Spanish views from a small town

This past weekend, in the Tokyo Olympics, two Spanish atletes won a silver and a bronze medal, each. Before them, a Spanish tennis player beat out Djokovic to win a bronze, and two sharp shooters won gold. (Since then, there have been more.) Congratulations were in order, and many politicians celebrated their achievements.  Except those of these two athletes, who did not receive congratulations from everyone. The athletes are Ana Peleteiro, from nearby Ribeira, who won bronze in the high jump, and Ray Zapata, from the Canary Islands, who won silver in floor gymnastics (I'm not sure if those are the actual names of the sports they participated in; I don't follow the Olympics.). The only difference between them and the others is their skin.  Ray moved to the Canary Islands with his mother and siblings from the Dominican Republic when he was nine years old. He has been a Spanish citizen for years. Ana was born in Ribeira to a single mother; her father was from an African country ...

I am absolutely not a sports fan, except maybe for Formula 1 racing and the Boston Red Sox. I don't care who wins the Grand Prix motorcycle season, or which soccer team wins the Spanish Liga or the English Premier League. It really doesn't matter to me if Roger Federer or Rafa Nadal win Wimbledon or any other tennis championship.  In a way, it's a good thing. I used to follow Formula 1, but, of late, it's impossible. A few years ago, the races were on general television every weekend. Now, they're on the Movistar television platform, which you have to pay for. Some bars and cafés may show it, but not as many as used to do so. Grand Prix motorcycle races are now on Dazn, an online sports channel that is not free. Many bars and cafés don't show these races because they would need to update their televisions and pay yet another invoice. Bye bye Marc Márquez.  Spanish soccer is now on Movistar television, or Orange television, as well as on streaming services. Premi...