Olympic and Paralympic games Books

Book SynopsisLong before Hopis won trophy cups or received acclaim in American newspapers, Hopi clan runners competed against each other on and below their mesas–and when they won footraces, they received rain. Hopi Runners provides a window into this venerable tradition at a time of great consequence for Hopi culture.Trade ReviewHopi Runners is much more than an exquisite history of sport; it is a masterful interpretation of culture, identity, and power in motion. It elevates our appreciation for athletes and athletic traditions often forgotten while deepening our understanding of the social worlds that created and celebrated them. The book shines as an example of the power of thinking of indigenous achievements, interpretations, and actors in context. Indeed, one of the greatest strengths and pleasures of this book lies in its counter-readings that both draw on dominant accounts and unsettle them, unpacking preoccupations and biases, highlighting silences, and rerouting indigenous peoples and perspectives."" - C. Richard King, author of Redskins: Insult and Brand

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Book SynopsisEric Liddell is famous for being the man who would not compromise his religious principles and refused to compete in the Olympics on a Sunday - despite the fact that he was the red hot favourite for the gold. Instead he entered a different event that was not being competed on the Sabbath... and won a gold anyway. One of Scotland''s finest athletes, Liddell was feted throughout the United Kingdom. At the height of his fame, however, he slipped quietly out of the limelight to become a missionary in China, where he later came to an unpleasant end in a Japanese internment camp.

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Book SynopsisDraws together international scholars on issues that emerge from ancient Olympic contests, and over one hundred years of modern Olympic history, with varied perspectives, while encompassing an assessment of literature and debates on the Olympics. This book serves as a resource for students and researchers interested in significance of the Games.Table of ContentsIntroduction: "Coubertin's Olympic Games: The Greatest Show on Earth" (K.B. Wamsley, K. Young). Part I: The History and Development of the Olympic Games. From Olympia 776 BC to Athens 2004: The Origin and Authenticity of the Modern Olympic Games. (D. Young). The Olympic Games Experience: Origins and Early Challenges. (D. Brown). The Nazi Olympics of 1936. (A. Kruger). The Cold War Games. (C.R. Torres, M. Dyreson). Amateurism, High Performance Sport, and the Olympics. (H. Cantelon). Olympic Men and Women: The Politics of Gender in the Modern Games. (K.B. Wamsley, G. Pfister). International Politics and Olympic Governance. (B. Houlihan). 'Another World is Possible': Recapturing Alternative Olympic Histories, Imagining Different Games. (B. Kidd). Part II: The Olympic Games: Contemporary Issues and Controversies. The Five Rings and the Small Screen: Television, Sponsorship, and the New Media in the Olympic Movement. (G. Whannel). The Commercialisation of the Olympics: Cities, Corporations, and the Olympic Commodity. (A. Tomlinson). Lobbying Orgies: Olympic City Bids in the Post-Los Angeles Era. (D. Booth). Symbols without Substance: Aboriginal Peoples and the Illusions of Olympic Ceremonies. (J. Forsyth, K.B. Wamsley). Olympic Drug Testing: An Interpretive History. (J. Hoberman). Political Violence, Terrorism, and Security at the Olympic Games. (M. Atkinson, K. Young).

