All things Olympics and London 2012 (Full Version)

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warspite1 -> All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 5:14:52 AM)

With the Games just a week away I thought I would start a thread for any Olympic related stuff. I will also include any interesting bits and pieces I get from the Olympic book I bought earlier in the week (and mentioned in the book thread).

Three facts of the day:

1. The 1964 Tokyo Games were the first held in Asia. The Japanese chose to express the country's successful reconstruction after World War II by choosing Yoshinori Sakai as the final torchbearer. Sakai, quite remarkably, was born in Hiroshima on the very day the first nuclear bomb was dropped on that city [X(]

2. Italy (Rome) hosted the games for the first time in 1960. However, they were down to host the 1908 Games, but decided (understandably) to pull out after the eruption of Mt Vesuvius in 1906. London came to the rescue - which brings us to our third and final fact of the day.

3. Next week London becomes the first city to host the (official) Modern summer Games three times:

London - 3 (1908,1948 and 2012)
Paris - 2 (1900 & 1924)
Athens - 2 (1896 & 2004) (also hosted the 1906 "Intermediary" Games, but these are not official - more about this to follow).
Los Angeles - 2 (1932 & 1984)

Others:

St Louis (1904)
Stockholm (1912)
Antwerp (1920)
Amsterdam (1928)
Berlin (1936)
Helsinki (1952)
Melbourne (1956)
Rome (1960)
Tokyo (1964)
Mexico City (1968)
Munich (1972)
Montreal (1976)
Moscow (1980)
Seoul (1988)
Barcelona (1992)
Atlanta (1996)
Sydney (2000)
Beijing (2008)

Berlin was to have held the 1916 games. But the First World War put a stop to that.
Tokyo was to have held the 1940 games. After their invasion of China, the honour was given to Helsinki, but Hitler kind of put an end to that.
London was to have held the 1944 games.



Orm -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 9:12:56 AM)

quote:

3. Next week London becomes the first city to host the (official) Games three times:

I would claim that Olympia, Greece, have hosted more games than London. During 1200 years Olympia hosted the games at least 239 times. London has to host a few more games to reach the top spot. [;)]



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 9:18:54 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Orm

quote:

3. Next week London becomes the first city to host the (official) Games three times:

I would claim that Olympia, Greece, have hosted more games than London. During 1200 years Olympia hosted the games at least 239 times. London has to host a few more games to reach the top spot. [;)]
Warspite1

Okay Mr Picky [;)] - original comment duly amended [:)]



Neilster -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 9:51:16 AM)

When did Melbourne stop being in Asia?

Cheers, Neilster



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 9:56:54 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

When did Melbourne stop being in Asia?

Cheers, Neilster

Warspite1

I guess when Australia became a continent all by herself - which as far as my school learning is concerned - has been forever. Do you really count Oz as part of the Asian continent?



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 10:10:43 AM)

Another (albeit very tenuous) link to WWII..sort of...

Next Fact

4. When Greece were given the Games in 1896, it was decided Olympia was unsuitable as a venue and so the Games were staged in the capital Athens. The Olympic stadium was built thanks largely to funds provided by wealthy businessman Georgios Averoff. Averoff was quite a guy. He died a few years later but in his will left a large wodge of cash with the stipulation that it be spent on the Royal Hellenic Navy. That money was used to buy an Italian-built armoured cruiser named after Averoff. Georgios Averoff was the most powerful ship in the Balkans and helped Greece in her struggles with the Ottomans. She has her own counter in World In Flames; survived the Second World War and is currently a museum ship.



[image]local://upfiles/28156/7782EFA45253442998E9090803CBE600.jpg[/image]



Neilster -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 10:19:47 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: warspite1

quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

When did Melbourne stop being in Asia?

Cheers, Neilster

Warspite1

I guess when Australia became a continent all by herself - which as far as my school learning is concerned - has been forever. Do you really count Oz as part of the Asian continent?

There's no such thing as an Asian continent, and yes, Australia is generally considered part of Asia. You can just about see Indonesia from some bits. Admittedly though, in 1956 we were very British. It took a while for people to realise that the "Far East" was actually the "Near North" [:D]

Cheers, Neilster




warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 10:32:08 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster


quote:

ORIGINAL: warspite1

quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

When did Melbourne stop being in Asia?

Cheers, Neilster

Warspite1

I guess when Australia became a continent all by herself - which as far as my school learning is concerned - has been forever. Do you really count Oz as part of the Asian continent?

There's no such thing as an Asian continent, and yes, Australia is generally considered part of Asia. You can just about see Indonesia from some bits. Admittedly though, in 1956 we were very British. It took a while for people to realise that the "Far East" was actually the "Near North" [:D]

Cheers, Neilster


Warspite1

Wow [X(] That makes every geography book I've ever read wrong then.......not to mention the Olympic book I've just bought [;)]. I think I'll stick to the traditional seven continents.



