Olympic & Niche Sports
The sports that get their moment in the spotlight every four years, and a few that deserve more attention year-round.
Curling
Often called chess on ice — a sport where sweeping a broom in just the right spot can bend a 40-pound stone's path by inches.
Archery
A sport where a shot separated by mere millimeters from perfect can mean the difference between an Olympic medal and going home empty-handed.
Fencing
A sport with three distinct weapons, each governed by its own separate rulebook for what actually counts as a hit.
Gymnastics
In 2006 gymnastics retired the perfect 10 for open-ended scoring, because the athletes had outgrown the old capped scale.
Track and Field
Many track and field world records have stood for decades, because near the limits of human ability, progress comes in slivers.