Paris Olympics about to grab this nation’s attention, but not in all sports

The Olympic Phryge, pictured on the left, will be the official mascot of the 2024 Summer Olympics. Standing on the right is the Paralympic Phryge, which will be the official mascot of the 2024 Summer Paralympics. Courtesy photo
SHEPHERDSTOWN — The Olympic Games are about to begin in Paris. The French cosmopolitan city has hosted previous Olympics in both 1900 and 1924. In 1900, the Olympic Games were held simultaneously with the World’s Fair.
This year, in late July, about 11,000 athletes will descend on Paris looking for medals, the praise and pride of their countrymen and possible monetary gain, if their fame becomes wide enough and commercial enough.
Athletes from the United States of America, in some sports, have been readying in Colorado Springs at the Olympic Training Center for some time now. They’ve been honed by their use of a performance dining hall, sports medicine clinic, science hall and various training facilities.
Other countries have been doing much the same. Russia, China and others wanting to trumpet their medal count have also been training their Paris-bound athletes.
In the United States, the emphasis on some Olympic sports varies widely.
When the Olympic Games begin, fans and watchers in America will crowd their television sets to view the world-class competitions in track and field, basketball, gymnastics, soccer, equestrian, volleyball, swimming and diving, freestyle wrestling, baseball and softball.
Track and field has always attracted the attention of Americans. Medals of all colors are once again expected to land in American hands. Since the age of television has helped that event gain more attention, gymnastics, basketball, swimming and diving have also captured the viewing audience — at least for the duration of the Olympic Games every four years.
Scads of sports don’t draw much notice at all, and because of the time differences between Paris and anywhere in the United States, those sports won’t be seen on television.
The clamoring for more handball, judo, sailing, karate, taekwondo, rowing, rugby, shooting, surfing, table tennis, cycling, fencing, kayaking, canoeing, water polo, archery, badminton, weightlifting, the modern pentathlon and the triathlon won’t threaten any seismic records with television advertising buyers or general sports enthusiasts.
American viewers will want to see their countrymen gobble up medals in sports that they have become accustomed to watching and know a bit about.
Not many names are being spoken about, as yet. But with the media focusing intently on the “medal count,” it would be wise to pay attention to how the United States is doing against the rest of the world — especially Russia, China and powers with proven success in other well-known sports like gymnastics, basketball and track and field.
The Olympic Games are a time for national pride the world over — just that the water polo and judo medalists will usually only have their own country’s accolades to bask in.