The Olympic Games: Athens 1896-Sydney 2000 (Hardcover)

~ DK Publishing (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Olympic Games demand more from viewers than just turning on the TV. Like the athletes themselves, we spectators need to do our training. We need to know the history, the events, the competitors, and the records. The more up to speed we are on them, the better shape we're in to appreciate the hoopla.

Newly updated for the gathering in Sydney, The Olympic Games is a coffee table-sized, gold medal effort that has a complete training facility between its covers. Letting its tremendous cache of recent and vintage photos perform the heavy lifting, it looks both forward and back, running the Olympian gamut from the grand and glorious to the trivial and arcane. Sydney is previewed in detail with a full schedule and a look at the venues and some of the athletes worth keying on, but The Olympic Games's real strength is its focus on the Games' rich past and enduring legacy.

Each Olympics--summer and winter--since the 1896 revival comes with an incisive recap of the major events and personalities that defined it, followed by several wonderful pages of portraits and action shots with remarkably informative captions. The archival pictures are particularly priceless. They give faces to names and accomplishments that deserve remembering. Even better, the evolution in their very style conveys just how much so many of the sports have changed from lonely pursuits of personal excellence to international arenas for instant stardom. The book's last 100 pages are devoted to results and statistics--every gold, silver, and bronze medalist gets his or her due, and for those utterly immersed in Olympic trivia, the lighter of each Olympic torch is noted as well. --Jeff Silverman

From Publishers Weekly

The 1996 Olympics in Atlanta will mark the centenary of the modern games, and this lavish volume, with more than 750 photos in color and b&w, is an impressive tribute. Here are the historical background to their founding by French nobleman Pierre de Coubertin and accounts of the summer and winter (the latter founded in 1925) events, from the moving victory of Greek athlete Spiridon Louis in the first marathon in Athens to the 16-day winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, in 1994. All the stars of past Olympiads are shown and their exploits detailed. Told by King Gustav in 1908 that he was the world's greatest athlete, Jim Thorpe, ever the democrat, replied, "Thanks, King." The 1924 games saw the first swimming victory of future cinematic Tarzan Johnny Weissmuller, an American; in the winter games the following year, Norwegian Sonja Henie, another future movie star, debuted in the ice rink. In 1936, African American runner-jumper Jesse Owens won four gold medals at the controversial Nazi-hosted games in Berlin; in 1972, American swimmer Mark Spitz took an unprecedented seven golds in the midst of a Palestinian terrorist attack in Munich. This book, too, deserves a gold.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT; 1st edition (July 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789459752
• ISBN-13: 978-0789459756
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 8.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,494,817 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive and informative..., January 30, 2002

By	meiringen "meiringen" (the Midwest) - See all my reviews

A very good coffee-table book about the Olympic Games. Excellent photography, text, and results of all the Olympic Games.

If you're looking for one book to have in your collection, this is an excellent choice. I hope there will be an update in the future!

5.0 out of 5 stars For Olympics buffs, March 6, 2001

By	saliero (NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

A real compendium of information for the armchair buff or visiting Olympics spectator. Each Olympic games, both summer and winter is covered. It is lavishly illustrated - the stories are told via the pictures which are all well-captioned.

As well, there is a comprehensive list of results (Gold Silver and Bronze medal winners) for every event in every games.

This is the definitive Olympics compendium and I thoroughly recommend it.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Howzat! A hole in one!, April 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Chronicle of the Olympics (Updated Edition) (Hardcover)

A great little book which covers all aspects of the even greater Olympic games - great for reference, casual reading or if you just love the odd nutty fact! A must for sea-farers (great sailing section)