Reviews for Training The Racehorse

The average rating for Training The Racehorse based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2011-09-23 00:00:00 George Kimberly This concise book, published by National Geographic, gives a brief overview of the history of the Olympic Games, illustrated with many historical photos. The book covers a variety of topics including the history of the modern games, profiles of star athletes, the fight for the inclusion of women in the games, and highlights of controversies that have rocked the games over the years. The modern games were the brainchild of Pierre de Coubertin who was born in Paris in 1863. Through his personal experiences with athletics, he began to believe that sports had the power to instill moral character in young men and became fascinated with the historical accounts of the ancient Olympic Games. In 1892, he announced that he would revive the Olympic Games and in 1894 an opening banquet with officials from twelve countries met and created the International Olympic Committee. The games have undergone numerous changes since its early years. For instance, Coubertin was adamantly opposed to women being included, but as we know, women are now included in the games. Additionally, in the early years, only "amateur" athletes were allowed to compete, meaning anyone who had received payment or paid professionally were disqualified. Yet as the line between amateur and professional continued to blur, with some countries paying for athletes to train for the Olympics, this rule was eventually abandoned. The Olympics have also seen their fair share of controversy, such as the controversial choice for Mexico City to host even though it is so high above sea level that the air contains 30 percent less oxygen, the boycotting of the 1980 games in Soviet Russia, the bomb that killed one and injured many in Atlanta in 1996. I also don't remember hearing about the athletes from East Germany in the 1970s and 1980s who were given steroids that they were told were "vitamins." Today, around 1,000 of those athletes suffer from serious health issues including twisted spines, failing livers, numb limbs, miscarriages, and the birth of children with birth defects. If you're looking for a comprehensive look at the modern Olympic games, this is not the book for you. However, this was a great introduction to the games that, while brief, still provided me with a lot of information I didn't know beforehand. I've always been a huge fan of the games and this was perfect for fans to learn a little more and reminisce on previous games to tide us over until the next Olympiad.

Review # 2 was written on 2012-10-21 00:00:00 John pearmon Pearmon CATEGORY: INFORMATIONAL/NON-FICTION NOVEL Being someone who loves sports of all kinds, I actually really enjoyed this one. It was a fast read and it was interesting, especially because I am a woman. It tracks the Olympic Games from its rebirth in the early 1900's to the current day; exposing scandals, illuminating discrimination and enlightening people on the depth of human strength and perseverance. It read a lot like one would assume, but I loved the breaks between points of information where pictures with captions and statistics are placed. It was formatted nicely, and I actually enjoyed reading it! Fun read!