Over the next few weeks we’ll be hearing a great deal about fastest times, longest jumps, smashed world records. All new, all very exciting, but we shouldn’t turn our backs on the history of the games, which throws up some extraordinary trivia.
At the first modern games in Athens in 1896, no women competed. Baron de Coubertin, founder of the
modern Olympics felt that their inclusion would be "impractical,
uninteresting, unaesthetic, and incorrect."!
Altogether all there were 245
male competitors in Athens. Many individual countries now field a far greater
number than this.
Women first got their chance at
the 1900 Paris Games. They competed in lawn tennis, golf and croquet. It is
commonly stated that first woman to win an Olympic event was England's
Charlotte Cooper, with the tennis singles title. However the sailor Hélène de
Pourtalès sneaked in ahead of her. She was part of a mixed Swiss team that won
a sailing event.
Women's athletics and gymnastics
debuted at the 1928 Olympics and over time there have been fewer and fewer “men
only” sports. The final Rubicon will be crossed in 2012 with the inclusion of women's
boxing.
More and more sports have joined
the Olympic roster, but others have fallen by the wayside. These include croquet, cricket, Jeu de Paume, pelota, polo, roque
(no, I don’t know either), rackets, tug-of-war, lacrosse and motor boating.
Pigeon shooting
was one of the sports on the 1900 Paris programme. Fortunately this was the
only time that animals have been deliberately killed at the games. (Although
some might suggest that this particular event should have been reintroduced this
year in Trafalgar Square...)
Finally, some
Olympic firsts.
The FIRST recorded
Olympic champion was a naked runner, Coroebus, a cook from Elis. He won the
only event – a 192 metre run called the stade.
The FIRST
ever event of the modern Olympic Games was heat one of the 100 metre sprint,
held on 6 April 1896.
The FIRST
Olympic champion of the modern era was James Brendan Connolly of the United States.
He won the triple jump.
The FIRST
brothers to win Olympic gold medals were Americans John and Sumner Paine. They
came first in the military pistol and free pistol shooting events in 1896.
The FIRST
team sport added to the Olympics was football in 1900.
The FIRST
black athlete at the Olympics was Constantin Henriquez de Zubiera, competing
for France in 1900.
The FIRST
black gold medallist was African-American John Taylor, who was a member of the 1908
US relay team.
Answers to the Olympic Blog “Do you know?”
1.b, 2.a, 3.a, 4.c, 5.b, 6.d, 7.a, 8.b
How
good is your knowledge on the Olympics. Try the Olympic quiz on
http://www.walkingthecity.co.uk/City_Walks_London/file/facts.php
http://www.walkingthecity.co.uk/City_Walks_London/file/facts.php