Olympic diary: The lone reporter at an Olympic event. How does that happen?

Jim Souhan was the only reporter to cover the U.S.-ROC volleyball match Saturday morning in Tokyo.

July 31, 2021 at 10:56PM
United States’ Jordan Thompson, rear, lies injured on the bench during the women’s volleyball preliminary round match against the Russian Olympic Committee at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. (Frank Augstein / Associated Press/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Tokyo — Alone at the Olympics.

How does that happen?

Why does that happen?

Saturday morning in Tokyo, I covered the Team USA vs. ROC women's volleyball game. The U.S. is the top-ranked team in the world and was undefeated. ROC won in three sets, as Edina's Jordan Thompson, a rising American star, injured her ankle.

I went to the mix-zone for interviews. The mix-zone is where athletes and coaches parade by reporters and some stop — or are stopped — to talk. I was the only one there, the only reporter working for a media company.

Sure, the match wasn't that important — both teams will advance from pool play. But I've covered Timberwolves-Kings games that were meaningless and the press seats and locker room are still packed with reporters.

So why was I alone?

  • Unless you have a local interest (like Thompson), volleyball doesn't command much attention until the knockout round of the tournament.
  • Volleyball doesn't rank with the glamour sports of the summer Olympics: swimming, gymnastics and track.
  • Volleyball isn't a cool new oddity to be explored, like skateboarding or 3-on-3 basketball.
  • There are far fewer American reporters here than at any Olympics I can remember, and if I hadn't been interested in Thompson, I wouldn't have covered the match, either.

So, I got to talk with U.S. coach Karch Kiraly.

Cool guy.

about the writer

about the writer

Jim Souhan

Columnist

Jim Souhan is a sports columnist for the Minnesota Star Tribune. He has worked at the paper since 1990, previously covering the Twins and Vikings.

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