Wordrobe Media public
[search 0]
More
Download the App!
show episodes
 
Discover the incredible stories behind the Olympic and Paralympic Games — from the epic and inspirational — to the bizarre and controversial. Starting with the OG (aka Original Games) Olympics in ancient Greece to today’s sprawling sports spectacle, each episode is dedicated to telling the story of the Games and Athletes that have shaped both sports history and history history. So raise the flag, light the cauldron, and join in on the Games Odyssey for a weekly sprint down history lane as ho ...
  continue reading
 
Loading …
show series
 
Opened in 2021, the US Olympic & Paralympic Museum located in Colorado Springs, Colorado is definitely a sight to see. It's the only place (in the US) where you can see all of the Olympic medals displayed from all of the Games, it is the only place you're going to find the legendary "Miracle on Ice" scoreboard displayed, and it's the only place whe…
  continue reading
 
Despite the cancellation of the 1940 and 1944 Olympic Games due to World War II, after the war, stories emerged of several unofficial Olympic Games being held in the most unlikely of places—German Prisoner of War camps. While few details survive, these “POW Olympics” prove the spirit of Olympism can survive even the darkest of times. Show Notes: St…
  continue reading
 
In anticipation of returning to London for the 1948 Summer Olympics in Season 3, we thought it would be fun to first revisit London 1908. Enjoy! What could be worse for the Olympic movement than the disastrous St. Louis Games? How about an actual natural disaster? In 1906, the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius disrupted the plans for the 1908 Olympiad to be…
  continue reading
 
In Season 3, the Olympics will finally return after 12 long years when the Winter Games resurrect at St. Moritz making them the first double-host for the Winter Games. In preparation, this episode is an inter-season replay of our St. Mortiz 1928 episode but ad-free! A new era in Olympic history begins with the first truly standalone Winter Olympics…
  continue reading
 
Born into a sharecropping family, Jesse Owens found his footing after moving to Ohio and growing up to become “The Buckeye Bullet.” After shattering records in college, he secures his place on the Olympic team where he will then shatter Nazi ideology at the 1936 Berlin Summer Games, setting a new gold standard for athletics. Despite his successes, …
  continue reading
 
After surviving the threat of an American boycott, Nazi Germany welcomes a record number of athletes to Berlin for the Summer Olympics in 1936. The two weeks of competition (and propaganda) will prove to be one for the history books - literally - with some of the highest sports drama ever recorded. Victories by athletes like Jesse Owens and the Uni…
  continue reading
 
When Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party take control of Germany in 1933, they inherit the 1936 Olympic hosting duties, which they decide will provide the perfect opportunity to present Aryan superiority to the world. After “warming up” to their hosting duties during the Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany prepares to have the world’s ey…
  continue reading
 
After welcoming Germany back to the Olympics in 1928, the IOC awards the 1936 Olympic hosting duties to Germany in 1931. Two years later, Adolf Hitler comes to power and the Nazis seize control of Germany. The resort town Garmisch-Partenkirchen is then selected to host the Winter Games leading up to the infamous Summer Games in Berlin 1936, injecti…
  continue reading
 
Love 'em, hate 'em, or indifferent to 'em, there is some interesting history and stories behind the Olympic and Paralympic mascots. In this wildcard episode, we do an overview of the history of Olympic and Paralympic mascot tradition by presenting Sarah's Top Ten (or so) list of mascots and their historical significance to the Olympic/Paralympic mo…
  continue reading
 
After being told “Wait your turn” back in 1928, Los Angeles gets the chance to host the Summer Olympics for the first time in 1932. But when the Great Depression hits the global economy in 1930, neither the City of Angels nor the Olympic movement are immune from its effects. Despite this, Los Angeles would introduce several innovations that are sti…
  continue reading
 
The last time the US hosted the Olympics was for the III Olympiad in St. Louis, which was less than amazing, but now the US will become only the second nation to have hosted the Olympic Games twice as the III Winter Olympiad heads to the sleepy winter resort town of Lake Placid, New York. But amid the ravages of the Great Depression, is it possible…
  continue reading
 
In 1928, the Dutch finally get the chance to host the Olympic Games after years of trying to throw their hat into the ring. The first standalone Summer Games would provide some new opening ceremony traditions and see the addition of even more women who finally get to compete in athletics and gymnastics for the first time. Show Notes: Start saving a…
  continue reading
 
A new era in Olympic history begins with the first truly standalone Winter Olympics and a new IOC President following Pierre de Coubertin’s retirement. The Winter Games head to the resort town of St. Moritz in Switzerland where the Swiss organizers appear to have everything under control…except for the weather. Show Notes: Start saving and investin…
  continue reading
 
