"This third edition of Historical Dictionary of the Olympic Movement deals with both levels of the competition -- the competitive side and the administrative side. The dictionary includes hundreds of entries on the major sports, outstanding athletes, participating countries, and numerous bodies in the organization, as well as successive generations of officials -- starting with the founder of the present-day Olympics, Pierre de Coubertin. Two chronologies trace the history of the Olympic movement back to the ancient Olympiad first celebrated in Greece in 776 B.C., as well as all of the modern games up to Athens in 2004.

The appendixes provide elusive facts in the games, officials, torchbearers, and top Olympic medal winners, and a bibliography provides references for further research"--Jacket.