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Special Report

The Tokyo Olympics

Prepare yourself for the Tokyo Olympics with this comprehensive guide to the history, science, arts and thrills of the worldwide celebration


Yukinori Hasumi/Getty Images
Interest in gymnastics soared during the Cold War, when the Olympics emerged as a cultural battleground for Western and Eastern nations.

HISTORY

A History of Gymnastics, From Ancient Greece to Tokyo 2020

Will an American athlete from the Tokyo Games grab gold and become the next to be featured on the cover of Wheaties?

INNOVATION

How Wheaties Became the 'Breakfast of Champions'

Team USA Stamps

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

The Science Behind a Faster, Higher, Stronger Team U.S.A.

A mural in Munich's former Olympic Village features Otl Aicher's pictograms.

INNOVATION

This Graphic Artist's Olympic Pictograms Changed Urban Design Forever

Babe Didrickson’s brash behavior along with her decorated athleticism (above: second from right in the 80-meter hurdle) challenged every imagined ideal for a woman athlete in the 1930s.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Olympian Babe Didrikson Cleared the Same Hurdles Women Athletes Face Today

Recent Coverage

Jim Thorpe in 1912

SMART NEWS

Jim Thorpe's 1912 Olympic Gold Medals Are Finally Reinstated

Tara Wu

Ralph Samuelson on water skiis

SMART NEWS

The Man Who Invented Water Skiing

Sarah Kuta

Ski jumpers use aerodynamics and physics to overcome gravity – at least for a while.

SCIENCE

The Freaky Physics of Ski Jump

Amy Pope, The Conversation

Bobsled, luge and skeleton athletes descend twisting, steep tracks at speeds upward of 80 mph (130 kmh).

SCIENCE

The High-Speed Physics of Olympic Bobsled, Luge and Skeleton

John Eric Goff, The Conversation

Fireworks fill the sky over the "Bird's Nest" arena in Beijing on January 30, 2022

TRAVEL

The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics

Smithsonian magazine

Activists in London hold signs urging the BBC to boycott the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing.

HISTORY

Is China Committing Genocide Against the Uyghurs?

Lorraine Boissoneault

From the Archives

Made of fermented vegetables, kimchi was popularized globally during the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.

TRAVEL

How the 1988 Olympics Helped Spark a Global Kimchi Craze

The Olympic Flame was lit from the sun's rays using a parabolic mirror, during the final dress rehearsal for the lighting ceremony at Ancient Olympia, in southwestern Greece, on Monday, Oct. 23, 2017.

INNOVATION

Your Burning Questions About the Olympic Torch, Answered

The Games may not exist at all were it not for the perseverance of the Brits.

HISTORY

The Little-Known History of How the Modern Olympics Got Their Start

The National Aquatics Center is where Michael Phelps earned his eight gold medal during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Today it's been transformed into the Happy Magic Water Cube, one of Asia’s largest waterparks.

TRAVEL

Four Olympic Stadiums With Unexpected Afterlives

Scenes from the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

SCIENCE

The Rise of the Modern Sportswoman

A few of the Olympians pose for a photo upon their return to the U.S. after the 1936 Games. In the back row, on the far right is Tidye PIckett and third from the left is Louise Stokes.

HISTORY

Sports History Forgot About Tidye Pickett and Louise Stokes, Two Black Olympians Who Never Got Their Shot

Esther Williams, Million Dollar Mermaid

HISTORY

Synchronized Swimming Has a History That Dates Back to Ancient Rome

“Even the greatest things in the world need attention when they’re not as strong as they could be. It was a cry for freedom,” says Tommie Smith of his silent act at the 1968 Olympics.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

What You Don’t Know About Olympian Tommie Smith’s Silent Gesture

United States athletes at the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

ARTS & CULTURE

Who Really Composed NBC's Olympic Theme? Not Who You Think

Chuck Taylor All Star, circa 1957

INNOVATION

How Chuck Taylor Taught America How to Play Basketball

Pankration scene: the pankriatiast on the right tries to gouge his opponent's eye; the umpire is about to strike him for this foul.

HISTORY

The Ancient History of Cheating in the Olympics

Fanny Blanker-Koen crosses the finish line to become the first triple champion of the 14th Olympic Games.

HISTORY

How Fanny Blankers-Koen Became the 'Flying Housewife' of the 1948 London Games

Cheat Sheets

Greg Louganis competes in a diving event held in August 1984 at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

ARTS & CULTURE

Greg Louganis' Guide to Watching Diving


Gymnast Dominique Dawes competes on the balance beam during the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.

ARTS & CULTURE

Dominique Dawes' Guide to Watching Gymnastics


Susan Williams smiles at her daughter, Sydney, after she receives the bronze medal during ceremonies for the women's triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.

ARTS & CULTURE

Susan Williams' Guide to Watching the Triathlon


Charles Austin competes in the high jump at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.

ARTS & CULTURE

Charles Austin's Guide to Watching the High Jump


Natalie Golda looks to pass the ball during a preliminary round water polo match at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

ARTS & CULTURE

Natalie Golda's Guide to Watching Water Polo


Anna Goodale (right) and Zsuzsanna Francia (left) compete in the women's pairs event at the FISA Rowing World Cup in Germany in 2008.

ARTS & CULTURE

Anna Goodale's Guide to Watching Rowing


Dana Chladek competes in the Olympic Slalom Trials in 1992.

ARTS & CULTURE

Dana Chladek's Guide to Watching Canoe Slalom


Sada Jacobson Baby (right) of the United States battles with Leonore Perrus of France in the bronze medal match in the Women's Team Sabre event at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

ARTS & CULTURE

Sada Jacobson Bâby's Guide to Watching Fencing


Tara Nott Cunningham attempts a snatch during the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

ARTS & CULTURE

Tara Nott Cunningham's Guide to Watching Weightlifting


Butch Johnson draws his bow during the Olympic Men's Archery competition in 2000 in Sydney, Australia.

ARTS & CULTURE

Butch Johnson's Guide to Watching Archery

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