With the 2016 Olympics happening right now, it seems to be all that anyone is talking about. Which means that everyone becomes a critic, whether they know what they're talking about or not.

As a former swimmer, watching the Olympic swimming events is something I look forward to every four years, because it's a representation of my sport that so often doesn't get the credit it deserves the other 1,444 days in between the Summer Olympics.

Whether you've participated or are knowledgeable of a sport, you know how frustrating it is when ignorant people begin talking about the athletes or sport that you love. And it's even more frustrating when they say offensive comments or remarks.

The truth of the matter is that we as spectators have no right to criticize these Olympic athletes who are giving every fiber of their being to compete in these games. We have no idea what their lives are like, what demons they struggle with, or what they have to do mentally and physically to prepare for these games.

Newsflash: Olympic athletes are people too, and they can see and read every negative thing said about them. The pressure that these individuals are under is unimaginable, and you have no right to comment about their lives.

I became very aware of how the media can affect athletes when I watched Shawn Johnson's I Am Second Video. In it, she reveals how challenging life was as an Olympic athlete, how she was told, "I'm sorry," for winning a silver medal, and how she couldn't take the pressure any longer, which is why she retired from gymnastics. You can see it in her eyes, the way her voice quivers, how much she was impacted from the pressure that society put on her, which is unfair in every sense of the word.

Michael Phelps revealed that at one point two years ago, he was suicidal due to the fact that he felt he couldn't bounce back from his DUI arrest and the picture of him smoking marijuana that had surfaced on the internet. Taken from an article, Phelps remarks, "This is the end of my life... How many times will I mess up? Maybe the world would be better without me." The fact that Michael Phelps, one of the greatest athletes in the history of the world, felt like ending his life would be the best choice for him... It's sickening. The media was relentless and cruel with their comments about Phelps, and now he is once again adored for his 25 Olympic medals. In social media, you can be idolized one moment and then patronized another; it isn't something a person copes with easily.

I'm not insinuating that your freedom of speech be taken away, but I urge to think before you post. Really think before you write something about someone that is disrespectful or rude, because like it or not, that's called cyber bullying. Just because an account has a blue check mark next to it doesn't meant that they don't see it and can be affected by your words. These athletes are under constant scrutiny, having these complete strangers comment about how they've fallen off, how they're not good enough, how they didn't give their all. If you were in their shoes, would you want to read negative comments about yourself when you're under that kind of pressure? Probably not. Be careful what you post; you never know how that can be impacting someone.