The Olympics The Basics

The Olympics: The Basics is an accessible, contemporary introduction to the Olympic movement and Games. Chapters explain how the Olympics transcend sports, engaging us with a range of contemporary philosophical, social, cultural and political matters, including: peace development and diplomacy management and economics corruption, terror and activism the rise of human enhancement ethics and environmentalism. This book explores the controversy and the legacy of the Olympics, drawing attention to the deeper values of Olympism, as the Olympic movement’s most valuable intellectual property. This engaging, lively, and often challenging book, is essential reading for newcomers to Olympic studies and offers new insights for Olympic scholars.

"Olympism is the flagship in Griffin Publishing's Official U.S. Olympic Committee Sports Series. It provides a fascinating examination of the background, meaning and purpose of the Olympic Games as well as basic information on each individual Olympic sport." "While this book is written for the newcomers to the Olympic Games, the information provided will be of interest to readers of all ages and levels of athletic experience." "Athletes and fans wanting to learn more about the history, ideals and sports of the Olympic Movement will find this book especially useful. Olympism will take the mystery out of watching the different sports, and enable the reader to appreciate the spirit of the Summer and Winter Olympic Games."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

In 1973, Wilson Carey McWilliams (1933Ð2005) published The Idea of Fraternity in America, a groundbreaking book that argued for an alternative to AmericaÕs dominant philosophy of liberalism. This alternative tradition emphasized that community and fraternal bonds were as vital to the process of maintaining political liberty as was individual liberty. McWilliams expanded on this idea throughout his prolific career as a teacher, writer, and activist, promoting a unique definition of American democracy. In The Democratic Soul: A Wilson Carey McWilliams Reader, editors Patrick J. Deneen and Susan J. McWilliams, daughter of the famed intellectual, have assembled key essays, articles, reviews, and lectures that trace McWilliamsÕs evolution as a scholar and explain his often controversial views on education, religion, and literature. The book also showcases his thoughts and opinions on prominent twentieth-century figures such as George Orwell and Leo Strauss. The first comprehensive volume of Wilson Carey McWilliamsÕ collected writings, The Democratic Soul will be welcomed by scholars of political science and American political thought as a long-overdue contribution to the field.

Provides information about the background, meaning, and purpose of the Olympic Games and includes up-to-date information on every Olympic sport.

This book offers a fascinating look at the background, meaning, and purpose of the Olympic Games, along with basic, up-to-date information on every Olympic sport. Whether you are serious about sports or just getting started, you'll enjoy learning about the origin of the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece and the astonishing revival of the Olympic spirit more than 2,600 years later. Special features include: results of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia; meaning of Olympism in the ancient and modern worlds; four-day ancient Olympic Festival; how a French aristocrat, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, almost single-handedly revived the Olympic Games in the 1890s; current problems and what the Olympic Movement is doing about them; Olympic symbols, motto, and oath; clear and up-to-date descriptions of each medal sport at the Olympic Games; coverage of beach volleyball, softball, taekwondo, and other new Olympic events. Sports fans and developing athletes who want to learn more about the history, ideals, and sports of the Olympic Movement will find this book especially useful.This book helps to take the mystery out of watching the Games and will deepen your appreciation of the Olympic spirit.

The Olympic Games is unquestionably the greatest sporting event in the world, with billions of viewers across the globe. How did the Olympics evolve into this multi-national phenomenon? How can the Olympics help us to understand the relationship between sport and society? What will be the impact and legacy of the 2016 Olympics in Rio? Now in a fully revised and updated new edition that places Rio 2016 in the foreground, Understanding the Olympics answers all these questions by exploring the social, cultural, political, historical and economic context of the Games. This book presents the latest research on the Olympics, including new material on legacy, sustainability and corruption, and introduces the reader to all of the key themes of contemporary Olympic Studies including: the history of the Olympics Olympic politics access and equity the Olympics and the media festival and spectacle the Olympic economy urban development Olympic futures. The most up-to-date and authoritative introduction to the Olympic Games, this book contains a full Olympic history timeline as well as illustrations, information boxes and ‘Olympic Stories’ in every chapter. Understanding the Olympics is essential reading for anybody with an interest in the Olympics or the wider relationship between sport and society.

This encyclopedia highlights more than 40 Olympic sports. Alongside both historic and recent photographs, readers will learn about the basics of each competition, its origin, how it has changed throughout the years, and the icons in each sport. In addition, this book provides information about the Paralympics. Features include a glossary, additional resources, and an index. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Abdo Reference is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.