Oliver: Summer Olympics offer smorgasbord of lesser-known options for sports fans

As a sports fan, I look forward to the Olympics. Summer or winter, you’ll find me glued to the television and looking up scores for any number of events.

After all, the Olympics brings a cornucopia of sports that rarely get any coverage the rest of the time. That is, unless you’re a committed fan and know where to look.

As someone who is admittedly a rabid fan of several sports, I often have a breadth of knowledge about the players and teams involved. That requires a commitment of time that would be hard to do with as many sports that are available come Olympics time.

I can happily indulge in gymnastics, track and field, cycling, diving, swimming, mountain biking and skateboarding, to name just a few, without having to nerd out to my usual degree.

Happily, some of my favorite athletes from sports I follow during the year are also represented in the Olympics mix.

For instance, I’m truly looking forward to getting the chance to see Spain’s two best male tennis players, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz, team up to play doubles. That should be highly entertaining.

My favorite tennis player who is not an American, Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina, also is in the draw on the women’s side. Of course, I’ll be rooting for Coco Gauff and the rest of the Americans. But in tennis, at least, I have a broad knowledge of the rest of the world and the chances they have to bring home a gold.

These Olympics also will see the end of the remarkable tennis career of Andy Murray of Great Britain and Angelique Kerber of Germany. As a tennis fan, I’m sorry to see both go.

As a women’s basketball fan, of course I’m looking forward to seeing the U.S. national team in action again, having just seen them take on the WNBA All Stars. For true fans, the chance to see Aja Wilson and Breanna Stewart on the same team is amazing. And then there’s my favorite player, Kahleah Copper, who is a former member of the Chicago Sky and who is making her Olympic debut. There’s also something comforting in seeing the Phoenix Mercury’s Diana Taurasi on yet another Olympics team. This probably will be her last go-round, so I’m going to savor it.

Speaking of that, watching Simone Biles again on the Olympic stage just about brings me to tears of joy. The last time the Summer Olympics were held, Biles had to withdraw from the competition. So much was made of that, but I remain proud of her for her decision to prioritize her mental health, and I celebrate her return. That she’s even better than before is awe-inspiring.

Biles has an equally impressive group around her. Suni Lee, who is the defending Olympics all-around champion, will join Biles in the all-around competition. Frankly, Jordan Chiles, who finished third on the U.S. team during qualifying, should be there too. Just saying.

As for the lesser-known competitions, I’ll be seeking out coverage of surfing from Tahiti, skateboarding and a dose of beach volleyball, as well as the more traditional form of volleyball.

I’m also fascinated by all the equestrian competitions, as well as any form of cycling. Mountain cycling, in particular, looks to be something I’ll enjoy watching. Women’s rugby, led by Ilona Maher, just might convert me into a rabid fan.

Then there are the new sports: break dancing and kayak cross. As someone who grew up during the 1980s, never in a million years would I have thought that break dancing would become an Olympic sport. But I do think it should be a good time. I suppose the same could be said of seeing Snoop Dogg as a commentator, though he too has proved to be fun.

Kayak cross, on the other hand, seems to be just the sort of sport that combines great skill and a little danger – something that seems to be consistent with just about all of the winter sports.

Sadly, I won’t be able to see everything that I want to see, mainly because I just can’t devote every waking minute to watching the Olympics. I’ll have to pick and choose and hope that the nightly review on television doesn’t forget the lesser-known sports in its efforts to show us gymnastics, swimming and track and field.

Sports nerds like me just want to experience it all. Badminton, anyone?

• Joan Oliver is the former Northwest Herald assistant news editor. She has been associated with the Northwest Herald since 1990. She can be reached at jolivercolumn@gmail.com.