Twenty-four years after the confusing disaster of the second Olympic​​ Games in Paris 1900, Baron Pierre de Coubertin is set to oversee his last Olympic Games as President of the IOC. He intends the VIII Olympiad in Paris 1924 to be his swan song to the movement he founded – but will it be everything he hopes it will be? Show Notes: Start saving an…
  continue reading
 
Paris became the first city to host the Olympic Games twice, but before we get into the Summer Olympics of Paris 1924, we thought you might want a refresher on the confusing disaster that was the 1900 Olympics where the organizers literally went out of their way to call the event pretty much anything else other than "The Olympic Games." From hot ai…
  continue reading
 
After ice hockey’s debut at the 1920 Games in Antwerp and the return of figure skating, there were those who thought there should be a separate Winter Olympic Games. But there were others…who did not. Even though the IOC had not officially sanctioned a separate Winter Olympics, a mixture of miscommunication, assumptions, and Olympic spirit led the …
  continue reading
 
Sometimes being a trailblazer means being a water-blazer. After contracting polio as a child, Ethelda took up swimming to counteract the effects of the disease - and within a couple years found herself breaking records and making a huge splash at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp. But just as swimming changed her life, her legacy is marked by chang…
  continue reading
 
After the devastation of World War I, the Olympic movement finds itself at a crossroads, especially in Europe. While the VI Olympiad was supposed to take place in Berlin, Germany has been banned from participation as politics is interjected into the Olympic Games. Now the IOC must decide where to hold the VII Olympiad, and Antwerp is chosen to play…
  continue reading
 
Where did sports come from? While that may always remain a bit of a mystery, we take a dive into the history of sports across the world, from ancient Egypt and the ancient Olympics, to the eventual explosion in formalized sports during the 19th century, which helped set the stage for the modern Olympic movement and thriving sports industry. Our sec…
  continue reading
 
Where did sports come from? While that may always remain a bit of a mystery, we take a dive into the history of sports across the world, from ancient Egyptian sports, the ancient Olympic Games, and eventually the explosion in formalized sports during the 19th century, which helped set the stage for the modern Olympic and Paralympic movement and the…
  continue reading
 
In this unscripted (and barely edited) bonus episode for Season 1, Jonathan and Sarah recap the highlights from the recent Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing 2022 while things were still fresh on their minds. From Austria's Aigner family siblings to Riley the guide dog, from sled hockey history to a powerful showing by Team Ukraine, return to Beiji…
  continue reading
 
In this unscripted (and barely edited) bonus episode, Sarah and Jonathan unpack the highlights from the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, from ice skating drama galore and diplomatic boycotts, to historic victories and the heartwarming women's snowboarding love fest. Relive your favorite (and not so favorite) moments of the Beijing 2022 Winter Oly…
  continue reading
 
Jim Thorpe, born into the Sac and Fox nation, became the first Native American Olympic gold medalist at the Stockholm 1912 Games by dominating in the new events of pentathlon and decathlon. So why was this versatile athlete stripped of his medals and titles one year later? From facing racism, heartbreaking loss, substance abuse, encounters with fut…
  continue reading
 
Besides their meatballs and their ready-to-assemble furniture, what does Sweden do really well? The Olympic Games. Stockholm 1912, the only time that Sweden has hosted the Olympics, is known as “The Swedish Masterpiece” for being a well-organized event that firmly established the revived Olympics as the pinnacle of international athletic participat…
  continue reading
 
Figure skating made its historic debut at the London 1908 Olympic Games and with it, British figure skater Madge Syers broke the ice ceiling by becoming the first in a long line of figure skating royalty. In an era where the sport of figure skating was dominated and controlled by men, Syers redefined athleticism in bold style, urged on by her suppo…
  continue reading
 
In this bonus episode, Jonathan presents the Olympic gold medal-winning poem "Ode to Sport," which was anonymously submitted by modern Olympic founder Baron Pierre de Coubertin in the artistic competition in Stockholm 1912. Download Transcript Find us on Facebook at The Games Odyssey Podcast page On Twitter Games Odyssey On Instagram Games Odyssey …
  continue reading
 
What could be worse for the Olympic movement than the disastrous St. Louis Games? How about an actual natural disaster? In 1906, the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius disrupted the plans for the 1908 Olympiad to be hosted in Rome. With less than two years to put together a plan, London rides in to rescue the Games as host city – and sets a new standard for …
  continue reading
 
After the back-to-back disasters of the Paris 1900 and the St. Louis 1904 Olympic Games, the fledgling Olympic movement needed a win. Big time. As the International Olympic Committee turned its eyes to the 1908 Games, Greece would look to repeat the success of the 1896 Games by hosting a half-Olympiad in Athens in 1906 that would not only prove to …
  continue reading
 
