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The Moscow playbook : how Russia used, abused, and transformed sports in the hunt for power / Bruce Berglund.

Van Pelt Library GV623 .B47 2026
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Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Berglund, Bruce, 1968- author.
Language:
English
Subjects (All):
Sports--Political aspects--Russia (Federation).
Sports.
Sports and state--Russia (Federation).
Sports and state.
Russia (Federation).
Physical Description:
xviii, 267 pages ; 24 cm
Place of Publication:
Chicago : Triumph Books, [2026]
Summary:
"An eye-opening account of how Russia's leaders have used sports as a political tool to solidify their global power. 'Victories in sports can unite the nation more than a hundred political slogans.' This was the pep talk Russian athletes heard in 2000 from their new president, Vladimir Putin. And so, for more than two decades, Putin has used sports like his Soviet predecessors to stoke nationalism at home, boost prestige abroad, and cement his position as leader. The Moscow Playbook: How Russia Used, Abused, and Transformed Sports in the Hunt for Power is the first book to fully examine the intersection of Russian sports and geopolitical power, from the dominant Soviet teams of past Olympics to recent doping scandals and international sanctions. With new research from Olympic archives, records of the Soviet bloc, and current Russian media, historian Bruce Berglund shows how Moscow's leaders have defies the rules of the game for decades as the world's governing bodies turned a blind eye. Featuring oligarchs, sportocrats, and famous athletes from Olga Korbut to Alex Ovechkin, this is a timely investigation into the gears of power, nationalism, and money that drive the Russian sports machine."--Front flap of jacket.
Contents:
Victory must be ours!
A champion for the motherland
Breaking the code
A new way to cheat
The Red Machine breaks down
Free agents
Sports wars start again
The oligarch's empire
National champions
Olympic dreams
The master sportswasher
Crashing to Earth
Putin's poodles
Kicking Russia out of the game.
ISBN:
9781637277485
1637277482
OCLC:
1553845188
Publisher Number:
90104425389
CIPO000310004

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