We’re the United States. Of course we’re going to top the Olympic medal table.
Team USA’s dominance in swimming, track and field, gymnastics, basketball, boxing, rowing, and even tennis is certainly well-documented. But there are several events the Americans have had no luck in — while other sports are too new to have any sort of history yet.
With the Paris Olympics just days away, let’s run down three sports where Team USA may be primed for a breakthrough, either to end a medal drought or perhaps to establish a new winning tradition.
Women’s rugby sevens
America loves to get behind a team sport. The average fan may not pay attention to rugby until the Olympics roll around, but we can hold our own in games traditionally dominated by other nations. Just ask the Pakistani cricket team.
Rugby sevens was just added to the Olympic program in 2016, and neither the men’s nor the women’s team has managed to medal yet. The women have fared better, coming in fifth in Rio de Janeiro before a disappointing sixth-place finish in Tokyo. They’re ranked No. 7 in the world, and they avoid traditional powers Australia and New Zealand in Pool C.
This will be the first team sport on the schedule, with both men’s and women’s medal rounds being completed before August, so a surprise charge through the knockout round could set the tone for American dominance early. And if you need to get your gridiron football fix before the season, watching Ariana Ramsey sprint down the sideline could scratch that itch.
Related: 10 Greatest USA Olympics performances, including Michael Phelps and Carl Lewis
Rhythmic gymnastics
This isn’t the Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Sunisa Lee kind of gymnastics. They compete in artistic gymnastics; the discipline of rhythmic gymnastics is more akin to dance and involves a hoop, ball, ribbon and clubs.
Since the sport’s Olympic debut in 1984, the U.S. has been thoroughly shut out of the rhythmic medal table. European nations and China are the usual favorites. The athletes are scored on the difficulty, execution, and artistry of their four routines for one all-around score.
The American’s underdog story to root for is Evita Griskenas, competing again after a 12th-place finish in Tokyo. Griskenas earned the all-around silver medal at last year’s Pan American Games and a bronze in ribbon at this year’s Grand Prix Final. Should she become the first American to reach the Olympic medal stand in rhythmic gymnastics, she’d absolutely deserve a place beside Biles and company in Team USA lore.
Related: 2024 Paris Olympics: 10 athletes making their return, including Simone Biles
Breaking
Announced in 2020, the day has finally come for breakdancing, or breaking, to be introduced to the Olympic agenda. It’s one of several sports the IOC has adopted in recent years with an obvious goal of appealing to the youths, along with surfing, skateboarding and freestyle BMX cycling.
I’m personally worried that the names and terminology of breaking will have NBC’s announcers sounding like someone’s cool dad trying to talk about hip-hop in the early 1990s. Athletes are “B-boys” and “B-girls.” Each one-on-one contest is a “throwdown.” Something seriously cool about this sport: Unlike rhythmic gymnastics or figure skating, B-boys and B-girls don’t get to pick their music or know it ahead of time. They have to improvise.
Hip-hop was born in America, so it’s only right that Team USA is the first country to win breaking gold. B-boy Victor Montalvo is the favorite on the men’s side. The American B-girls’ best hope is Sunny Choi.
–By Adam Zielonka, Field Level Media
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