This study investigates the politics behind 100 years of Olympic history, from Baron de Coubertin's revival of the Games to Atlanta in 1996. The author asks who holds power within it, how it is financed and how the costly business of bidding for the Games works. He then covers recent history: the Cold War Games of Moscow 1980 and Los Angeles 1984; Seoul 1988 - a PR exercise by the Korean government; and Barcelona 1992, arguably the most commercial and televisual Games in history. A further section covers the story of the South African boycott, ended in 1992, and there is also coverage of the successful bid by Atlanta and its preparations for the next Olympics. Finally, the book endeavours to predict the future for the Games, and whether 'gigantism', both in terms of the scale of the Games and the movement's sense of its own importance, threaten its future. -- .
Sprache
Verlagsort
Zielgruppe
Maße
Höhe: 216 mm
Breite: 138 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-7190-4451-9 (9780719044519)
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Schweitzer Klassifikation
Baron Pierre de Coubertin and the revival of the Games; the primacy of politics in the Olympic movement; power and authority in the Olympic movement; financing the Games; bidding for the Games - the British experience; the Moscow Games of 1980; the Los Angeles Games of 1984; the Seoul Games of 1988; the Barcelona Games of 1992; South Africa and the Olympic Games; Atlanta 1996; the Olympics in the third millennium.