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Book SynopsisBy examining how the Olympic movement developed in Puerto Rico, Antonio Sotomayor illuminates the profound role sports play in the political and cultural processes of an identity that developed within a political tradition of autonomy rather than traditional political independence.Trade Review"Sotomayor gives undergraduate students and specialists an authoritative compendium of Puerto Rico’s politics during a period when the territory was billed as a regional showcase for the benefits of American power."—Reinaldo L. Román, American Historical Review"Sports is a subject that has not been studied in depth in Puerto Rican historiography in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and this book contributes to filling that void."—Felix R. Huertas Gonzalez, Journal of American History"Well written, meticulously researched, and very timely, this book is highly recommended to both scholar and lay reader alike."—Sport in American History"[The Sovereign Colony is] a reading feast for Puerto Rican sport fans. . . . It contributes to the understanding of colonialism where the agency of colonial subjects is emphasized in their negotiations of power structures. . . . A must read for scholars of U.S. and Caribbean history."—Rosa Elena Carrasquillo, Diplomatic History"An innovative approach to Puerto Rico's coloniality through the prism of sports. . . . This accessible account of Puerto Rican sport provides a great introduction to the complex issues of contemporary coloniality and will be an excellent addition to undergraduate collections."—B. A. Lucero, Choice“How is it that Puerto Rico participates with a sovereign team in the International Olympic Games? The answer to that question and Puerto Rico’s sporting success in the Central American and Caribbean Games provides the fascinating subject for Antonio Sotomayor’s book. He explains the baffling and perplexing dimensions of international sport.”—William H. Beezley, author of Judas at the Jockey Club and Other Episodes of Porfirian Mexico "Sotomayor's impressive volume says not only a great deal about the relationship between Puerto Rico and the US, but can be used in parallel to analyze similar colonial and territorial interrelationships within the geopolitics of global sport."—Matthew L. McDowell, Spectacular Tableau“A highly readable book that invites us to rethink many familiar tenets about contemporary colonialism, adding an important dimension to the last quarter century’s debates on what constitutes a nation—and how sports may help fashion one.”—Francisco A. Scarano, professor of history at the University of Wisconsin–MadisonTable of ContentsList of IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsList of AbbreviationsIntroduction 1. Sport in Imperial Exchanges 2. The Rise of a Colonial Olympic Movement, 1930s 3. Legitimizing Colonial Olympism in a Colonial Nation, 1940s 4. The Commonwealth and the Search for Colonial Sovereignty through Olympism 5. A Cold War Playing Field in the 1966 Central American and Caribbean Games 6. The Eternal Overtime? Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFollows Mary Decker and Zola Budd through their lives and careers, telling the story behind the controversy of their collision at the 1984 Olympics. Olympic Collision relives one of the most famous incidents in Olympic history, its legacy, and what has happened to both athletes since.Trade Review"Keiderling provides insight into how the sports machine works and particularly into how athletes remember long-ago events on the field—for they remain fresh to both Decker and Budd, each of whom went on to endure other travails off the track. A sprint down Memory Lane for fans of sports history, particularly sports controversies."—Kirkus"A fascinating story . . . . Skillfully written with much truth and compassion."—Julian Richfield, Cape Times"Keiderling does a magnificent job of building up the tension as Decker and Budd's stories move toward their eventual literal collision at the 1984 Olympics."—Pam R. Sailors, Aethlon"A highly entertaining page-turner and a must read."—Christopher Kelsall, Athletics Illustrated“A fascinating look behind-the-scenes at one of sport’s most shocking incidents. A tale of greed, human nature, and how it affected two amazingly talented runners.”—Marty Liquori, ABC analyst for the 1984 Olympics and former number one in the world in mile and five-thousand-meter races "This book is a fascinating insight into the lives of two exceptional runners and will interest both people who remember the event in 1984 when their lives collided, as well as anyone interested in competitive running."—Danielle Sellwood, Sport Sister"The stories of these two female runners and the one moment that will link the two of them together forever make for a great read."—Window Into Books"Olympic Collision is absolutely a perfect book that I am going to rave and recommend to one and all."—Underrated Reads"The stories of these two female runners and the one moment that will link the two of them together forever make for a great read."—Guy Who Reviews Sports Books"Olympic Collision is absolutely a perfect book that I am going to rave and recommend to one and all."—Underrated ReadsTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Abbreviations 1. Starting Line 2. First Steps 3. Off with the Gun 4. Healing the Body 5. Dirty Little Secret 6. Running for Jenny 7. The Kid Comes Back with a Swoosh 8. Out of Africa 9. Gathering Storms 10. Rings of Fire 11. Dream Chasers 12. A Split Second That Will Live Forever 13. Coming and Going 14. The Phoenix Rises 15. World Champ 16. Rematch 17. World Champ Again 18. Mother Mary 19. Banned 20. Heart and Seoul 21. Marriage and Murder 22. Promoting L’eggs on Bad Legs 23. Budd Blooms 24. New Faces, Old Story 25. Seems Like Old Times 26. Trials and Tribulations 27. War and Peace Epilogue Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn the world of sports, the most important component is the athlete. After all, without athletes there would be no sports. In ancient Greece, athletes were public figures, idolized and envied. This fascinating book draws on a broad range of ancient sources to explore the development of athletes in Greece from the archaic period to the Roman Empire.Trade Review“The Athlete in the Ancient Greek World is the first book-length study of different groups of athletes and changing attitudes toward them. It makes an original and important contribution to the field.” —Mark Golden, author of Sport in the Ancient World from A to Z

