Americans have become so accustomed to hearing the US national anthem and seeing its athletes on Olympic podiums that we often overlook a very important fact: competing for one’s country is just as important for athletes of less dominant nations as it is for Americans.

Today, Israel applauds their first gold medalist of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics! He is Artistic Gymnastics Floor Exercise champion, Artem Dolgopyat. What a thrill for a teeny-tiny nation in the Middle East…not exactly an athletic hotbed! Mazel tov!