Blazing sprinters lead list of star Tokyo international Olympians to watch
You're likely familiar with many of the American Olympians, particularly the stars, like a gymnast whose name rhymes with Mimone Miles.
However there are, obviously, a number of Olympians who aren't from the U.S., and they are also worth your attention. They practice judo, dominate in gymnastics, excel at cycling and rock climbing.
But perhaps any list of international stars to watch actually begins with two remarkable track athletes:
Dina Asher-Smith, sprinter, Great Britain
She qualified for the Tokyo Olympics winning the 100-meter dash at the FBK Games in Holland with a time of 10.92 seconds. But Asher-Smith is more than just those numbers. She's someone you may hear a lot more about in these Games.
Asher-Smith is 26, won a silver in the 2019 world championships, and generally believed to be one of the best candidates to make a huge leap not just in her sport, but in popularity overall. There's a good chance you will see a lot more of Asher-Smith even after these Olympics.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, sprinter, Jamaica
If Asher-Smith is to truly make waves she'll have to beat the other hyphenated-named star in Fraser-Pryce, who is currently the fastest woman in the world.
Fraser-Pryce ran near the speed of light in the 100-meter dash at 10.63 at a meet in Jamaica in June. The only women to ever run faster was Florence Griffith Joyner who did it three times in 1988.
Her run was so fast it caught the attention of Asher-Smith who called Fraser-Pryce, "Absolutely amazing, I sent her a message saying, 'Oh my God, you're amazing.'"
"My coach sent me a video showing her leg speed and he said 'this is what I'm talking about, you need to move your legs like that!" said Asher-Smith.
They'll both be moving their legs pretty fast in Tokyo.
Janja Garnbret, climbing, Slovenia
The sport will make its Olympic debut and Garnbret is expected to be one of its stars. As CNN reported, there aren't centralized locations in Slovenia for Garnbret to train, so she travels up to fours a day, six days a week to do so.
Watching people climb walls may not seem exciting, but if you've never seen it, it actually is. You'll get to see Garnbret do it firsthand.
Nikita Nagornyy, gymnastics, Russian Olympic Committee
The reigning world and European champion, he is the most dominant men’s gymnast going into the Tokyo Olympics. After finishing third behind teammate Artur Dalaloyan in the all-around at the 2018 world championships, he won in 2019 while leading Russia to its first team title at a major international event since the 1996 Olympics. He’ll be the heavy favorite to win the all-around gold in Tokyo, and could also medal on vault, pommel horse, still rings and floor exercise.
Viktoria Listunova, gymnastics, Russian Olympic Committee
Born in May 2005, she would have been a year too young for the Tokyo Olympics if they’d been held as originally scheduled. Now the junior world champion in 2019 will be a contender for an all-around medal. She opened the year by winning the Russian title, and in May won the all-around gold at the European championships.
Rohan Dennis, cycling, Australia
Dennis is a well-known name in cycling particularly, obviously, in Australia, but he's also the kind of interesting rider who could draw fans to cycling who aren't otherwise enthusiasts of the sport. He's aggressive and fun to watch.
Teddy Riner, judo, France
There have been few athletes, in any sport, at any time, as dominant as Riner. Until last year, he hadn't lost a match in almost 10 years. Along the way he won two Olympic gold medals and eight world championships, in addition to a number of other titles. Yet he's not nearly the household name he should be.
That will almost certainly change with this Olympics. There will likely be more attention on him than before because people who don't normally follow the sport closely are starting to now.
Takeru Kitazono, gymnastics, Japan
He's seen as the heir of gymnastics legend Kohei Uchimura. Both will be competing in this Olympics so we could see a Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers torch passing.
Kitazono will be fun to watch. So will these other international Olympians.