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Book SynopsisGiven the popularity of all types of skatingâon the ice, on the boards, and on the streetsâwhy isn't roller skating an Olympic event? The answers âand there are manyâare likely to anger and astound readers in turn. The volume also explores the past and present world of competitive roller skating.Trade Review...plenty of thought-provoking information ... offer[s]... insight...for...those wanting to find out more about the sport. * Roller Skating Business *...Has got to be one of the highlights in the literature on roller skating. -- M.M. Red Shattuck, Member, U.S. Olympic Committee

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Book SynopsisThe winner of three gold medals in track at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, Wilma Rudolph has been portrayed and remembered across a wide range of settings and sites over the past half-century. (Re)Presenting Wilma Rudolph explores the major episodes and sites of memory across the track legend’s life and death.

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Book SynopsisA history of Greek and Roman sport in the ancient world, and the genesis of the Olympic Games.Trade Review'A rich, absorbing account' Independent on Sunday. * Independent on Sunday *'Vivid and authoritative ... scholarly and entertaining ... fascinating and impressive' Sunday Times. * Sunday Times *Table of ContentsList of illustrations. Maps. Preface. Then and Now. Part 1 Ashes, Linen and the Origins of Sport: Introduction; Homer and the Bronze Age; Homer and Sport. Part 2 Olympia: From Myth to History; Olympia in 480 BC; The Olympic Games of 476 BC; The Festival Approaches; Winning (The equestrian events; The pentathlon and the foot races; Nudity; Pain and suffering); Remembering Victory (The athlete as hero); The Emergence of the Panhellenic Cycle. Part 3 The World of the Gymnasium: Sport and Civic Virtue; Beroia; Getting in Shape and Turning Pro. Part 4 Roman Games: Greece Meets Rome; Kings and Games; Rome and Italy; Actors and Gladiators; Caesar, Antony, Augustus and the Games. Part 5 Imperial Games: Watching; The Fan's Experience; Expectations; Crowd Noise; Dreaming of Sport; Images of Sport; Women's Sports; Gladiators (Life as a gladiator; Training and ranking; Dying; Choosing to be a gladiator); Charioteers; Athletes (Athletic guilds; Cheating); Running the Show (Administration; Athletics). Epilogue: The Long End of an Era. Bibliography. Classical Sources. Notes. Index.

