Top 10 Movies About Olympic Games

'Cool Runnings' (1993)

John Candy coaches the Jamaican bobsled team to immortality — if not a gold medal — at the 1988 Calgary Olympics. Amazingly, it’s based on a true story. On DVD and streaming services.

'Eddie the Eagle' (2016)

Those Calgary Olympics were certainly fertile ground for true-life underdog stories: Taron Egerton stars as Michael "Eddy" Edwards, the nearsighted Englishman who, despite utter inexperience, became an Olympic ski jumping hero. On DVD and streaming.

‘Olympia: Festival of the Nations’ (1938)

Hitler appointed director Leni Riefenstahl to document the expected Aryan triumphs of his Berlin Olympics. She delivered — but lavished her skills most lovingly on documenting the embarrassing triumph of African American athlete Jesse Owens. On DVD and streaming.

‘Chariots of Fire’ (1981)

Eric Liddell (Ian Charleston) runs like the wind — and as the child of missionaries, he does it for “the glory of God.” So when the 1924 Olympic races are scheduled for a Sunday, the Christian Sabbath, he must make a choice. Director Hugh Hudson’s inspiring drama won four Oscars, including Best Picture. On DVD and streaming.

‘Miracle’ (2004)

It’s just possible that the current generation won’t automatically know how this stirring story of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team ends — but it’s chill-inducing even for those who can see the puck coming from a mile away. Coach Kurt Russell reminds us what it’s like to believe in miracles. On DVD and streaming.

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‘Downhill Racer’ (1969)

Robert Redford is a full-of-himself ultracompetitor who alienates his team and coaches, but doggone it, the guy can sure ski. On DVD and streaming.

‘Jim Thorpe – All-American’ (1951)

Casablanca director Michel Curtiz directs Burt Lancaster in this biography of Thorpe, the American Indian athlete who was a sensation at the 1912 Olympics but was stripped of his medals when detractors revealed he’d been paid about $2 a game to play semipro baseball. On DVD and streaming.

‘Personal Best’ (1982)

Hands-down the sexiest Olympics movie ever: Mariel Hemingway stars as an Olympic runner who falls in love with an older woman, played by real-life track champion Patrice Donnelly. On DVD and streaming.

‘Race’ (2016)

Stephan James is sensational as Olympic champ Jesse Owens, who showed Hitler who’s boss at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. On DVD and streaming.

‘Walk, Don’t Run’ (1966)

Set in Tokyo during the 1964 Olympics, Cary Grant stars as a businessman forced to share an apartment with a woman (Samantha Eggar) and an Olympic runner (Jim Hutton). Grant, in his last movie, is too old to get the girl (by Hollywood standards), but he plays matchmaker for the two young ones. On DVD and streaming.

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