On your marks … the Olympics are on and here’s your chance to train your brain with the huge range of information available from Christchurch City Librarian about the 29th Olympic Games.

Get set … with our Olympics backgrounder - information on the Olympics old and new and everything from TV coverage to the Olympic Museum.

GO! … Visit the Official website of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games includes sections for Olympic education, Olympic culture and Olympic spirit.

And in the Olympic spirit, we have put together a page of Cantabrians who have competed at the Olympic Games. Email us if you can help complete the list.

China - find out more about the host country

One of the oldest and most fascinating cultures and civilisations, China is a fascinating country. Find out more with library resources about ancient China, its arts and culture, architecture, religion and language. Search CINCH and localeye to find out more about your local Chinese community.

Joe Bennett: Where Underpants come from

Lyttelton writer Joe Bennett’s lastest book is an unlikely link to the Olympic story, but even athletes wear underpants sometimes, so we felt justified including it. Where underpants come from is the story of Bennett’s journey to source the origin of a five-pack of man-skin style gruds and a pair of “Authentics” - for “special occasions” - from The Warehouse at Christchurch's Eastgate Mall back to their origin, the economic powerhouse of China. The book, despite its amusing tales of chopstick ping pong with slippery spherical objects, reveals not only amazing details of gargantuan industrial power and unparalleled human migration, but also the loss of prejudice Bennett experiences.

Beijing - behind the controversies

Olympic Games host countries often face scrutiny of international media and become a focus for protestors and interest groups. The decision to award Beijing the 2008 Summer has been no exception. Our Beijing Controversies page will help you explore some of the more serious issues surrounding the Games.

The China and Tibet issue is one that has featured regularly in the news. We encourage you to find out more and make up your own mind. The two articles below are part of the Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center - a premium site which you can access with your library card and PIN.

• Tenzin Gyatso: "The International Community Should Intervene on Behalf of Tibet." Opposing Viewpoints: Human Rights. Ed. Mary E. Williams. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1998. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Christchurch City Libraries. 15 July 2008; and

• Chinese Embassy in the United States: "China Safeguards Religious Freedom." Opposing Viewpoints: China. Ed. David M. Haugen. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Christchurch City Libraries. 15 July 2008.

World Culture and the Olympic Games

An insightful article by John J. MacAloon examines the Olympic philosophy and intercultural communication in view of large corporate sponsorships and mass media coverage, particularly in relation to the Atlanta and Athens Olympics. Access with your library card and PIN. From Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 21 2008, Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition.