9781422273661

What Are the Summer Olympics? . ................................................ 6 Fascinating Facts ........................................................................... 11 10-Year-Old Competed in 1896 Summer Games . ...................... 12 72-Year-Old Wins Olympic Medal . ............................................... 14 Ali’s 1960 Gold Medal Mysteriously “Disappeared” ................. 16 American Wins Marathon Running Just 14 Miles ...................... 18 Athletes Can Win Olympic Medals by Walking .......................... 20 Bookkeeper Turns Gold Medalist in 47 Days ............................. 22 Boxing Referee Assaulted at Seoul Games ................................ 24 British Monarchy Made the Marathon Longer ........................... 26 Diver Hid Stolen Flag for 77 years ............................................... 28 Eagan Won Gold in Both Olympic Seasons ................................ 30 Equestrian Events Held 9,704 Miles Away ................................. 32 Ethiopian Wins 1960 Marathon Running without Shoes ......... 34 First Official Olympic Mascot a Dachshund ............................... 36 Floating Face Down was an Olympic Sport . .............................. 38 Fujimoto Wins Gold Medal with Broken Knee ........................... 40 Gymnast Wins Six Medals with Wooden Leg ............................. 42 Harvard Student Fakes Illness to Win Olympic Event .............. 44 Hundreds of Pigeons Killed at 1900 Games ............................... 46 Keino Runs a Mile to Stadium to Make the Race ....................... 48 Olympic Gold Medals Are Barely Gold at All .............................. 50 Olympic Ring Colors Come from National Flags ....................... 52 Painting Used to Be an Olympic Event ....................................... 54 Rower Stops Racing Due to Crossing Ducks .............................. 56 Shooter Wins Gold Using His Off Hand ....................................... 58 Soviet Caught Using Self-Scoring Sword ................................... 60 Star Olympic Swimmer Became Movie Icon .............................. 62 Two Countries Once Showed Up with the Same Flag . ............. 64 U.S. Sprinter Awakes from Coma to Win Gold . ......................... 66 Winners Kicked Out of Badminton Event ................................... 68 World Record Leap Results in Bronze Medal ............................. 70 Game Changing Events . ............................................................... 72 Research Projects . ........................................................................ 74 Olympic Glossary of Key Terms .................................................. 75 Further Reading & Internet Resources ....................................... 77 Index ............................................................................................... 78 Photo Credits & Author Biography ............................................. 80