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Olympics: Behind The Five Rings : Throughline The Olympics originated in Ancient Greece, and were resurrected in the 1890's after a 1,500 year ban. Since then, the International Olympic Committee has been behind every Olympic Games. In this episode, we explore the story of how the IOC turned the Olympics into a huge commercial success and whether the cities that host the games end up winning or losing.

Throughline

Olympics: Behind The Five Rings

Olympics: Behind The Five Rings

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  • The Olympics have become a huge commercial success, but do the cities that host the games come out ahead?
    The Olympics have become a huge commercial success, but do the cities that host the games come out ahead?
    Scott Halleran/Getty Images
  • Spectators in the crowd at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin raise their hands in the Nazi salute in tribute to Hitler's arrival at the stadium.
    Spectators in the crowd at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin raise their hands in the Nazi salute in tribute to Hitler's arrival at the stadium.
    Bettmann Archive/Getty Images
  • The Maracana Stadium, a 2016 Summer Olympics venue, lower left, stands in this aerial photograph taken above Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016. Brazil's federal government had agreed to provide emergency funding to the state of Rio de Janeiro after it declared an emergency as cash ran short before the start of the games.
    The Maracana Stadium, a 2016 Summer Olympics venue, lower left, stands in this aerial photograph taken above Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016. Brazil's federal government had agreed to provide emergency funding to the state of Rio de Janeiro after it declared an emergency as cash ran short before the start of the games.
    Dado Galdieri/Bloomberg via Getty Images
  • American basketball players of the Dream Team receive their gold medal during the 1992 Olympics. The Barcelona Games was a star-studded event. At that point, it was the most watched television event of all time.
    American basketball players of the Dream Team receive their gold medal during the 1992 Olympics. The Barcelona Games was a star-studded event. At that point, it was the most watched television event of all time.
    Dimitri Lundt/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images

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The Olympics originated in Ancient Greece, and were resurrected in the 1890's after a 1,500 year ban. Since then, the International Olympic Committee has been behind every Olympic Games. In this episode, we explore the story of how the IOC turned the Olympics into a huge commercial success and whether the cities that host the games end up winning or losing.

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Clarification July 26, 2021

An earlier version of this podcast episode did not say that the 1976 Olympics referred to in Montreal were the Summer Olympics.