Product Description

This book is about the greatest sporting event in the world! An entertaining and erudite look at the history of the world's most prestigious sporting event, from its Greek origins to the present day. A fascinating mix of history and sporting trivia with information on every one of the main Summer Games, the Paralympics and the Winter Games.

Historical records kept by the ancient Greeks tell us the first Games were dedicated to their Olympian Gods and held on the plains of Olympia in 776 BC. An Olympiad was the name given to the four year cycle between Games. The Games continued for more than a thousand years before the Christian Byzantine Emperor Theodosius banned all 'pagan cults' in 393 AD.

'And here's Moses Kiptanui - the 19 year old Kenyan who turned 20 a few weeks ago' - David Coleman.

'Watch the time - it gives you an indication of how fast they're running' - Ron Pickering.

'It was the fastest ever swim over that distance on American soil' - Greg Phillips.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #165740 in Books
• Published on: 2006-10-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 96 pages

Customer Reviews

Superb
I heard about the Facts, Figures and Fun titles from a friend and decided to give them a try. I started with the Olympics but have now 'graduated' to the others. A must read!

Brilliant and funny!
A great reference book. Really useful for a school project or a even pub quiz. Who knows, it could contain the answer to a 'Millionaire' question!

madness
i don't even like sport, i certainly don't care about the olmpics, but this had me in stitches, time in the loo has never been such a breeze (!)