The Chicago Water and Air Show is returning this weekend to the Chicago lakefront Aug. 10-11 from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.

This event started in 1959, and has grown to be the largest and oldest free admission air show in the United States. Each year, the show sees over two million people on the city’s lakefront to the military and its pilots perform stunts above Lake Michigan.

Since the 1920s, the iconic Butter Cow Sculpture has been the unofficial mascot of the Illinois State Fair. Each year, a sculptor is selected to create the butter cow using hundreds of pounds of unsalted butter, which serves to highlight the importance of Illinois’ agriculture and history.

The first Butter Cow was sculped in 1922 by J.E. Wallace, which honored the image of a world record holding jersey cow named Raleigh’s Sibyl. Raleigh’s Sibyl was owned and cared for by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Raleigh’s Sibyl earned her record by producing 18,847 pounds of milk in one year.

The Illinois State Fair has been around since 1853, held for the first time in Springfield at a wooded 20-acre site located one mile west of the Old State Capitol.

Since its beginning, the fair has focused on promoting Illinois’ innovation, methods of agriculture and raising livestock. It has also displayed Illinois’ leading improvements in labor, industry, education, arts and sciences. The fair was also intended to provide an opportunity for famers to exchange ideas.

The Paris Summer Olympic Games are finally here – and an impressive 39 athletes representing the United States are from Illinois! Later this summer, Paris is also hosting the 2024 Paralympic Games from Aug. 28 to Sept. 8.

Only three U.S. states will send more Olympic athletes to the 2024 Paris Games than Illinois. California will send 120 athletes, Florida has 42 and Texas has 41, according to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Illinois athletes will compete in multiple sports including soccer, wrestling, volleyball, rowing, rhythmic gymnastics and more.

Sports combine recreation, community and entertainment, making them one of the favorite activities for people of all ages, especially in Illinois.

According to SmileHub, a non-profit charity rating organization, Illinois is the 4^th best state for sports lovers in the U.S. SmileHub compared all 50 states using 20 key metrics related to three main themes, including sports interest and success, sports careers and income and access to sports.

Illinois ranked 6^th for sports interest and success, 8^th for sports careers and income, and 5^th for access to sports – with an overall ranking of 4^th and a total score of 48.5.

Sports are extremely popular in Illinois due to various reasons. Illinois is home to one of 11 cities across the U.S. that have a team in each of the five major professional sports leagues. Illinois is also home to two professional women’s sports teams, the Chicago Sky in the Women’s National Basketball Association and the Chicago Red Stars in the National Women’s Soccer League. Illinois also has prominent minor league sports teams and pre-professional sports clubs in soccer, baseball, hockey and more.