The motto of author Christopher Shaw’s in-laws is vincit veritas, “truth prevails,” and from his first line of text, this David from British Columbia seeks to strip away the false pretenses that accompanied Goliath Vancouver’s successful bid to host the 2010 Winter Olympics. An ophthalmologist at the University of British Columbia, in Five Ring Circus: Myths and Realities of the Olympic Games Shaw condemns the millionaire sportsmen who run the Games, and their political, corporate and real estate allies who mocked the Vancouver organizers’ hackneyed claim to serve the causes of peace and a better world.
Pulling no punches, the author assesses how Vancouver ignored the common good in favour of enriching private commercial interests. Five Ring Circus deals with a number of issues, including the powerful “cult” of the Olympics; the “hidden history” of the Games, past and present; the impact of real estate concerns upon planning; and Olympic...
Geoff Smith taught courses in American history and sport sociology at Queen’s University for nearly 40 years. He was protocol officer in charge of the Soviet sailing delegation at the Montreal (Kingston) Olympics in 1976.
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