Track & field, Twitter & Facebook

There’s a new event taking center stage at the Olympics. Social media.

Through sites like Twitter and Facebook, you’ll have more options to see the games up close. Very close.

"We're going to be very connected to these athletes," says social media expert Michelle Wayland. “I think it allows you to get to know these athletes. It's like the whole world is going to be watching them perform. But now the whole world can kind of see their story leading up to it."

The NBC Olympic App for Apple’s iPad gives you an inside look at the games and the athletes.

"You're going to see a lot of that where people are looking to get that insider access that they don't have from just the broadcast pieces," according to Scott Minto of the SDSU Sports MBA Program.

Multiple cable channels and online sites will also carry the events. There’s also been an increase in TV, laptop and tablet sales.