The Longform Guide to the Olympics
Munich, the Dream Team, and the search for Nadia Comaneci—a collection of articles on the highs and lows of Olympic history.
The Little-Known History of How the Olympics Got Their Start
The first modern games were staged in 1850 by a surgeon named William Penny Brookes in a town called Much Wenlock.
Frank Deford Smithsonian Jul 2012
High Hurdles and White Gloves
An American gold medalist in the hurdles describes his experience at the 1896 Olympics in Athens.
Thomas P. Curtis The Atlantic Dec 1932 10min
Letter from Munich
On the scene of the darkest games in Olympic history.
E.J. Kahn New Yorker Sep 1972 15min
The Search for Nadia
Three years after her gold-medal performance—and amidst rumors of a fall from grace—the author travels to Transylvania to track down gymnast Nadia Comaneci. He also enjoys several drinks with her coach, Béla Károlyi.
Bob Ottum Sports Illustrated Nov 1979 25min
The Greatest Game Nobody Ever Saw
On the eve of the 1992 Summer Olympics, the Dream Team held a closed-door scrimmage in Monaco. Michael Jordan led one team, Magic Johnson the other. Two decades later, a game report.
Jack McCallum Sports Illustrated Jul 2012 25min
The Ballad of Richard Jewel
How the media and law enforcement fingered the wrong man for the 1996 Olympic Park bombing.
Marrie Brenner Vanity Fair Feb 1997 1h15min
Will You Still Medal in the Morning?
Sex in the Olympic Village.
Sam Alipour ESPN Jul 2012 15min
One One-Hundredth of a Second Faster
How science is “helping athletes approach perfection.”
Mark McClusky Wired Jun 2012 15min
S. Korea Covered Up Mass Abuse, Killings of 'Vagrants'
How the government cleared the streets in advance of the 1988 Olympics.
Kim Ton-Hyung, Foster Klug Associated Press Apr 2016 15min
Dec 1932 – Apr 2016 Permalink
