Snoop Dogg at the Olympics: Swimming with Michael Phelps, betting with Russell Crowe

Snoop Dogg has some skin in the (Olympic) games as a special correspondent for NBC's coverage of the 2024 Paris competition.

The rapper, 52, and "Gladiator" star Russell Crowe have thrown down on a bet over the growing rivalry between the U.S. and Australian swimming teams. Are you not entertained?

"Me and Russell Crowe have a little wager. USA all the way, baby!" Snoop Dogg said during a media conference call Wednesday with NBC's Olympics executive producer Molly Solomon and "Primetime in Paris" host Mike Tirico.

The swimming events help officially kick off the Paris games Friday with qualifying heats on the same day as the opening ceremony.

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"The USA-Australia rivalry is one of the fiercest of the games," said Solomon. "We can't wait to see what happens on night one in swimming."

NBC's primetime, tape-delayed coverage of swimming features Snoop Dogg meeting the U.S. swimming team along with the superhero swimmer he calls "Aquaman" – 28-time Olympic medal-winner and NBC contributor Michael Phelps.

"You may know him as Aquaman. But people call him Michael Phelps. And me and Michael Phelps have a session in the pool where I may learn how to do the 25-meter (swim)," said Snoop Dogg. "I'm an athlete. So one thing about me is, when I'm around these Olympians, I feel like I'm just as good as them."

In his first Olympics gig, Snoop Dogg will meet athletes and their families and visit sites around Paris.

Fellow rapper Flavor Flav also has an official role sponsoring the women's water polo team. "That's my homeboy. He's handling that, making sure they're underwater boogeying," said Snoop Dogg. "We're going to spread ourselves around and make sure every section of the Olympics has attention. I'll be handling volleyball to weight lifting. We don't want to leave nobody behind. Because this is a hell of an experience for people who've been waiting for years to get here. We're just here to cover."

Snoop Dogg said he was born (as Calvin Broadus Jr.) prepared for the prestigious gig, but has done his homework.

"My preparation for primetime is being me," he said. "People are going to find out I really know the sports, I know the angles, I know the conversation."

Tirico said he won't be jumping into Olympic pools like Snoop Dogg, but he's been impressed with the new TV correspondent's work.

"In all seriousness, spending time around Snoop at the track and field trials and in the build-up, he's so genuine and so real," said Tirico. "Viewers are going to see just a different side of the athletes, the sports and the places he goes."

Other celebrities working on NBC's Olympics coverage include Kelly Clarkson and Peyton Manning, who will host Friday's opening ceremony with Tirico. Jimmy Fallon hosts the Aug. 11 closing ceremony and Leslie Jones provides social coverage.

Snoop Dogg also carries the Olympic torch in the final Paris stretch before the opening ceremony. He recalled how boxing legend Mohammed Ali carried the torch in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

"That's what it feels like to me, my own version of this," he said. "I don't want to get too emotional. But I know this is special. I'm going to put all the energy and resources into love, peace and harmony. Because that's what the Olympics is about. And I feel like that's why they chose me. Because that's what I represent: peace, love and unity."

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Snoop Dogg weighed in on the U.S. men's basketball team's troubles after barely avoiding a huge upset against South Sudan on July 20, and squeaking out a victory against Germany on July 23. The world has changed since the Michael Jordan-led USA "Dream Team" of the 1984 Olympics.

"When the 'Dream Team' was formed, there was probably two players from across the water in the NBA. Now there's 40-something players in the NBA as we speak," he said. "There's so many superstars that aren't from America, that when you put them against America, it's sort of even."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Snoop Dogg at the Olympics: Swimming with Michael Phelps, betting with Russell Crowe