At the first Winter Games in Chamonix, France in 1924 only a few countries were represented by a dozen or more athletes. Today, about 3,000 athletes from nearly 100 countries compete in the Winter Olympic Games. These athletes compete in more than 100 events. The games showcase the strength, skills, stamina, and endurance of amazing individual athletes from around the world.
"An overview of the modern Olympic Games featuring Winter sports played by individual athletes competing against each other ... These athletes compete in more than 100 events. The games showcase the strength and skills, stamina and endurance of amazing individual athletes from around the world."--
"An overview of the modern Olympic Games featuring Winter sports played by teams of athletes competing against each other ... These athletes compete in more than 100 team events. The games showcase the strength and skills, stamina and endurance of amazing athletic teams from around the world in a show of sportsmanship"--
At the first Winter Games in Chamonix, France in 1924 only a few countries were represented by a dozen or more athletes. Today, about 3,000 athletes from nearly 100 countries compete in the Winter Olympic Games. These athletes compete in more than 100 events. The games showcase the strength, skills, stamina, and endurance of amazing athletic teams from around the world.
"An overview of the Paralympic Games featuring sports played by individuals and teams of athletes competing against each other ... Like the Olympic Games, the Paralympic Games showcase super strength and skills [and] stamina and endurance, both individually and through teamwork"--
"An overview of the modern Olympic Games featuring sports played by individual athletes competing against each other ... These athletes compete in more than 300 events. The games showcase the strength and skills, stamina and endurance of amazing individual athletes from around the world"--
Based on a decade of research by two leading action sports scholars, this book maps the relationship between action sports and the Olympic Movement, from the inclusion of the first action sports to those featuring for the first time in the Tokyo Olympic Games and beyond. In an effort to remain relevant to younger audiences, four new action sports, surfing, skateboarding, sport climbing, and BMX freestyle were included in the Tokyo Olympic program. Drawing upon interviews with Olympic insiders, as well as leaders, athletes, and participants in these action sports communities, the book details the impacts on the action sports industry and cultures, and offers national comparisons to show the uneven effects resulting from Olympic inclusion. It reveals the intricate workings of power and politics in contemporary sports organisations, and maps key trends in this changing sporting landscape. Action Sports and the Olympic Games is a fascinating read for anybody studying the Olympics, the sociology of sport, action sports, or sport policy.
2024 marks the 100-year anniversary of the winter sports week festival celebrated in Chamonix in 1924, which is now recognized as the first Olympic Winter Games. As a globally watched quadrennial mega-event, the Winter Olympics is unique from both summer sport festivals and other winter festivals, such as the Winter X Games. This book explores the impacts, issues, and legacies of the past century of the Olympic Winter Games. Grounded in sport history, the chapters in this volume draw on the disciplines of cultural history, diplomatic history, global history, environmental history, and media history to analyze the continued allure of the Winter Olympics, a century after its origin, and in light of the sustained and significant problems facing the Olympic movement. Host cities’ efforts to create positive and lasting legacies are analyzed to highlight the challenges and complexities that have plagued the Olympic movement throughout the last century. The Olympic Winter Games at 100 is essential reading for any researcher, advanced student or scholar with an interest in Olympic Studies, sports development, sport policy and history. The chapters in this book were published as two special issues in The International Journal of the History of Sport.
