12 True Stories of Triumph and Tragedy at the Olympics

The Naked Olympics: The True Story of the Ancient Games, by Tony Perrottet, Lesley Thelander, and Lesley Thelander
Writer Perrottet goes to great lengths, using a variety of ancient sources, to not only describe the original Olympics, but recreate the experience of the wildly influential athletic festival. It’s a lively, raucous, and gritty look at sporting events that share a surprising number of similarities with the modern Games…and some differences as well. (I doubt our modern athletes will be performing in the nude anytime soon.)

Amsterdam, Summer 1928

Fire on the Track: Betty Robinson and the Triumph of the Early Olympic Women, by Roseanne Montillo
At the age of 16, Betty Robinson was the first woman to claim an Olympic gold medal for track, becoming, for a time, the fastest woman in the world. She came back and won another gold medal in 1936, but in the intervening years was involved in a plane crash in which she was first presumed dead, and then was in a coma for seven months. It took her over two years to regain the ability to walk normally. During that time, other women built on her reputation to show the world what women can do.

Berlin, Summer 1936

Triumph: The Untold Story of Jesse Owens and Hitler’s Olympics, by Jeremy Schaap
There are a number of great books about the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, one of the most momentous in modern history. Hitler had been in power for just over three years, and, though there had been calls for boycotts of the Games, the full extent of Nazi barbarity wasn’t widely understood. Track and field athlete Jesse Owens, black American child of sharecroppers, won four  gold medals, putting ideas of Aryan superiority to lie.

The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, by Daniel James Brown
Meanwhile at the 1936 Olympics, a less well known, but also inspiring story was playing out on the water. Centered around orphaned Depression-era farm boy Joe Rantz, the book tells of the University of Washington crew team. Comprised of rowers from farms, towns, and villages all over the state, the team had to compete with wealthier and better-equipped teams from elite east coast schools before battling for Olympic glory.

London, Summer 1948

The Three-Year Swim Club: The Untold Story of Maui’s Sugar Ditch Kids and Their Quest for Olympic Glory, by Julie Checkoway
It’s a remarkable, almost unbelievable story: a group of Japanese-American in Maui, poor and malnourished, were challenged by their science teacher, a man with no swimming ability of his own, to become Olympians. They didn’t even have a pool to swim in. Still, within just a couple of years the kids were breaking records and making international headlines. World War II and the cancellation of the 1940 and 1944 Games meant that their dreams would have to wait, but wasn’t the end of the story for any of them.

Rome, Summer 1960

Rome 1960: The Summer Olympics That Stirred the World, by David Maraniss
The social and political turmoil of the 1960s, argues David Maraniss, was anticipated in the Games that began the decade. The US and the Soviet Union were locked into competing narratives and each fought hard for propaganda victories. Doping was already becoming an issue, and illicit endorsement deals and Soviet subsidies blurred the lines dividing amateur from professional athletes. Perhaps most significantly, black athletes like Cassius Clay, Wilma Rudolph, Abebe Bikila were grabbing the spotlight while the IOC was desperate to avoid any complications over race issues. The Olympics always reflect their times, Rome perhaps even more so.

Lake Placid, Winter 1980

The Boys of Winter: The Untold Story of a Coach, a Dream, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team, by Wayne Coffey with Jim Craig
It’s 1980, 20 years after Rome, and the through line of the Games remains the cold conflict between the United States and the USSR. The Soviets had dominated five of the six previous Games, and the hockey team was heavily favored to win again at Lake Placid. The American team, on the other hand, was comprised of young amateurs. They didn’t have a chance—until they did, making their “Miracle on Ice” one of the most iconic moments in sports of the 20th century.

Barcelona, Summer 1992

Dream Team: How Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, and the Greatest Team of All Time Conquered the World and Changed the Game of Basketball Forever, by Jack McCallum
Prior to 1992, only amateurs were allowed to play. Soviet skirting of the rules, however, lead to a controversial decision to open up the Olympic basketball team to pros. What came of that decision was the most impressive collection of basketball talent ever assembled. Names like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen, and Charles Barkley were brought together to create an unbeatable super-team. McCallum describes not only the athletics, but also goes behind the scenes to talk about what happened when some of the greatest sports talents of all time hang out together.

Nagano, Winter 1998

Edge of Glory: The Inside Story of the Quest for Figure Skatings Olympic Gold Medals, by Christine Brennan
Brennan takes us into the tumultuous year leading up to the Olympics for a US figure skater. Beginning with the national championships in Nashville in 1997, in which Michelle Kwan’s literal fall provided an opportunity for Tara Lipinski to steal the show, Brennan provides perspective on the lives of women and men who dream of Olympic glory, but also on the coaches, agents, judges, and veterans who all have roles to play.

Sydney, Summer 2000

Gold in the Water: The True Story of Ordinary Men and Their Extraordinary Dream of Olympic Glory, by P. H. Mullen Jr.
Focusing on two swimmers, Tom Wilkens and Kurt Grote, and their coach Dick Jochums, Mullen shines a light on the grueling training that leads up to an Olympic contest. A swimmer himself, Mullen provides insight into not only the physical preparation required, but also the emotional and psychological turmoil created by the rigorous regimen and ups and downs of a life lived under that kind of pressure.

Beijing, Summer 2008

Running for My Life: One Lost Boy’s Journey from the Killing Fields of Sudan to the Olympic Games, by Lopez Lomong and Mark Tabb
One of Sudan’s “Lost Boys” orphaned during that country’s second civil war, Lomong came to the US in 2001 and qualified for the Olympic team in 2008, shortly after gaining citizenship. His immigrant story is one of harrowing hardship and hopelessness to inspiring triumph.

The Games: A Global History of the Olympics, by David Goldblatt
Finally, having absorbed the detailed, individual stories of triumph and tragedy that have made up the history of the modern Olympics, you might be ready for a broader view. Sportswriter Goldblatt’s book covers the entirety of the modern Games, from 1896 on, telling the stories of the people, places, and sports that have made the summer, winter, and para- Olympics so engaging for well over a century. From Tommie Smith and John Carlos’ Black Power salute in 1968 to the tragedy in Munich, to the Miracle on Ice in Lake Placid, Goldblatt pulls back to look at the continuing story of the Games.
What’s on your reading list for the 2018 Olympics Games?