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If you just can’t get enough of this year’s coverage of the Olympic Games, take a step back in time and revisit some of the greatest moments in Olympic history at the Neil Leifer Exhibit. Possibly one of the greatest sports photographers in history, Neil Leifer has dedicated his life to capturing some of the greatest moments in sports history through the art of photojournalism. At the age of only 15, Leifer sent images to Sports Illustrated capturing highlights of the famous 1958 Colts vs. Giants game, which was the first game in NFL history to go into overtime. Even though he had not even finished grade school, the staff at Sports Illustrated took him under their wing and helped shape him into the world-renowned photographer that he is today. Now on display at Caesars Palace, visitors can see a lifetime of Neil Leifer’s work on display in a permanent art gallery in the Augustus Tower of the casino. Highlighting some of his greatest photos of Olympic stars throughout history, the exhibit is set up to honor the current athletes competing in this year’s Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
At the gallery, guests will be able to view photographs from Leifer’s 18-month journey across the globe that highlights Olympic athletes on their journey to the 1984 Olympic Games. Amazing photographs on display include gymnast Koji Gushiken balancing on rings at Mount Fuji, the Black Power Salute with Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 games, and the famous Dream Team photo with U.S. basketball stars Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson in the 1992 Olympic games.
Neil Leifer went on to shoot over 150 covers for Sports Illustrated magazine before moving on to pursue a career at Time. Leifer was known for his unconventional methods of capturing photographs. During the heavyweight championship of 1966, Leifer placed a camera in the rafters of the Houston Astrodome in order to capture the famous shot of Muhammad Ali standing over Cleveland Williams after knocking him out. On display at the gallery, guests will also view photos of the Secretariat winning the Kentucky Derby, photos of presidents, and many more memorable moments that were made famous by the spectacular photographs that captured them forever. The exhibit is open daily from 9 am - 9 pm in the Augustus Tower at Caesars Palace.
When you are finished at the exhibit, step over to the famous sportsbook at Caesars Palace to watch the games on the big screens. Many people make the mistake of going to Las Vegas during the Olympic Games with the intention of betting on their favorite team or athlete. However, betting on the Olympics is actually illegal in Las Vegas. The reason for this is not because everyone will be betting on the same team or that there is some kind of government regulation in place. The reason that Las Vegas doesn’t allow sports betting on the Olympics is simply because it is too hard for their analysts to figure out the betting lines. Things like injuries, specific statistics, and intangibles are just too hard to obtain for each individual in the Olympics. There are too many athletes from too many countries, making it almost impossible to determine the lines for each sport. This means that allowing bets on the Olympic Games would be a nightmare for Las Vegas casinos. Although betting on the Olympic Games is illegal in Las Vegas, there will still be plenty of spectators cheering on their favorite USA athletes while watching from the sportsbook. So, don’t feel like you have to go to a sports bar to watch the games. In fact casinos actually encourage spectators to come out to the sports books and watch the games even though betting is not allowed.
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