Sexual Diversity and the Sochi 2014 Olympics

Helen Jefferson Lenskyj was Professor of Sociology and Equity Studies in Education at the University of Toronto, Canada from 1986 until her retirement in 2007. She has been involved in a wide range of community activist groups since the 1970s. Her most recent publications include The Palgrave Handbook of Olympic Studies (co-edited with S. Wagg) and Gender Politics and the Olympic Industry.

"Once again, Helen Lenskyj exposes the seamy side of the IOC and their friends the Games promoters and their preference for caviar and comforts over Human Rights, freedom of sexual orientation, and freedom of expression. She spotlights the hypocrisies and abuses that marred the Beijing Olympics and will blight Putin's Sochi showcase of 'traditional' Russian values." - Andrew Jennings, investigative journalist "In Sexual Diversity and the Sochi 2014 Olympics, Professor Helen Lenskyj rightly condemns the IOC for ignoring Russia's anti-gay legislation. The IOC's silence, Lenskyj laments, belies its claim of moral leadership and reaffirms its tradition of side stepping issues of social justice. Another sharp critique from this astute observer of the Olympic movement." - Professor Douglas Booth, Dean of School of Physical Education, Sport & Exercise Sciences, University of Otago, New Zealand "Helen Lenskyj once again disrupts the hegemonic belief that the Olympic Games is 'a-political,' revealing instead how the IOC converges with nationalist politics and commercial interests to create a near-religious aura of celebration. In this book, Lenskyj focuses her critical lens on Russia, illuminating the local and transnational dynamics of sex, power, and politics in Russia and in global sport." - Professor Michael A. Messner, University of Southern California, USA "Lenskyj never shies from controversy. Her latest book, Sexual Diversity and the Sochi 2014 Olympics: No More Rainbows delves deeper than any mainstream media piece on LGBT athletes and Russia's human rights abuses, examining Russia's 2013 anti-gay laws and their implications for the Sochi 2014 Olympics. Her work continues to be a source of both reference and inspiration" - SwimNews, USA

• 1. Introduction and Background  2. Russia: Sex, Demographics and LGBT Activism  3. Sex, Gender, Sport, Politics: Russia and the West  4. Nationalism, Boycotts and the Olympic Industry  5. Conclusion: The Olympic Industry and Putin's Russia