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Book SynopsisMexican leaders eagerly anticipated the attention that hosting the world''s most visible sporting event would bring, yet they could not have predicted the array of conflicts that would play out before the eyes of the world during the notorious 1968 Mexico City Olympics. Following twenty years of economic growth and political stabilityknown as the Mexican miracleMexican policy makers escaped their prior image of being economically underdeveloped to successfully craft an image of a nation that was both modern and cosmopolitan but also steeped in culture and tradition. Buoyed by this new image, they set their sights on the Olympic bid, and they not only won but also prepared impressive facilities.Prior to the opening ceremonies, several controversies emerged, the most glaring of which was a student protest movement that culminated in a public massacre, leaving several hundred students dead. Less dramatic were concerns that athletes would suffer harm in the high elevation and thiTrade ReviewWitherspoon's organization of the material is tight, his exposition rich, at times riveting, and always lucid. Before the Eyes of the World is the best book I have ever read treating one specific Olympic Games. * Olympika *Witherspoon does a commendable job at delivering a cogently organized, very readable narrative of the history of sporting events in Mexico, culminating in the 1968 Games. The book's broader discussion of the politics of international Olympic sporting is both engaging and revealing. * The Americas *Table of ContentsTable of Contents Preface Introduction Chapter 1: How the Olympics Came to Mexico Chapter 2: Image Preserved: Early Controversies and the Cultural Olympics Chapter 3: Image Tarnished: The Revolt of the Black Athlete Chapter 4: Image Shattered: Tlatelolco Chapter 5: The World Watches: October '68 Chapter 6: Settling the Score Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisMexican leaders eagerly anticipated the attention that hosting the world''s most visible sporting event would bring, yet they could not have predicted the array of conflicts that would play out before the eyes of the world during the notorious 1968 Mexico City Olympics. Following twenty years of economic growth and political stabilityknown as the Mexican miracleMexican policy makers escaped their prior image of being economically underdeveloped to successfully craft an image of a nation that was both modern and cosmopolitan but also steeped in culture and tradition. Buoyed by this new image, they set their sights on the Olympic bid, and they not only won but also prepared impressive facilities.Prior to the opening ceremonies, several controversies emerged, the most glaring of which was a student protest movement that culminated in a public massacre, leaving several hundred students dead. Less dramatic were concerns that athletes would suffer harm in the high elevation and thiTrade ReviewWitherspoon's organization of the material is tight, his exposition rich, at times riveting, and always lucid. Before the Eyes of the World is the best book I have ever read treating one specific Olympic Games. * Olympika *Witherspoon does a commendable job at delivering a cogently organized, very readable narrative of the history of sporting events in Mexico, culminating in the 1968 Games. The book's broader discussion of the politics of international Olympic sporting is both engaging and revealing. * The Americas *Table of ContentsTable of Contents Preface Introduction Chapter 1: How the Olympics Came to Mexico Chapter 2: Image Preserved: Early Controversies and the Cultural Olympics Chapter 3: Image Tarnished: The Revolt of the Black Athlete Chapter 4: Image Shattered: Tlatelolco Chapter 5: The World Watches: October '68 Chapter 6: Settling the Score Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis book is an analysis of both contemporary Tokyo and the contemporary Olympic Games, emphasizing the role of late-stage capitalism and political economy in shaping both.The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games were mired in scandal from the beginning of the bidding process all the way through to the end of the games. This was further exacerbated by the emergency postponement to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, with many public opinion polls supporting further postponement or cancelation in 2021. The contributors to this volume look at the Tokyo 2020 Games in the context of other modern games and the struggle to use the games as an economic stimulus. They reveal the reality of the Olympic development in Tokyo based on evidence and concrete policy analysis.This is a valuable resource for scholars both of contemporary Japan and of the Olympics and other mega-events.Trade ReviewDid we really witness the Olympics? Tokyo under the pandemic seems to have quickly forgotten the bizarre experience of mega-events with no spectators. This book is a critical challenge that explores the undisclosed secrets of a megacity still chasing global illusions in the age of digitalization and post-globalization. Yet Tokyo is by no means an exception to the world. The genealogy of mega events continues with London, Paris, and Los Angeles. Readers of this book will learn both the multi-layered urban meaning of mega-events and the new possibilities of cross-disciplinary urban research from the "thick description" of the city.Takashi MachimuraProfessor of Tokyo Keizai University, Professor emeritus of Hitotsubashi University, Former trustee of IJURR FoundationThis is a first-rate collection of chapters that critically, analytically, and empirically refutes the view that the Olympic Games are merely a massive sporting event. The focus of most of the chapters is on the way in which ‘Tokyo 2020’ (the Tokyo Summer and Paralympic Games) – unprecedentedly postponed for one year due to the COVID 19 pandemic – was used by various stakeholders to attempt to create an economic stimulus, give urban planning a boost, and sow the seeds for greater capital development in Japan. Primarily the work of Japanese urban geographers, with a more theoretical contribution by Hyun Bang Shin (LSE) on mega-events as spectacles, the other chapters deal with topics such as the rescaling of former global cities, the wastefulness of the construction of elite sports facilities for short periods of time, and the increasing securitization of public space. This book is a great addition to the stock of works that critically reflect on the hosting of the Olympics.John HorneFormerly Professor in the Faculty of Sport Sciences, Waseda University, Tokyo, JapanTable of ContentsIntroduction Miyo Aramata1. Inter-City Competition and Rescaling of Global Cities: London, Tokyo, and Paris Miyo Aramata2. The Political Economy of Mega-events as Spectacles in the Global East Hyun Bang Shin3. The 1964 and 2020 (2021) Tokyo Olympics: Memorandum on Aspects of Urban (Re)Development Naoki Oshiro4. Mega Events and Urban Socio-Economy: Urban Development through Tokyo 2020 and Osaka 2025 Ryo Koizumi5. National Projects and their Local Consequences: Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and the "Symbiotic Society Host Town" Atsushi Naruse6. Bobsleigh Tracks, Materiality and Affect: A Note on the Olympic Legacy Susumu Yamaguchi7. Securitization at the Tokyo 2020 Games: The Transformation of Public Space before and after the COVID-19 Pandemic Kazuaki SugiyamaConclusion Miyo Aramata

