Olympic Games

OLYMPIC GAMES (see ATHLETIC SPORTS, STADIUM, and GAMES, CLASSICAL). The modern revival of the Olympic Games is due to a Frenchman, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who on Jan. 15, 1894, addressed a circular to all the governing bodies of sport in which he pointed out the educational value of sport to modern peoples, if practised in accordance with the ancient Greek ideals.

The Modern Revivals.

The instauration of the Olympic Games took place at Athens in 1896, on the site where the ancient festivals had concluded 1,500 years before. Subsequent celebra tions were held at Paris (1900), St. Louis, U.S.A. (1904), Lon don (1908), Stockholm (1912), Antwerp (1920), Paris (1924), Amsterdam (1928), Los Angeles (1932) and Berlin (1936). The first three celebrations were largely experimental. At the IVth Games the programme was overloaded, but since has become standardized. The Games of the Vth Olympiad should have been held at Berlin in 1916 but were not celebrated.

Organization.

Of the International Olympic committee Baron Pierre de Coubertin was for many years president, being succeeded by Count Baillet-Latour. It is the central body by which the general policy of the Olympic movement is controlled.

Besides this central committee, on which all nations are repre sented, each nation has its own Olympic association and its own Olympic council. The British Olympic council, which may be taken as typical of most of the rest, has one or more members of every association governing the sports in which Great Britain is represented at the games, and a few other co-opted members chosen for their special knowledge or experience in organization.

As regards the American organization, its most important aspect is its continuing character as exemplified in the structure of the American Olympic Association. The American Olympic Com mittee is created by the American Olympic Association in the second year before each meeting. Of the committee, the initial members are the President of the United States as honorary presi dent ; five honorary vice-presidents, the Secretaries of State, of War and of the Navy, the Ambassador or Minister of the United States to the country in which the Games are to be held, the Ambassador or representative of such country to the United States; the honorary and regular officers of the Association and the officers of former American Olympic committees. The Execu

tive Committee of the Association adds to the committee from representatives of members of the Association and the public at large. The committee chooses its own active officers, who carry out the details of organization.

Records.

Records obtained at the Olympic Games from 1896 to 1936 in the various athletic events are shown in Table I. and for purposes of comparison the corresponding world records are shown in Table II.

It should be noted that Ioo metres= 109.3 yards; 200 metres= 218.7 yards; 400 metres = 2.6 yards less than a quarter of a mile; 1,50o metres =119.6 yards less than a mile. II() metres (hurdles) is nearly I I inches over 120 yards. The marathon race is 42.263 kilometres or 26 miles 385 yards.

The events in Tables I. and II. all occur in track and field ath letics, which is only one division of the games. In 1908 the United Kingdom, with 839 entries, scored 57 first places and five more went to the Dominions; the United States with 160 entries scored 22 first places. The remaining 22 first places went to the 1,529 entries from all other nations. In 1912 the United Kingdom, with 526 entries, scored ten first places and eight more went to the Dominions; the United States with 572 entries scored 24 first places; the remaining 36 first places went to the 3,651 entries from other nations. The post-War celebrations have been note worthy, first, for the growth of amity and the decrease of "in cidents," and, secondly, for the steady improvement in the stand ard of performance and consequent breaking of records.

In 1920 the United States won 22 first places; Great Britain took 8; the Dominions 4 ; Belgium, the organizing country, 1; and the remaining 65 first places were divided among all the other nations. In 1924, with 424 entries, the United States won 27 first places; Great Britain, with 443 entries, won 6; and the Dominions 4; France, the organizing country, won 4. The remaining 69 first places (without counting winter sports, in which Norway won easily with Finland second) were divided among all the other nations. These figures are not taken from victories in the athletic sections only, but from the full programme.