1.   That hardly seems to be the case as beach volleyball makes its Olympic debut this month.

2.   Americans won gold medals in the Olympic debut of softball and soccer in Atlanta and hockey in Nagano.

3.   Any time a square-peg sport makes its Olympic debut, as curling does on Monday, the participants spend inordinate energy lobbying for their athleticism.

4.   After her successful Olympic stay in Georgia, where softball made its Olympic debut, the woman is a little too too jacked for something so precise as surgery.

5.   Snowboarding, which makes its Olympic debut, is a young sport, a product of American youth looking for an alternative good time.

6.   Snowboarders are making their Olympic debut in the half-pipe and giant slalom events, and they are doing it with equal parts anticipation and skepticism.

7.   The end of the road is at least in sight for the U.S. women, who make their Olympic debut today against Cuba.

8.   The Olympic debut for a sport surging in popularity, and Americans are favored to win gold on both sides.

9.   The women, in their Olympic debut, will play a round-robin, with the top four teams playing for the medals.