Formed in the summer of 2000, the initial Olympic Lifts line up consisted of simply a DJ (Payback) and two MCs (Boma and Pylon). The group decided immediately to move into the area of beats based music, music they admired but had little experience in creating- this forced them to make it up as they went along, an approach they were happy with as it inevitably led to a style all their own. Over the course of a year the songs were created that would eventually become the debut album. Guitarist (Bigshow) and bassist (Example) joined completing the line up and developing the olympic lifts style even further as well as adding additional muscle to a live show fast gaining a healthy reputation.

Olympic Lifts secured their deal with Bungalow Records in March of 2001 and began to record the album in their own studio followed by sessions in Dublin, Berlin and Belfast. The end results were then mastered by the legendary Howie Weinberg at Masterdisc, NYC. During the album's progress the band took time out to play increasingly explosive live shows to the delight of unprepared audiences across the UK and Europe.

OL have also played support to an astonishing list of acts and made a lot of friends along the way: Kool Herc (inventor of HipHop), Ugly Duckling (entire European tour), Lo-fidelity Allstars (UK tour), Midfield General (Skint Records), Bently Rhythm Ace (also Skint Records), Supergrass, So Solid Crew ,Andrew Weatherall, David Holmes, Royksopp, Deadly Avenger, Ladytron, Embrace, Mekon, and Attica Blues.

First signs of what to expect from the album was their debut single 'New Wrecking Crew'. The UK release sold out in its first week and in Japan it sold 500 copies without any publicity whatsoever. This was followed with the equally successful 'International Hex' featuring a sample from 2001 a Space Odyssey. The flipside featured 'Evil Rock Ears' as remixed by Glaswegian Uber indie label Chemical Underground's Cha Cha Cohen. This single received widespread airplay on national radio stations across Europe. The final single before the release of the album was the incredibly catchy 'Horizontally Vertical' the first to get the real remix treatment. First up for a reworking was new friends Ugly Duckling (XL) adding De La Soul beats and summer hooks. Next was Only Child whose stripped down approach gained major attention on dancefloors all over the UK. Finally Jupiter Ace (of ECHO records) gave it an 80s Europop spin. The LP/CD “Do one” has garnered rave reviews in the UK and Europe, and with a Japanese license through SYFT records, OL expect to spend the rest of 2002 playing shows around the world, whilst writing the new album, release date late 2003.