The 1906 games were a ten-year celebration of the first Olympics. For years, they were included in the official records, but someone decided that since an Olympiad was a four-year period, they weren’t really Olympics (gee, doesn’t that reasoning disqualify the 1994 Winter Games?), so all the records have been removed.
The 1906 Intercalary (Intercalarated?) Games (I think that’s how they were referred to) were important to the Olympic movement according to some sources I read because the 1904 Games in St. Louis were pretty much a joke. (Think about: Olympics, St. Louis. What’s wrong with this picture? And my family comes from the Mound City.)
The 1906 Games were much better organized. The 1908 Games saw bitter squabbling between the British and Americans over judging. It wasn’t until 1912 that the IOC really restored order and did things like bring in neutral officials.
So far, according to sketchy newsreel accounts provided by NBC, the Sydney Games seem to be moving along smoothly with the exception of people who can’t measure the height of the vault.
I calculated it back, and in order to call this the 27th olympiad, you must count the “games” of 1916, 1940, and 1944 which did not take place. So why is it 27th not 24th?
Oh, I was just counting every 4 years. Judging by post above mine, there were some (3?) games in years I was not counting… never mind…
You answered your own question. They count the games of 1916, 1940, and 1944 even though they weren’t held. The “olympiad” is a four-year period, so this is the 27th olympiad regardless of whether games were held or not.
“Intercalated” is correct as well as “intercalary”. Literally it means to interpolate, but it also refers to adding an extra month, week, or day to a calendar. Lunar calendars use a lot of intercalated days and months.
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100-meter freestyle for sailors (1896 Olympics in Athens) Why just Sailors?
Not just any old sailors, just members of the Greek navy
No one mentioned the Diving/Skeet competition from 1904.
The more difficult the dive…the more points the shooter got for a hit.
I believe that in the ancient Olympics, donkey cart racing was added after the original repitoire had been established because it was popular in the Greek Sicilian colonies, but it was later dropped because it didn’t catch on elsewhere.
Any takers on how soon Ballroom Dancing will be dropped fromthe modern Olympics?
When I was a wee lad of about 9, I went to Blue Bell Day Camp, in Pennsylvania. We got to use a large trampoline. Our Instructor, Bob, claimed to have been an Olympic Trampoliner twice, and claimed to have medaled both times. Yeahright, we smirked.
Didn’t we all feel like Junior Assholes when Bob walked up to us and opened a VERY well worn cardboard box. Inside were two different looking, but both gorgeous, large jewelry boxes. Yeppers, this man took Bronze once, and Silver once in Trampoline. I have no idea what years. I’d guess, based on his age at the time, that it was the 1930’s or 1940’s.
Regardless, we all got VERY damned serious about it after that day.
CartooniverseThere is no ballroom dancing in the Olympics. Check the official schedule at http://olympics.com
It’s not there.
Why, because it’s not on the schedule. It’s not even listed under its preferred name “Dance Sport”.
All that has happened is that the IOC has recognized the federation that runs the sport. However, the IOC recognizes a lot of sports federations that aren’t on the Olympic schedule.
The ballroom dancing myth seems to be quite persistent.