Wilfrid Laurier University

Stephen Wenn

Dr. Stephen Wenn

Professor, Kinesiology & Physical Education, KPE Undergraduate Academic Advisor

Contact Information

Email: swenn@wlu.ca
Phone: 519-884-0710 ext.4160
Fax: 519-747-4594 (5050)
Office Location: Bricker Academic Building, BA508
Office Hours: Mondays 1:00-3:00pm Wednesdays 1:30-3:30 pm or by appointment

Languages Spoken

English

Academic Background

BA, MA (Western), PhD (Penn State)

Biography

The major focus of my research involves examining the nexus of sport and commerce, more specifically the evolution of the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) relationship with international television networks. In March 2002, Robert Barney (lead author, University of Western Ontario), Scott Martyn (University of Windsor) and I published a book entitled, Selling the Five Rings: The IOC and the Rise of Olympic Commercialism (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2002, rev. ed., 2004). I am lead author with these same colleagues on a second collaborative book published in December 2011 by Syracuse University Press entitled, Tarnished Rings: The International Olympic Committee and the Salt Lake City Bid Scandal. I completed a two-year term as President of the North American Society for Sport History (2007-2009), and currently serve on the editorial boards of the Journal of Sport History and the International Journal of the History of Sport. And, while I have a passion for research, there's no place I'd rather be than in the classroom. I appreciate the opportunity for interaction with the students in Laurier's Kinesiology and Physical Education program, and I enjoy facilitating opportunities for them to hone their research and writing skills, while providing lectures that help them to place sport and physical activity in historical context. Personal interests and/or hobbies include golf, recreational ice hockey, politics, reading almost anything dealing with the history of World War II, coaching youth sport teams, and most importantly, acting as the "Shadow GM" of the Toronto Maple Leafs. My wife Martha, son Timothy, daughter Lily, and I live in Baden.

Publications

Stephen R. Wenn, "Rivals and Revolutionaries: Avery Brundage, The Marquess of Exeter and Olympic Television Revenue, " Sport in History (online - DOI: 10.1080/17460263.2012.681355), May 2012.

Stephen Wenn, Robert Barney, and Scott Martyn, Tarnished Rings: The International Olympic Committee and the Salt Lake City Bid Scandal ( Syracuse, NY, Syracuse University Press, 2011).

Stephen Wenn and Tim Elcombe, "A Path to Peace: Thoughts on Olympic Revenue and the IOC/USOC Divide," The SAIS Review of International Affairs XXXI (Winter-Spring, 2011): 117-133.

Stephen R. Wenn, "IOC/USOC Relations and the 2009 IOC Session in Copenhagen," in Robert K. Barney, Janice Forsyth, and Michael Heine, eds., Rethinking Matters Olympic: Investigations into the Socio-Cultural Study of the Modern Olympic Movement: Proceedings of the 10th International Symposium for Olympic Research (London, Ontario: International Centre for Olympic Studies, 2010), pp. 60-75.

Robert K. Barney, Stephen R. Wenn, and Scott G. Martyn, “Family Feud: IOC/USOC Relations and Olympic Revenue,” in Robert K. Barney, ed., Rethinking the Olympics: Cultural Histories of the Modern Games (Morgantown, WVa: Fitness Information Technology, 2010), pp. 242-283 [reprint].

Scott G. Martyn and Stephen R. Wenn, “A Prelude to Samaranch: Lord Killanin’s Path to Olympic
Commercialism,” Journal of Olympic History [Special Issue], (Olympic Congress Copenhagen 2009), pp. 200-208 [reprint].

Scott G. Martyn and Stephen R. Wenn, "A Prelude to Samaranch: Lord Killanin's Path to Olympic Commercialism," Journal of Olympic History 16 (July, 2008): 40-48.

Gerald P. Schaus and Stephen R. Wenn, eds., Onward to the Olympics (Waterloo, Ont.: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2007).

Robert K. Barney, Stephen R. Wenn, and Scott G. Martyn, Selling the Five Rings: The IOC and the Rise of Olympic Commercialism [Revised Edition] (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2004).

Presentations

Stephen R. Wenn, "Reforging the Rings: Jacques Rogge's Legacy and Juan Antonio Samaranch's Shadow," North American Society for Sport History Conference, San Francisco, CA, June 2012.

Stephen R. Wenn, "Rivals and Revolutionaries: Avery Brundage, David Cecil - The Marquess of Exeter, and Olympic Television Money," North American Society for Sport History Conference, University of Texas, May 2011.

Stephen R. Wenn, "IOC/USOC Relations and the 2009 IOC Session in Copenhagen," 10th International Symposium for Olympic Research, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, October 2010.

Stephen R. Wenn, "Down Goes Chicago 2016! IOC/USOC Relations and the Copenhagen Collapse," North American Society for Sport History Conference, Orlando, Florida, May/June 2010.

Additional Information

Courses Taught 2011/2012

KP341 - History of Physical Activity in Canada

KP441 - The Modern Olympics

Areas of Expertise

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