Product Description: The Berlin Olympics, August 14, 1936. German rowers, dominant at the Games, line up against America's top eight-oared crew. Hundreds of millions of listeners worldwide wait by their radios. Leni Riefenstahl prepares her cameramen...read more

Product Description: It remains one of the most memorable moments in modern Olympic history. At the 1984 summer games in Los Angeles, a raucous crowd of ninety thousand saw their favorite in the women’s 3,000-meter race, Mary Decker, go down. An audience of two billion around the world witnessed the mishap and listened to the instantaneous accusations against the suspected culprit, Zola Budd...read more

Product Description: A story of risk, adventure, and daring as four American bobsledders race for the gold in the most dangerous competition in Olympic history.   In the 1930s, as the world hurtled toward war, speed was all the rage. Bobsledding, the fastest and most thrilling way to travel on land, had become a sensation...read more

Product Description: U-S-A , U-S-A is a familiar refrain heard in every Olympics, but truly it could be Wis-con-sin! Since pioneering hurdler Alvin Kraenzlein got his start here in the 1890s, the Badger State has nurtured, trained, or schooled more than 400 Olympic athletes in a vast array of sports...read more

Product Description: One of America’s most heralded young divers, David Boudia twice went for Olympic gold, training obsessively and whole-heartedly for success. In his first Olympics, he failed miserably, not winning a single medal. Four years later saw a different story: he mounted the podium twice, winning both gold and bronze...read more

The Paralympic Games is the second largest multi-sport festival on earth and an event which poses profound and challenging questions about the nature of sport, disability and society. The Paralympic Games Explained is the first complete introduction to the Paralympic phenomenon, exploring every key aspect and issue, from the history and development of the Paralympic movement to the economic and social impact of the contemporary Games. Now in a fully revised and updated second edition, it includes new material on hosting and legacy, Vancouver 2010 to Rio 2016, sport for development, and case studies of an additional ten Paralympic nations. Drawing on a range of international examples, it discusses key issues such as: • how societal attitudes influence disability sport • the governance of Paralympic and elite disability sport • the relationship between the Paralympics and the Olympics • drugs and technology in disability sport • classification in disability sport. Containing useful features including review questions, study activities, web links and guides to further reading throughout, The Paralympic Games Explained is the most accessible and comprehensive guide to the Paralympics currently available. It is essential reading for all students with an interest in disability sport, sporting mega-events, the politics of sport, or disability in society.

Can't wait for the London Olympics? The Treasures of the Olympic Games, published in association with the official Olympic Museum in Lausanne, captures the glorious history of the summer Olympic Games. In addition to more than 200 photographs, the book contains 20 removable facsimiles of rare historical documents from the museum's exclusive archive--including an athlete's rail pass, a police report detailing the tragic terrorist attack at the 1972 Munich Olympics, and a flame bearer's guide. Plus, relive the Games' most dramatic moments with a DVD featuring Jesse Owens, Bob Beamon, and other immortals. 

Product Description: The definitive sports and social history of the modern Olympic games―by a New York Times best-selling sportswriter. A Boston Globe Best Book of 2016 A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of 2016For millions of people around the world, the Summer and Winter Games are a joy and a treasure, but how did they develop into a global colossus? How have they been buffeted by―and, in turn, affected by―world events? Why do we care about them so much?From the reinvention of the Games in Athens in 1896 to Rio in 2016, best-selling sportswriter David Goldblatt brilliantly traces their history through national triumphs and tragedies, individual victories and failures...read more

Product Description: It was the team finals of women's gymnastics in the 2012 Olympics, and McKayla Maroney was on top of her game. The sixteen-year-old U.S. gymnast was performing arguably the best vault of all time, launching herself unimaginably high into the air and sticking a flawless landing...read more

Product Description: The Olympic Games is undoubtedly the greatest sporting event in the world, with over 200 countries competing for success. This important new study of the Olympics investigates why some countries are more successful than others. Which factors determine their failure or success? What is the relationship between these factors? And how can these factors be manipulated to influence a country’s performance in sport? This book addresses these questions and discusses the theoretical concepts that explain why national sporting success has become a policy priority around the globe...read more

Product Description: Olympic Games are sold to host city populations on the basis of legacy commitments that incorporate aid for the young and the poor. Yet little is known about the realities of marginalized young people living in host cities. Do they benefit from social housing and employment opportunities? Or do they fall victim to increased policing and evaporating social assistance? This book answers these questions through an original ethnographic study of young people living in the shadow of Vancouver 2010 and London 2012...read more

Product Description: The Olympics tells the epic and eventful story of one of the oldest and most prestigious sporting events in the world: the Olympic games. This irreverent and entertaining history explores every aspect of the global competition, from its origins in ancient Greece to the iconic participants of modern times, such as Muhammad Ali and Usain Bolt...read more

Product Description: This book provides a unique perspective on the behind the scenes planning of London's Olympic legacy. The author had unprecedented access to the legacy organisations, institutions, and individuals involved with the 2012 Games. This has allowed her, in a highly accessible and engaging style, to capture a sense of the unfolding drama as attempts were made in London to harness the juggernaut of Olympic development, and its commercial imperative, to the broader cause of meaningful post-industrial regeneration in East London...read more