It's easy to get wrapped up in all of the big name countries that go to the Olympics, such as the United States or Russia, but have you ever thought about those countries that don't have as much money for a team or only have a few athletes who qualify?

My family has a tradition of picking one or two of the smaller countries that can only send one or two athletes to the games, and sort of "adopting" them for us to root for over the course of the competition.

This year I am going to be watching Itte Detenamo in weightlifting. He is from the Republic of Nauru, the world's smallest island nation at only 8.1 square miles. GO ITTE!

Who are you picking? Leave it in the comments!

Countries With 1 Athlete

Grenada - Grenada is a small Caribbean island northeast of Venezuela with a population of 110,000. Their lone Olympian will be Rolande Moses, a Welterweight boxer who left Grenada at age 7, but still qualifies to represent his birth country.

Haiti - Another Caribbean country that is sending only one Olympian to the games to compete in boxing. Azea Augustama will be contending in the light heavyweight class, and is a former Golden Gloves champion.

Republic of Guinea - 67 kg Barry Mariama Dalanda will be representing the west African country on the woman's team in Taekwondo. The country has one of the largest mineral deposits in the world, but is considered one of the poorest because of instability in the region.

Republic of Nauru -The Republic of Nauru is the world's smallest island nation at only 8.1 square miles. It is located northeast of Australia in the Micronesian South Pacific. Their sole Olympic participant will be Itte Detenamo and he will be taking part in the weightlifting competition.

Republic of Togo - When you think of the sub-Saharan country, Judo is probably not the first sport that comes to mind. However, that is exactly the sport the 81-kg Sacha Dananyoh will be participating in as a wild card. (The site links to the official website of the country, which is in French)

Countries With 2 Athletes

Aruba - A Caribbean island nation that only measures 21 miles in length is sending two atheletes to the Beijing games. Vis Fiderd will be participating in Judo and Jan Roodzant in swimming.

Bhutan - Located at the eastern end of the Himalaya Mountains, Bhutan is sending two archers to the games for the seventh time. Tashi Peljor will compete for the men in archery and Droji Dema for the women.

British Virgin Islands - Though they are a British territory, they attend the Olympics separately from Britain. Both participants, Tahesia Harrigan and Eric Matthias will be participating in track and field.

Brunei Darussalam - A nation located on the northern coast of Borneo, Brunei Darussalam will be sending Maria Grace Koh for swimming and Mohd Yazid Yatimi Yusof for track and field.

Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste - More commonly known as East Timor, is an island nation located to the northwest of Australia. Both of the country's Olympic athletes, Mariana Dias Ximenes and Augusto Ramos Soares, will be participating in track and field.

Islamic Republic of Mauritania -The country is represented by Bounkou Camara and Souleymane Chabal El Moctar, who will be competing in track and field.

Principality of Liechtenstein - Covering only 62 square miles, and primarily known for winter sports, the Principality of Liechtenstein will have two contestants at the summer games. Marcel Tschopp will be running the marathon and Oliver Geissmann will be in the shooting competition.

Republic of Botswana - A land filled with cattle and diamonds, they are sending two boxers to the summer Olympics. Khumiso Ikgopoleng will be boxing in the bantamweight class and Thato Batshegi will be in the featherweight class.

Republic of Chad - A landlocked country in the middle of Africa, making it extremely arid, is sending two track and field athletes to the games. Hinikissia Albertine Ndikert and Moumi Sebergue will be the two to make it this time around.

Republic of Niger - Named for the Niger River, Niger will be sending Lailatou Amadou Lele to contend for the gold medal in Taekwondo. Edited to add: It seems Niger has a second athlete attending named Mohamed Lamine Alhousseini Alhassan who will be participating in the Men's 50m Freestyle event. Thanks to reader Mike for mentioning this in comments.

Republic of Sierra Leone - Located in western Africa, the Republic of Sierra Leone has a tropical environment and will be sending Solomon Bayoh and Michaela Kargbo to both participate in track and field.

Somali Republic - A eastern African country, they will be sending Abdinasir Said Ibrahim and Samia Yusuf Omar to participate in track and field.

Sultanate of Oman - Located on the southwest corner of the Arabian Peninsula, Sultanate of Oman will be sending Allah Dad Al-Balushi to compete in shooting and Mohammed Al-Habsi in swimming.

All map images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons