The relationship between Ivy League schools and the Olympic Games pre-dates the modern Olympic movement; indeed it was Princeton University Professor William Milligan Sloane who helped secure America's participation in the first modern Olympics (1896 Athens). The American team that year consisted entirely of Ivy League athletes, who brought home 11 first-place finishes.
In IVIES IN ATHENS, The Deep Bond Between Two Great Sporting Traditions: The Olympic Games and The Ivy League, author Jay Bavishi guides the reader through the years between the 1896 Athens Olympics and the 2004 Athens Olympics. During that time, 800-some student- athletes from Ivy League schools competed against the world's best on the premier stage for sport. IVIES IN ATHENS highlights the Ivy League's performance in each individual Olympics-- including a list of competitors and their results (approximately one-in-six have captured gold). IVIES IN ATHENS recognizes the League's success in Olympic competition, devoting sections to each individual school.
IVIES IN ATHENS gives light to the Ivy League's role in the fabric of the Olympic Games-- thrilling victories, disappointing defeats, and enduring stories, topped off by a rare all-time index of Ivy League Olympians.
JAY V. BAVISHI served as a Public Information Aide for the Council of Ivy Group Presidents (the Ivy League) from 2003 to 2006.
