoline gymnastics) 21 - Jordan Spieth, USA (golf) 22 - Mary Hanna, Australia (equestrian) 23 - Steve Guerdat, Switzerland (equestrian) 24 - Sarah Menezes, Brazil (judo) 25 - PR Sreejesh, India (hockey) 26 - Yolande Mabika, Olympic Refugee Team, born in the Democratic Republic of Congo (judo) 27 - Mikkel Hansen, Denmark (handball) 28 - Saori Yoshida, Japan (wrestling) 29 - Oussama Mellouli, Tunisia (marathon swimming) 30 - Kerry Walsh Jennings, USA (beach volleyball) 31 - Hwang Kyung-Sun, Republic of Korea (taekwondo) 32 - Michael Phelps, USA (swimming) 33 - Yusra Mardini, Olympic Refugeee Team, born in Syria (swimming) 34 - Osea Kolinisau, Fiji (rugby) 35 - Laura Asadauskaite, Lithuania (modern pentathlon) 36 - Mahé Drysdale, New Zealand (rowing) 37 - Ariana Errigo, Italy (fencing) 38 - Yonas Kinde, Olympic Refugee Team, born in Ethiopia (athletics) 39 - Zahra Nemati, Iran (archery) 40 - Dénes Varga, Hungary (water polo) 41 - Serena Williams, USA (tennis) 42 - Novak Djokovic, Serbia (tennis) 43 - Ki Bo Bae, Republic of Korea (archery) 44 - Alistair Brownlee, Great Britain (triathlon) 45 - Martine Grael, Brazil (sailing) 46 - Rajmond Debevec, Slovenia (shooting) 47 - Fabiana Claudino, Brazil (volleyball) 48 - Hamid Soryan, Iran (Greco-Roman wrestling) 49 - Li Xiaoxia, China (table tennis) 50 - Adrian Zieliński, Poland (weightlifting) *Additional research by Thiago Minete