World Olympic Day: Watch these immersive sports documentaries ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

From Indian archer Deepika Kumari’s rise to fame to Lance Armstrong’s controversial career and Michael Jordan’s up-and-down life, these aries and docuseries will give you an in-depth view of some of the most famous people in sports history

International Olympics Day is being celebrated today, building up excitement little before people around the world get glued to their screens when the 2020 Olympics takes place in Japan next month. This day was first celebrated in 1948 to commemorate the birth of the modern Olympic Games on June 23, 1894 in Paris. 

Indian sportspersons are preparing to compete and give their best in the competition. As the audience, it is important for us to cheer them on and help them vie at the highest levels in the sporting world. If you’re a sports enthusiast, these documentaries will help you dive deep into the lives of famous sportspersons and team, from India and the rest of the world. Though some of them aren’t players of Olympic sports, their influence on the world is far beyond the Games. 

Ladies First
Released in 2018, Ladies First is a 38-minute documentary, which travels the length and breadth of the life of Indian archer and three-time Olympian Deepika Kumari. From her poverty-stricken start to fighting back by believing in herself, it takes the viewer through it all. The documentary was shot over three years and takes the viewers to her hometown in Ranchi, the Tata Archery Academy in Delhi, and finally the 2016 Rio Olympics. It was directed by Uraaz Bahl and was screened at the Mallorca Film Festival in 2017, and won the London Independent Film Award. 

Watch on Netflix.  

All or Nothing: New Zealand All Blacks 
This intense 2018 documentary on Amazon Prime follows the lives of the New Zealand rugby team, which is said to be one of the most successful teams of all time. After the sport made its debut as the Rugby Sevens at the 2016 Rio Olympics, this will be the second time it is played there and all hopes lie on them again. The documentary will give viewers a chance to see the new All Blacks, who were on the cusp of change as the veterans retired. It enters the locker room, shows their time on the field, and even the relationship between the coach Steve Hansen and the players. It gets even better, as the documentary is narrated by Oscar-winning director Taika Waititi. 

Watch on Amazon Prime Video 

The Test: A New Era 
A favourite among many cricket fans, this documentary from 2020 is about the Australian cricket team, which is considered the most notorious team for their on-field antics. The eight-episode series follows the players for 18 months after the 2018 ‘Sandpapergate’ scandal. After the suspension of two of the most important names in the team like David Warner, Steve Smith, and Cameron Bancroft, the docuseries takes viewers inside the dressing room where the team deals with criticism and restructures under the leadership of newly-appointed coach Justin Langer and captain Tim Paine. From the annual test series held in Australia against India, starting in 2018 to the World Cup and the Ashes in 2019, it goes behind-the-scenes to show it all. 

Watch on Amazon Prime Video 

Senna
You don’t have to be a Formula One fan to know about the Brazilian great Ayrton Senna. He won three world championships in 1988, 1990 and 1991 before he died in an accident in 1994 during the San Marino Grand Prix at the age of 34. The BAFTA-winning documentary Senna (2010) directed by Asif Kapadia, focuses on the F1 driver’s career, which started with the 1984 Brazilian Grand Prix and traces it till his death, with the help of race and home footage, provided by the Senna family. From his rivalry with teammate Alain Prost to the politics and the struggles with FISA head Jean-Marie Balestre in the late 1980s, Senna is at the centre of it all before the tragic day in this documentary, which doesn’t have any commentary. 

Watch on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video 

Stop at Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story 
This 2017 documentary directed by Alex Holmes explores the story of American road racing cyclist Lance Armstrong, one of sporting history’s most controversial figures. Already considered a great after having won seven consecutive Tour De France titles from 1999 to 2005, he was stripped of them after a doping scandal came to light and he admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs. From surviving metastatic testicular cancer in the late 1900s to coming back and winning the titles, and the scandal making headlines, the documentary covers the highs and lows of the journey. There are two other documentaries about the cyclist – Road to Paris (2001) and Lance (2020). 

Watch on Amazon Prime Video 

Diego Maradona
For football fans around the world, Diego Maradona and Pele are two of the greatest players to ever exist. While opinions may differ as to who is the favourite, Diego Maradona’s infamous ‘the hand of God’ is etched in everyone’s memory along with the Argentine’s illustrious career. The 2019 documentary film directed by Asif Kapadia uses archival footage which depicts his career and transfer from FC Barcelona to SSC Napoli in 1984, which was followed by the two coveted Seria A titles and the 1989 UEFA Cup. It contains footage which was discovered in a trunk in his ex-wife Claudia's house in Buenos Aires. Unfortunately, the Argentine legend passed away in December 2020 but this documentary can surely be visited and revisited by fans to relive his legacy. 

Watch on Amazon Prime Video 

Icarus 
Winning the Academy Award for the Best Documentary Feature in 2017, Icarus is a film directed by Bryan Fogel about the state-sponsored Olympic doping program, which was run by Grigory Rodchenkov, the former head of Russia’s anti-doping laboratory. Fogel subsequently realises the danger to Rodchenkov’s life while filming it and brings him to the US for his safety. From revealing how the Russians have cheated in the Olympics for decades to how they ramped up these operations after the dismal performance in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, the documentary has it all and the best is saved for the last. 

Watch on Netflix

The Last Dance 
The Last Dance is one of the most immersive docuseries in recent times, as it traces the rise of American basketball legend Michael Jordan. From chronicling his college days and early career in the NBA to his relationship with teammates Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman and making the Olympic dream team, the 2020 documentary deep dives into the life of the basketball player. It also focuses on his amazing relationship with coach Phil Jackson and tumultuous one with Jerry Krause, the general manager of the team. The docuseries, which has unaired footage from the 1997-98 season, also goes off the court to focus on the effect his father’s untimely death had on him, a book that came out later, and his love for gambling.  

Watch on Netflix 

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