Civilization's preeminent spectacle of international prowess. The occasion attracts representatives by the thousands -- bearing the weight of the mythology of Atlas -- seeking the advantageous elixir of gladiator-like ardor and swan-like equanimity. 

 

The 1936 Olympics delivers the starkest of this gravity and science. Jesse Owens' domination of the Nazis -- in the track and field games -- not only disproved Aryan supremacy; effectively, it rendered him avant-courier to the inchoate standard of American excellence.