One of the most incredible stories from the 1904 St. Louis Olympics is that of George Eyser, a German immigrant to the US who competed in the gymnastics program. One of the most successful athletes of the third Olympiad, Eyser won six medals in one day, a record that still stands. This included three golds, all the more impressive considering that …
  continue reading
 
The first Olympic Games to be hosted by the United States is memorable for pretty much all the wrong reasons. It’s a story rife with American backstabbing, the first case of an athlete using a performance-enhancing substance, and displays of blatant racism. It’s a bit of a miracle that the Olympic movement survived this debacle. Find out why the th…
  continue reading
 
When we’re not watching the Olympics or Paralympics, you might find us watching a movie about the Olympics or Paralympics. In this wildcard episode, we take a break from the history of the Olympic Games to talk about our favorite Olympic and Paralympic themed movies, from fun nostalgic staples like "Cool Runnings" to the creepy true crime story "Fo…
  continue reading
 
One of the silver linings – or rather, golden linings – of the Olympic Games in Paris 1900 was the inclusion of female athletes bringing us our first women Olympians since Kyniska of Sparta broke the marble ceiling in the OG Olympic Games. In this episode, we take a look at the lives of the first two female Olympic gold medalists: Hélène de Pourtal…
  continue reading
 
How did the modern Olympic movement go from a smash hit in Athens to an underwhelming masterpiece of confusion in Paris four years later? Were the new Olympic Games destined to be a one-hit wonder? Spoiler alert…no. But this is the story of the bizarre and wild Olympic Games of Paris 1900, where the organizers decided to purposefully NOT market the…
  continue reading
 
The rags to riches – to prison – story of Spyridon “Spyros” Louis, a Greek peasant and soldier who won the first ever international marathon race at the inaugural 1896 Olympic Games in Athens. Find out how a three hour race transformed a lowly water carrier from a poor village into a national hero and Olympic legend. Our website: gamesodyssey.com F…
  continue reading
 
In this second part about the inaugural modern Olympic Games held in Athens in 1896, we talk about how the events at the first Olympiad felt a bit like the sports version of the Wild West. From starting over the fencing competition after three rounds just because the king showed up to watch, to swimmers literally dropped in the sea and told to swim…
  continue reading
 
The incredible true story - that is, stories - of the first modern Olympic Games held in Athens in 1896, including how the USA almost missed out, and the first ever marathon race. In this first part of two episodes about Athens 1896, we talk about the venues for the first modern Games, such as the not-so-modern Panathenaic Stadium, and the stories …
  continue reading
 
Given the recent events of Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing war there, we decided we wanted to dedicate our first ever country profile episode to Ukraine and the brave individuals fighting for their country, including former Olympians, and of course highlighting the history of amazing Ukrainian athletes who have competed at b…
  continue reading
 
From Greek revolutionaries to eccentric French barons with epic mustaches, we examine the storied lives that led to the revival of the Olympic Games in 1896 and the birth of the modern Olympic & Paralympic movement. Jonathan and Sarah dive into the story of how the Greek Revolution inspired influential Greeks to revive the Olympic Games, how the We…
  continue reading
 
The modern Olympic and Paralympic Games are modeled after the ancient Olympic Games that started a long time ago in a Greece far, far away. If you thought the myths and history of how the Games started were wild, wait until you hear about some of the epic ancient athletes who would’ve been sponsored by Nike - the Greek goddess, that is, not the spo…
  continue reading
 
The modern Olympic and Paralympic Games are modeled after the ancient Olympic Games started a long time ago in a Greece far, far away. So we kick things off by going back 3000 years to relive the glory of the OG Olympic Games at Olympia, from mythological back stories that include a demigod with a prosthetic shoulder to a sacrificial barbecue and f…
  continue reading
 
In the inaugural episode of The Games Odyssey Podcast, hosts Jonathan Jordan and Sarah Patton introduce themselves, why they love the Olympics and Paralympics, and lay out the format and expectations for the show. Sign up for our weekly newsletter and learn more about us at gamesodyssey.com Find us on Facebook at The Games Odyssey Podcast page On T…
  continue reading
 
If you're a fan of the Olympics and Paralympics, a history fan, or just like true stories in general, then we invite you to check out The Games Odyssey Podcast, where we will bring you the incredibly inspirational, bizarre, epic, and controversial true stories behind the Olympic & Paralympic Games and athletes. Starting February 24th, 2022, join ho…
  continue reading
 
If you're a fan of the Olympics and Paralympics, a history fan, or just like true stories in general, then we invite you to check out The Games Odyssey Podcast, where we will bring you the incredibly inspirational, bizarre, epic, and controversial true stories behind the Olympic & Paralympic Games and athletes. Starting February 24th, 2022, join ho…
  continue reading
 
Loading …

Quick Reference Guide