What began as a tribute to Olympic athletes with Indianapolis ties became an exhibit with a much wider scope about how Indianapolis has gained its reputation as a world class host for major sporting events. 

Staged in the historic area of the library (over 100 years old!), we divided the space into 3 sports-centric parts. First, we provided a 

brief history of numerous major sporting events held in the city, from 20th century swim clubs up through the 2012 Super Bowl. Then, we told some of the stories of the 1978 Pan Am Games. Finally, we chose to use the space nearest the Center for Black Literature and Culture to shine a spotlight on​ 5 specific Black Olympians from Indianapolis.

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The exhibit opened in mid 2021, to line up with the opening of the 2021 Tokyo Summer Olympics. The final product is more text-heavy than I would like, which I feel is a product of going in many directions, but overall, I appreciate the stories we told.

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Credits for Indianapolis: Home of Sports

Exhibit Development by Alexander Hampton and Stephen Lane

Exhibit Planning and Design by Alexander Hampton

Curated by Stephen Lane

Assistance with Object Selection from Henry Herbst

Research by Alexander Hampton and Stephen Lane

Exhibit Text by Alexander Hampton

Editing by Stephen Lane