Orm -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 12:18:16 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: warspite1

quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster


quote:

ORIGINAL: warspite1

quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

When did Melbourne stop being in Asia?

Cheers, Neilster

Warspite1

I guess when Australia became a continent all by herself - which as far as my school learning is concerned - has been forever. Do you really count Oz as part of the Asian continent?

There's no such thing as an Asian continent, and yes, Australia is generally considered part of Asia. You can just about see Indonesia from some bits. Admittedly though, in 1956 we were very British. It took a while for people to realise that the "Far East" was actually the "Near North" [:D]

Cheers, Neilster


Warspite1

Wow [X(] That makes every geography book I've ever read wrong then.......not to mention the Olympic book I've just bought [;)]. I think I'll stick to the traditional seven continents.

Even if you only recognize 4 continents Australia is considered a separate continent. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continent#Number_of_continents

Here is a picture with the traditional 7 continents used in most of Europe.

[image]local://upfiles/29130/4EEC413BD10C436097E00104554DC6D0.jpg[/image]



Neilster -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 12:43:28 PM)

Continent smontinent. The original statement was about Asia and Australia is in Asia.

Cheers, Neilster



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 12:53:10 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

Continent smontinent. The original statement was about Asia and Australia is in Asia.

Cheers, Neilster

Warspite1

[X(]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzlG28B-R8Y



Neilster -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 1:03:57 PM)

[:D]

I doesn't matter anyway.

Cheers, Neilster



Lieste -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 1:18:49 PM)

Australia is in (and the biggest part of) Australasia...
Deffo not part of 'Asia', being the landmass connected at the Urals to Europe.

Proximity of the boundaries isn't sufficient - Africa and Europe are "practically visible" at Gibraltar, and Africa and Asia are contiguous in the Middle East (with Europe and Asia contiguous also.. It would be ludicrous to claim from that that London was in Africa or Asia, or that Beijing was a European City.



Onime No Kyo -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 5:14:41 PM)

Since Warspite started this thread I know this link will be appreciated (too lazy to check if it was posted prior).

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/michelle-jenneke-australian-hurdler-dancing-sensation-042218109--oly.html



uncc -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 10:44:02 PM)

I like watching the opening ceremonies, especially lighting the cauldron. Think you Brits will be able to top Barcelona 1992? Though Sydney and Turin were both pretty cool too.

Here are the Cauldron lightings for the 1968-2010 Olympics (Winter and Summer games). No pressure guys....[;)]




warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 11:05:03 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: uncc

I like watching the opening ceremonies, especially lighting the cauldron. Think you Brits will be able to top Barcelona 1992?
Warspite1

I don't know - just hope its a good show. It was reported in the press this week that, for security reasons, they have cut the opening ceremony short at late notice - which is a little unfortunate to say the least for the guys and girls that have been practicising. Not sure who was affected and how much has been lost.

I am proud to say though that my eldest daughter is playing in the opening ceremony! [:)] I hope we get to see her - needless to say we will be setting to record!!



uncc -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 11:09:08 PM)

Congrats to your daughter (and her Mom and Dad of course)! make sure you post some pics!



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/21/2012 11:14:28 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: uncc

Congrats to your daughter (and her Mom and Dad of course)! make sure you post some pics!
Warspite1

Thank-you. We won't be there at the stadium to take pics though [:(]. The parents are invited to a "holding pen" in central London from where we will watch the OC on a big screen!!



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/22/2012 7:43:33 AM)

Oh, its Olympic o'clock so it must be Fact Time [:)]

5. Before 1908, competitors entered individually; not as part of a national team. A few team medals in the early years were won by competitors from a mix of countries.

6. Gold, Silver and Bronze medals for 1st, 2nd and 3rd, were introduced from the 1904 (St Louis) Games onwards.

7. The first Male Modern Olympic Champion was an American; James Connolly, who won the triple jump in 1896 (Athens).

8. There were no female competitors in Athens, and the first female champion was crowned four years later at the 1900 (Paris) Games; Charlotte Cooper of Great Britain in tennis.



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/22/2012 7:51:40 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

Since Warspite started this thread I know this link will be appreciated (too lazy to check if it was posted prior).

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/michelle-jenneke-australian-hurdler-dancing-sensation-042218109--oly.html

Warspite1

Yes it has - see the Australian Beauties thread.



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/22/2012 11:25:09 AM)

Next Fact:

9. How about this for a disqualifiction?

In the 1948 (London) Games, the Swedes won the team equestrian event. Sadly they had to hand the medals back when a protest proved successful.

