The Sports Illustrated Book of The Olympic Games [antikvár]

INTRODUCTION Most people would agree that the Baron Pierre de Coubertin had an excellent idea when, at the turn of the century, he proposed a revival of the Olympics. To be sure, the Games have become more of a testing-ground of national prestige and accomplishments than the Baron envisioned; moreover, the state-financed semi-professionalism of some of the contestants is a sad comedown from the simon-pure amateurism that was the rule in the early days of the modern series. And yet, every four years, when thousands of athletes gather from all over the globe, progress is made toward the ideal of universal understanding that motivated the founder of the modern Games. The ancient Greeks put this ideal into practice in a way that we have yet to approach; the modern Games have been suspended during two World Wars, but the Greeks interrupted even their bitterest wars to hold their Games. Still, the rivalry in the Olympic stadium is a healthy one. Despite the formidable barriers of language and politics, the Olympics have transcended, time and time again, the differences that marked the world in which they were held. For the contestants themselves, there is the excitement of meeting and competing with strangers in a strange land. And for the rest of us there is the excitement that always accompanies the pursuit of excellence in sports—the great individual performances, the style and stamina and incredible skill. Sports Illustrated has been covering this international rivalry since 1956, when Australia was the host. Since then SI reporters have been to Rome and Tokyo in the summer, to Cortina d'Ampezzo, Squaw Valley and Innsbruck in the winter—and they are of course covering the 1968 Games in Grenoble and Mexico City. A measure of the significance now attached to the Olympics can be found in the fact that twice the Overseas Press Club has awarded its medal for Best Reporting by a magazine to Sports Illustrated for its Olympic coverage. That a sports event should be considered so newsworthy in this era of international crisis is, it seems to us, suitable evidence of the depth and clarity of the Baron de Coubertin's profound vision. —Garry Valk Publisher, Sports Illustrated m