1. Prologue: Concerns, Confidence, Caveats J.A. Mangan Future Aspirations 2. Olympic Challenges Helmut Digel 3. How Green Will My (Lea) Valley Be? Olympic Aspirations: Rhetoric or Reality Peter Horton and Dwight H. Zakus 4. Manly Displays: Exhibitions and the Revival of the Olympic Games Lia Paradis 5. Planning and Reconversion of Olympic Heritages: The Montreal Olympic Stadium Romain Roult and Sylvain Lefebvre 6. Mexico City 1968: Oscillating Aspirations Keith Brewster 7. Post-Sydney 2000 Australia: A Potential Clash of Aspirations Between Recreational and Elite Sport Kristine Toohey 8. Athens' Post-Olympic Aspirations and the Extent of their Realization Penelope Kissoudi Recent Past Aspirations 9. The Beijing Games, National Identity and Modernization in China Dong Jinxia 10. Olympic Aspirations: Reconstructed Images, National Identity and International Integration Ying Yu 11. Beijing 2008: Volunteerism in Chinese Culture and its Olympic Interpretation and Influence Juan Zhuang 12. The Effect of Beijing 2008 on China's Image in the United States: A Study of US Media and Polls Nafees A. Syed 13. The 'Black Auxiliaries' in American Memories: Sport, Race and Politics in the Construction of Modern Legacies John Gleaves and Mark Dyreson 14. Outsiders: Muslim Women and Olympic Games - Barriers and Opportunities Gertrud Pfister Coming Aspirations 15. 'Team GB' and London 2012: The Paradox of National and Global Identities Iain MacRury and Gavin Poynter Mega-Event Global Aspirations 16. Olympiads as Mega-events and the Pace of Globalization: Beijing 2008 in Context Paul Close 17. The Geopolitics of Global Aspiration: Sport Mega-events and Emerging Powers Scarlett Cornelissen 18. Perspectives of Sport in a Global World Helmut Digel 19. Epilogue: Showcases for Global Aspirations: Meditations on the Histories of Olympic Games and World's Fairs Mark Dyreson.