We are smack dab in the middle of the 2026 Winter Olympics. The games are in full force, and there is plenty of excitement to go with the drama. Whether it’s the Lindsey Vonn saga or those damn Canadian cheaters, there is a little something for everyone.
While I’ve been watching a 40-year-old Vonn shatter her leg, people who idolize Bret “the Hitman” Hart are cheating in “Ice Shuffleboard,” and the French skaters are playing the role of “Coach’s kid” with some biased ratings. I find myself rooting for some of my nationalities when the United States is not involved. So it leads me to ask this question.
Do Other Countries Root for Secondary Nations in the Olympics?
Sounds stupid, doesn’t it? But think about it. The United States is the world’s biggest melting pot, whose roots are still relatively young compared to a lot of countries competing in the Olympics. I may have learned that from the second Mighty Ducks movie, but this isn’t the Junior Goodwill Games. Stay with me.
As a Detroit Lions fan, I know about secondary teams. A team we root for on the side because ours may not always be the best (or, in our case, never the best). Anyways, most Americans nowadays have multiple nationalities, which got me thinking.
Since I have some Polish roots, should I be rooting for Poland when the USA isn’t involved? Then I asked myself, do other people from these countries think like this? If Japan isn’t competing, do some Japanese people find themselves cheering for Spain? Or do they just hope that other Asian nations will wipe out?
It may just be an American thing. Of course, we’re cheering for Ole Glory (well, these days some people might not be, but I am not getting into all that) or at least we should be. The big, bad Americans are probably one of the biggest heels in the Olympics, but it makes me wonder if other nations root for anyone outside their home.
How Americans Rank in Patriotism?
Don’t worry, I am not about to get political. Honestly, I could give two sh*** about who you voted for or about the current administration, but it does have this country divided. Maybe that’s why I was raised not to talk about politics, anyway, with that and heritage, maybe our citizens are divided.
I am not saying that we don’t cheer our people on, but do you think some old man from Sweden gives two f**** about some German Olympian? No, he wants him to crash or lose a ski. He is only going to care about whether his Skeleton was the fastest or if his fellow Swede knows how to use that rifle on skis for some reason!
These are amazing athletes who have trained for this their entire lives. Winning a medal for their country would be a lifetime achievement, but as Americans, do we downplay our Olympic athletes? Countries around the world do not compete with the United States when it comes to the four major sports (outside of soccer).
So does that make the Olympics just that much more special for the other nations? Is winning a Gold Medal for South Korea more significant than the U.S. or even Canada? Or is everyone just happy to be there and rooting for a crash?
Final Thoughts
I am not out here to trash the people of the United States; we all come from somewhere. I just wanted to throw the question out there out of curiosity. I can’t really imagine a Spaniard cheering for an Italian as a secondary option, like we do here. But, hey, that makes us special, free, and another reason for the rest of the world to hate us. God bless America!
Point of Vision 
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