A year late, the Olympic Games have arrived. Here's what you need to know

Simone Biles waves at fans June 27, 2021, after being named to the Olympic team in the closing ceremony of women's competition in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for gymnastics in St. Louis, Missouri. Lindsey Wasson / Reuters

By Steve Wagner and Troy Becker, Steve Wagner

July 20, 2021 07:51 AM

Opening ceremonies for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, postponed a year due to the pandemic, will usher more than two weeks of world-class competition, with a bevy of familiar faces and rising stars looking to earn gold for Team USA.

Though Friday marks the opening ceremonies, women's soccer and softball games begin Wednesday to start competition.

More than 600 athletes, with 101 career medals among them, will compete for the U.S. in Japan. Thirteen athletes hail from Minnesota, including Payton Otterdahl, a former All-American shot put thrower at North Dakota State University. South Dakota also is represented by two athletes: Paige McPherson in taekwondo and Chris Nilsen in pole vault.

Nilsen Olympic trials.jpeg — Former University of South Dakota pole vaulter Chris Nilsen competes in the United States Olympic trials on Monday, June 21 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Nilsen won the event to qualify for the 2021 Olympic Games. (Paul Merca for TrackTown USA)

Minnesota-born athletes Suni Lee, a gymnast from St. Paul, and Alise Willoughby, a BMX cyclist from St. Cloud, are contenders for the top of the podium in their sports.

Sunisa Lee acknowledges the crowd after competing on uneven bars during the final day of women's competition in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for gymnastics in St. Louis, Missouri, on June 27, 2021. Reuters / Lindsey Wasson

Grace McCallum gymnastics.JPG — Grace McCallum of Isanti, Minn., competes on floor June 27, 2021, during the final day of women's competition in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for gymnastics in St. Louis, Missouri. Lindsey Wasson / Reuters

DISCOVER

Learn more about the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games using the interactive map below, with helpful hints (click or hover on icons) and details about TV viewing, competition dates for each sport and athletes to watch.

Related Topics: OLYMPICS VISUAL STORYTELLING