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  • The Games

  • A Global History of the Olympics
  • Written by: David Goldblatt
  • Narrated by: Napoleon Ryan
  • Length: 18 hrs and 23 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (1 rating)

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The Games

Written by: David Goldblatt
Narrated by: Napoleon Ryan
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Publisher's Summary

Renowned sportswriter David Goldblatt has been hailed by the Wall Street Journal for writing "with the expansive eye of a social and cultural critic". In The Games, Goldblatt delivers a magisterial history of the biggest sporting event of them all: the Olympics. He tells the epic story of the games from their reinvention in Athens in 1896 to the present day, chronicling classic moments of sporting achievement from Jesse Owens to Nadia Comaneci, the Miracle on Ice to Usain Bolt.

He goes beyond the medal counts to explore how international conflicts have played out at the Olympics, including the role of the games in Fascist Germany and Italy, the Cold War, and the struggles of the postcolonial world for recognition. He also tells the extraordinary story of how women fought to be included on equal terms, how the Paralympics started in the wake of World War II, and how the Olympics reflect changing attitudes to race and ethnicity.

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What the critics say

"Gracefully written and compellingly argued, this is one of the best books of the year and one of the best sports books ever written." ( Kirkus)

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Very complete

This is a very complete history of the Olympic Games, from ancient times to the very recent past. The fact the arts were centrepiece, and sports the side show, way back when was a surprise to me. I especially enjoyed learning about former sports that were included but now gone (let’s bring back the tug-of-war!) and how new sports were introduced. Having just watched the Paris 2024 Olympics, where gender parity was achieved for the first time, the old opposition to women competing was both humorous and annoying. There is no sugar coating here, and the controversies around budgets, facilities, displacements and politics are discussed. Narration was adequate but made good content a bit boring at times.

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