Great post! I’m always fascinated by major upsets, especially in distance running and swimming. Stories of overcoming significant obstacles are always inspiring and exciting to learn about—no matter the sport! Keep it going.
Thanks Seth, glad you liked it. I love a great upset too which is why I chose to write a book about these particular Olympics. The first Black sprinters winning gold, first breakout female athletes, and first Asian swim stars all overcame numerous obstacles on their way to Olympic glory. Even the 1932 Games themselves were something of an underdog for being held in the first place.
Timely, places the current situation in context. The New York Times should reprint this, so the whole country can read it. For more on water and Los Angeles history, this NPR Throughline podcast is pretty good:
Thanks David. The whole history of LA and water is rich. As noted Californian historian Kevin Starr wrote in Materials Dreams: “A major American city had become materialized through engineering, vision, greed, and ferocious force of will.”
Great post! I’m always fascinated by major upsets, especially in distance running and swimming. Stories of overcoming significant obstacles are always inspiring and exciting to learn about—no matter the sport! Keep it going.
Thanks Seth, glad you liked it. I love a great upset too which is why I chose to write a book about these particular Olympics. The first Black sprinters winning gold, first breakout female athletes, and first Asian swim stars all overcame numerous obstacles on their way to Olympic glory. Even the 1932 Games themselves were something of an underdog for being held in the first place.
Timely, places the current situation in context. The New York Times should reprint this, so the whole country can read it. For more on water and Los Angeles history, this NPR Throughline podcast is pretty good:
https://www.npr.org/2026/01/01/1198920684/throughline-water-in-the-west-behind-the-scenes
Thanks David. The whole history of LA and water is rich. As noted Californian historian Kevin Starr wrote in Materials Dreams: “A major American city had become materialized through engineering, vision, greed, and ferocious force of will.”
this was fascinating. I'd love to lear more about olympic boycotts.
Thanks Manuel. I'll be writing about a whole sport that boycotted the 1932 Olympics in my next post.