At that time, Olympic rules stated that a rider had to be not only a member of the military - but a commissioned officer too (no riff-raff here [;)]).

This rule must have been over-looked by the Swedes as one of their team, a Gehnall Persson, was a mere sergeant (what a peasant!) and a member of the French team clocked this from the cap worn by the soldier. Rules are rules I guess and the French team were the beneficiaries of the disqualification, taking the Gold instead.

Persson had the last laugh though - he was part of the team that won Gold in both 1952 and 1956. Whether he ever got promotion or not I don't know - the rules were changed anyway in time for 1952 (Helsinki).




warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/22/2012 7:22:05 PM)

Went to see the Olympic flame being carried through the streets today - nice to see this event has generally been well supported [:)]



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/23/2012 9:02:19 AM)

Next Facts:

10. Who has the most Olympic medals? The Ukrainian gymnast Larysa Latynina won no less than 18 at three games 1956 (Melbourne), 1960 (Rome) and 1964 (Tokyo).

11. For the men, The American swimmer Michael Phelps has just two less, and were won over just two games, 2004 (Athens) and 2008 (Beijing).

Amazingly, 14 of Phelps 16 medals were Gold (2 Bronze), while the Soviet gymnast's tally was 9 Gold, 5 Silver and 4 Bronze.



Chickenboy -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/23/2012 7:43:04 PM)

What's the betting world's over / under line on British medals in the games this year? Having 'home field advantage' is usually quite helpful for the hosting country.



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/23/2012 10:47:40 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

What's the betting world's over / under line on British medals in the games this year? Having 'home field advantage' is usually quite helpful for the hosting country.
Warspite1

I don't know about the betting, but we are targetting 4th place and 48 medals across 12 sports. In 2008 we got 47 medals in 11 sports, although a large chunk of these came in cycling and sailing. We won't get as many in those events this time around so there is quite a bit of pressure to reach that target. 4th place four years ago was a bit of a surprise so it will be tough to replicate.

Yes, home advantage is normally a help - although tell that to Canada in 1976 - but fingers crossed we give a good account of ourselves.



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/23/2012 11:01:16 PM)

Next Fact:

12. Although the 1956 Games were given to Melbourne (who just beat Buenos Aires to the honour), the Equestrian events were actually held in Sweden almost half a year before the Australians hosted the main event. The reason was that Australian quarantine laws were too strict to allow the horses in in good time to go through quarantine and then take part!!

The Swedes made good use of home advantage, topping the Equestrian medal table with 3 gold medals ahead of Germany 6 medals (2 gold) and Great Britain 3 medals (1). Italy also won 3 (2 silvers and a bronze) with Denmark winning 1 silver and Switzerland and Canada winning a bronze each.



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/23/2012 11:03:21 PM)

How are other nations shaping up? I've read that the US athletic team is possibly the weakest they have ever fielded? Is this true? Even if it is, everything is relative, and I suspect they will still take home a stack of medals in track and field.

What about others countries and other events?



radic202 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/24/2012 2:06:29 AM)

Just wanted to add that I was at the Opening Ceremonies in 1976 in Montreal Canada, I was just a tad under 13 years old and I remember it like it was yesterday. Biggest Thrill in my life at a National Sporting Event.

I still have some souvenirs from that day plus a complete Stamp Collection issues by Canada Post to honour the games and a complete Canadian Coin collection for those games.

And to top it off, I was there for one of the medal ceremonies when a Canadian won a medal in High Jumping (Greg Joy I think was his name), one of the very few medals we won at those games. We did get our revenge in Vancouver though!!



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/24/2012 6:58:38 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: radic202

And to top it off, I was there for one of the medal ceremonies when a Canadian won a medal in High Jumping (Greg Joy I think was his name), one of the very few medals we won at those games. We did get our revenge in Vancouver though!!
Warspite1

Indeed so radic202.

Fact 13.

1976 (Montreal) Games. The men's High Jump was won by Jacek Wszola of Poland who jumped two centimteres higher than the Canadian, Gregory Joy (who himself was two centimetres ahead of Dwight Stones of the US) who claimed third.



warspite1 -> RE: All things Olympics and London 2012 (7/24/2012 7:07:32 PM)

Here's a Fun Factoid for mccolleague Laura, aka Steiner, aka parusski:

Fact 14.

The winners of the men's coxless pairs in the 1948 (London) Games were Great Britain (one of only three Gold medals won by the home team that year). The British duo were Jack Wilson and one, William George Ranald Mundell Laurie. Who was "Ran" Laurie? No less than the father of that great actor Hugh "House" Laurie, a talented rower himself, who represented Cambridge in the 1980 University Boat Race.




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