International Centre for Olympic Studies

Books by ICOS Scholars


Tarnished Rings: The IOC and the Salt Lake City Scandal

Stephen Wenn, Robert K. Barney & Scott Martyn

In Tarnished Rings, Wenn, Barney and Martyn examine the fascinating story of the bid scandal surrounding the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. They explore its genesis and chart the IOC’s efforts to bring stability to its operations. Based on extensive research and unparalleled access to primary source material, the authors offer a behind-the-scenes account of the politics surrounding the IOC and the bidding process. This in-depth examination of a critical episode in Olympic history and the presidency of Juan Antonio Samaranch, who brought sweeping change to the Olympic Movement in the 1980s and 1990s, offers valuable lessons for those interested in the IOC, the Olympic Movement, and the broader concepts of leadership and crisis management.


Rethinking The Olympics: Cultural Histories of the Modern Games

Robert K. Barney (ed.)

This anthology of essays previously published in Olympika. The International Journal of Olympic Studies, addresses key themes in the scholarly study of the Games. Part I presents seven articles devoted to Olympic history: the Games' legacy from antiquity, their modern evolution, and the most controversial Games of the modern era, the Berlin Games of 1936. Part II deals with the persistent problems and crises that confounded and defined the Olympic Games over time. The nine essays in this section focus on a variety of issues such as: performance enhancement; the rise of commercialism; enduring controversies in the form of leadership, corruption, and the Cold War; and the politics of hosting Olympic Games. Finally, in Part III, the future of the Olympic Movement is addressed from the perspective of the rapidly accelerating and mushrooming processes of globalization.


Global Olympics: Historical and Sociological Studies of the Modern Games

Kevin Young & Kevin Wamsley (eds.)

The Olympic Games have become a subject of major importance to students, academics, sports bodies, politicians, urban planners, and the public at large. The Olympic Rings are among the most recognised symbols in the world, and there are few other cultural phenomena that attract such a significant following in the popular media or such widespread support among the nations of the world. "Global Olympics: Historical and Sociological Studies of the Modern Games" draws together some of the world's leading scholars on critical issues emerging from ancient Olympic contests, and over one hundred years of modern Olympic history. A wide range of expertise permits the authors to address these issues from varied perspectives, while encompassing an in-depth assessment of the current literature and debates on the Olympics. This book will serve as an interdisciplinary resource for undergraduate and graduate students alike, as well as for the growing cohort of researchers interested in understanding and explaining the historical and sociological significance of the Games.


Selling The Five Rings: The IOC and the Rise of Olympic Commercialism

Robert K. Barney, Stephen Wenn & Scott Martyn

The original scheme for the modern Olympic Games was hatched at an international sports conference at the Sorbonne in June 1894. At the time, few provisions were made for the financial underwriting of the project—providence and the beneficence of host cities would somehow take care of the costs. For much of the first century of modern Olympic history, this was the case, until the advent of television and corporate sponsorship transformed that idealism. Now, linking with the five-ring logo is good business. Advertising during the Olympic Games guarantees a global audience unmatched in size by any other sports audience in the world. However, if the image begins to tarnish and the corporate sector loses interest, television companies can’t sell advertising to business interests. This was the greatest threat posed by the scandal surrounding Salt Lake City’s bid. Selling the Five Rings outlines the rise of the Olympic movement from an envisioned instrument of peace and brotherhood, to a transnational commercial giant of imposing power and influence. Using primary source documents such as minutes of the IOC General Sessions, minutes and reports of various IOC sub-committees and commissions concerned with finance, reports of key marketing agencies, and the letters and memoranda written to and by the major figures in Olympic history, the authors track the history of a fascinating global institution.