Böcker i Harvard Historical Studies-serien

Keys offers the first major study of the political and cultural ramifications of international sports competitions in the 1930s. Focusing on the U.S., Nazi Germany, and the Soviet Union, she examines the transformation of events like the Olympics and the World Cup from small-scale events to the expensive, political, global extravaganzas of today.

Challenging standard interpretations of American dominance and French weakness in postwar Western Europe, Creswell argues that France played a key role in shaping the cold war order. He sketches the successful French challenge to the U.S. that ultimately resulted in security arrangements preferred by the French but acceptable to the Americans.