Book dossier

Triumph

by Jeremy Schaap

As hosts of the summer Olympics of 1936, Nazi Germany would open its doors to a world divided between admiration and horror. No one was more aware of this than the Fuhrer himself. Hitler was determined these games would promote his regime, but a young American athlete threatened to ruin his plan. Jesse Owens, the 22-year-old son of African-American sharecroppers, had been building a reputation for himself as a formidable athlete. He went on to win four gold medals, demonstrating better than any politican could the flaws in Hitler's racist beliefs. This is the incredible story of one of the most iconic clashes in sports and world history.