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Book SynopsisThis book is an analysis of both contemporary Tokyo and the contemporary Olympic Games, emphasizing the role of late-stage capitalism and political economy in shaping both.The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games were mired in scandal from the beginning of the bidding process all the way through to the end of the games. This was further exacerbated by the emergency postponement to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, with many public opinion polls supporting further postponement or cancelation in 2021. The contributors to this volume look at the Tokyo 2020 Games in the context of other modern games and the struggle to use the games as an economic stimulus. They reveal the reality of the Olympic development in Tokyo based on evidence and concrete policy analysis.This is a valuable resource for scholars both of contemporary Japan and of the Olympics and other mega-events.

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Book Synopsis2024 marks the 100-year anniversary of the winter sports week festival celebrated in Chamonix in 1924, which is now recognized as the first Olympic Winter Games. As a globally watched quadrennial mega-event, the Winter Olympics is unique from both summer sport festivals and other winter festivals, such as the Winter X Games.This book explores the impacts, issues, and legacies of the past century of the Olympic Winter Games. Grounded in sport history, the chapters in this volume draw on the disciplines of cultural history, diplomatic history, global history, environmental history, and media history to analyze the continued allure of the Winter Olympics, a century after its origin, and in light of the sustained and significant problems facing the Olympic movement. Host cities' efforts to create positive and lasting legacies are analyzed to highlight the challenges and complexities that have plagued the Olympic movement throughout the last century.Table of ContentsIntroduction - A Century of Olympics on Ice and Snow Part I: Challenges and Complexities of the Olympic Winter Games 1. Olympic Winter Games, ‘Cold Sports’, and Inclusive Values 2. Summer Meets Winter: African Nations Participating at the Winter Olympics, 1960–2018 3. The Cool Runnings Effect: Flexible Citizenship, the Global South, and Transcultural Republics at the Winter Olympic Games 4. Lost in the Vault?: Demonstration Sports at the Winter Olympics and How Digital Media Can Bring Them ‘Back to the Future’ 5. Snowboarding Youth Culture and the Winter Olympics: Co-Evolution in an American-Driven Show 6. Planning for Legacy in the Post-War Era of the Olympic Winter Games Part II: National and Local Aspirations to Host Winter Games 7. The Icy Road towards the First Olympic Winter Games in Chamonix 1924 8. Canadian Government Involvement in Calgary’s Failed 1968 Winter Olympic Bid 9. The Games That Never Happened: Social Reception and Press Coverage of the Kraków Bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics (2012–2014) 10. Winter Olympic Referendums: Reasons for Opposition to the Games Part III: Politics and Diplomacy at the Games 11. The 1928 Olympic Winter Games in St Moritz: Tourism, Diplomacy and Domestic Politics 12. Grenoble 1968, Albertville 1992, and the Establishment of a Strategy to Protect and Market the Winter Olympic Emblems 13. A Tale of Two Medals: The USA, Olympic Ice Hockey and Popular American Views of Détente (1972) and Renewed Cold War (1980) Part IV: Environmental, Physical, and Social Legacies 14. The 1952 and 1994 Olympic Flames: Norway’s Quest for Winter Olympic Identity 15. The Environmental Reimagining of Olympic Sarajevo 16. ‘A Strong, Sustainable Legacy:’ The Environment and Japan’s Winter Olympics 17. Olympic Winter Games in Non-Western Cities: State, Sport and Cultural Diplomacy in Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022 Conclusion - The Future of Olympic Winter Games Research

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Book SynopsisThe original autobiography of Bradley Wiggins, the first British rider to have won the Tour de France and a record-equalling seven-time Olympic medallist. 'The autobiography of one of British cycling's true greats is an authentic account of hard knocks, tough times and a surprising amount of alcohol' TIME OUTTrade ReviewThe autobiography of one of British cycling's true greats is an authentic account of hard knocks, tough times and a surprising amount of alcohol * TIME OUT *

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