Most American fans can name Michael Phelps as an Olympic swimmer for the U.S., along with Mia Hamm in soccer, and Jesse Owens, the famous runner in Olympic track. But does anyone know who Sheila Taormina is?
Modern pentathlon: five challenges in one
Both Taormina and her sport, the modern pentathlon, are often overlooked by Olympic fans. In fact, when it comes to popularity, many Summer Olympic athletes are left holding the short end of the baton. Here are a few of the lesser-known games on Beijing's 2008 roster which might surprise the average viewer.
Modern Pentathlon was actually created to simulate a military messenger mission. Athletes compete in 5 events: shooting, fencing, swimming, horseriding, and running.
Friday, Aug. 22
Taormina and 3 teammates will have to shoot twenty shots from an air pistol at a set target, will have one minute to score a winning hit in a fencing epee against each opponent, will freestyle swim 200 meters, will show-jump a 350 meter course with 12 obstacles on a horse they have known for only 20 minutes, and finally, will run 3,000 meters to be the first to pass the winning post to take the gold for Team USA.
China's badminton boom
American followers of the Olympics may be surprised to find that tickets to the Olympic badminton Games were among the first to sell out this year in Beijing.
While lesser-known in the United States, badminton is at the top of the popularity list in much of Asia and especially in this year's Olympic host country. In fact, China now holds 22 Olympic medals in the sport, while the USA has never medaled.
This may be due to the fact that badminton, or a version of it, was invented by the Chinese in 500 B.C., its influence quickly spreading to other Asian countries. The sport was adopted by nobility in European countries in the 16th century, and in the United States during the 19th century.
Badminton was first included in the Olympic Games in 1992 at Barcelona. 2008 is the first year in which the United States has qualified in all five badminton disciplines: men and women's singles, men and women's doubles, and mixed doubles.
Not so surprising may be the fact that all five members of this year's U.S. team are first or second - generation Asian Americans with heritage in Vietnam, Laos, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Hong Kong.
Handball: international showdown
Handball is another olympic sport unknown to many American viewers. The game first debuted at the 1936 Games in Berlin, and was permanently introduced in 1972 at Munich.
According to olympic.org, women's handball has become one of th most highly attended Olympic sports since the division opened in 1976.
Here are some of the basics:
Handball is a sport which combines the speed of basketball, the physicality of hockey, and the finesse of tennis. The way the game is set up is often compared to that of soccer and water polo. Two teams of 7 players pass, throw, catch, and dribble a small ball with their hands while trying to score goals. The team with the most goals wins.
France-Angola (9:30 a.m. EST) and Russia-South Korea (1:30 p.m.) lead off the action in women's play on Saturday, Aug. 9 on MSNBC, with Men's Handball coverage begining the following day at 1:30 p.m.
Unfortunately, the USA will not be participating in this event in the 2008 Olympics, but keep your eyes peeled for Croatia's mens team, as they have won 2 of the last 3 gold medals in the Summer Olympic Games. (Watch especially for Croatia's Mirza Dzomba, named player of the year and the hero of the 1996 Olympic games.)
Aim to be a fan of shooting
Although this Olympic sport's name may inspire visions of an old Western standoff, shooting, a sport consisting of five events in men and women's pistol, rifle, and shotgun firing, has been an Olympic event since the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.
Olympians with rifles and pistols aim at targets from 10, 25, and 50 meters away. In the shotgun events, competitors shoot at a variety of airborne clay targets.
This year's U.S. Olympic shooting team is arguably one of the most diverse of all U.S. teams competing at Beijing. The range of players' ages is particularly stunning with the eldest shooter born in 1952, and the youngest in 1990.
Sandra Fong is the youngest member of the U.S. Olympic shooting team at 18, and will be competing in women's 3-position rifle. She earned her place on the team by finishing second at the 2008 Olympic Trials.
Another interesting fact about the U.S. shooting team is that the United States Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) has consistently trained some of the top shooters in the U.S. for the Olympic Games. This year USAMU will send six of their soldiers to the 2008 Olympic Games: Michael Anti, Vincent Hancock, Jeffrey Holguin, Jason Parker, Daryl Szarenski, and Glenn Eller.
Other shooting team members have also served in uniform. Stephen Scherer, a 19-year-old rifle shooter, is a freshman at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Keith Sanderson, on the pistol team, spent eight years of active duty in the Marine Corps, and is currently assigned to active duty infantry in the U.S. Army.
Finally, Brenda Shinn, shooting pistol in two Olympic events this year, has been a peace officer for 25 years, working full time with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department in California at the Jurupa Valley Patrol Station.
Trampoline: not just for the backyard
Trampoline is another Olympic activity that may surprise a casual fan glancing over the schedule of events. The uninformed might be picturing a small child bouncing in the back yard, but this Olympic sport has very little in common with your son or daughter's favorite pastime.
Saturday, Aug. 16
Trampoline made its Olympic debut at the Sydney Games in 2000. It is one of 3 disciplines within the gymnastics competitions along with artistic gymnastics and rhythmic gymnastics. Individuals perform10 jumps in a routine combining fifteen twists and twenty saltos (a flip with tucked knees) on an olympic-sized trampoline. Participants are judged on the execution and level of difficulty of their saltos, twists, and overall routine.
Young trampoline hobbyists might aspire to achieve the talent of the promising female gymnast, Erin Blanchard. At 18, Blanchard has an impressive record, placing first in 4 National and 2 International Competitions since 2006. Blanchard took first place in the Grenzland Cup in March, the first of four selection events to determine who would represent the USA in trampoline at the 2008 Olympic Games.
Chris Estrada is another potential role model on this year's U.S. team. Estrada claimed his fourth straight U.S. senior men's trampoline title at the Visa Championships in Houston, Texas this past May and will represent the U.S. in the 2008 Olympic trampoline event.
By the time the 2008 Olympics' closing ceremony rolls around, American fans may or may not be able to recognize Sheila Taormina as a modern pentathlon athlete, say "Handball!" when they hear the name, Mirza Dzomba, know Sandra Fong as the youngest member of the U.S. shooting team, or idolize Chris Estrada's awesome salto skills. But even if these names do not win any impressive medals in Beijing, at least the U.S. athletes of the lesser-known Olympic events have not gone unappreciated by their fans here at home.