#1908 Olympic Games

[thepastisalreadywritten]

FUN FACT:

The gold medals at the 1904, 1908, and 1912 Olympic Games were all made of solid gold.

Today, gold medals aren't actual gold.

The International Olympic Committee requires that gold medals must be made of at least 92.5% silver but also have about six grams of gold. 🥇

[steampunktendencies]

The Olympic Games in 1908.

[vintage-every-day]

The Olympic Games in 1908.

[m1male2]

The Olympic Games held in London in 1908, known as the Games of the IV Olympiad, were held between April 27 and October 31.

Although the venue chosen by the Olympic Committee had been Rome, the eruption of Mount Vesuvius on April 7, 1907, forced the Italian government to devote all its efforts to the reconstruction of the city of Naples, which had been completely devastated.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Heooooooo

i was wondering if you'd do a post on writing figure skating characters. if you'd have any referall sites it would be wildly helpful.

also its the same person who's asked for the pop music references, i have now posted one of my first fics because of you. so happy i found your blog, it's been a life saver.

Thankuuuuuu

Writing Notes: Figure Skating

Figure Skating - sport in which ice skaters, singly or in pairs, perform freestyle movements of jumps, spins, lifts, and footwork in a graceful manner.

Derives its name from the patterns (or figures) skaters make on the ice, an element that was a major part of the sport until 1990.

There are various kinds of figure skating, including freestyle, pairs, ice dance, and synchronized team skating.

The style of competition, as well as the moves and techniques of the skaters, varies for each category of skating.

One of the most popular sports of the Winter Olympics.

Olympic figure skaters make it look easy. But their grace and power comes from years of training away from the cameras and crowds — practice that strengthens not only their bodies, but their minds.

Some Figure Skating Vocabulary

Axel: A forward-facing jump invented by Norwegian Axel Paulson in 1882. The Axel is the only jump in which skaters take off from a forward outside edge. The skater rotates one-and-a-half times in the air – two-and-a-half times for a double, and so on – before landing on the back outside edge of the opposite foot from which they took off.

Camel Spin: The skater spins on one leg with the free leg extended in the air, parallel to the ice.

Catch-Foot: A spin or spiral where the free leg is held by one or both of the skater's hands; the most famous position is the Beillmann spin.

Death Spiral: A pair spin in which the man stands as the anchor in a pivot position while holding his partner's hand as she spins, body extended low and parallel to the ice, around him.

Loop: A jump in which skaters take off of a back outside edge and land on the same edge of the same foot.

Mirror Skating: Opposite movements performed by pair skaters in close proximity to one another.

Revolution: The number of turns in a figure skating jump. Quadruple jumps have four revolutions, triple jumps have three, and so on.

Shadow Skating: Identical movements performed by pairs skaters in close proximity to one another.

Sit Spin: A spin performed in a sitting position. Low to the ice, the skater spins with one leg bent and the other leg extended beside it.

Twizzle: A dance turn in which one or more complete rotations are made very quickly on one foot, in nearly the same spot.

A BRIEF HISTORY. Humans have been skating for a very long time — primitive bone skates have been found dating back to 3000 BC.

Modern steel skates with edges are thought to have originated with the Dutch, who used them to traverse their frozen waterways in winter, and skating associations later sprung up in England and Scotland.

Other communal ice skating events like hockey and speed skating emerged here.

The emergence of modern figure skating as a sport is credited to Jackson Haines.

He is considered the father of modern figure skating as he was the first to incorporate ballet moves and spins in his skating in the 1860s.

Although stiffer forms of skating dominated in his lifetime, his students would go on to found the International Skating Union, which codified figure skating as a sport and is currently the governing body for all skating sports.

The first European Figure Skating Competition was held in 1891, the first World in 1896, and the sport made its Olympic debut in 1908 as the Games' first winter sport. The sport has evolved considerably since then.

Figure Skating in Fiction

In fiction, figure skating is stereotyped as Always Camp (i.e., certain professions almost systematically attract people with camp sensibilities and Drama Queens).

Attention will often be drawn to the sparkly costumes, often to Tutu Fancy levels.

Similar to ballet, its athletes are often stereotyped as dainty or feminine, although like real ballet, there is an incredible amount of athleticism that goes into being a figure skater.

Examples

I, Tonya: A 2017 biopic about Tonya Harding and a certain infamous incident at the 1994 Olympics.

She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown: A 1980 Peanuts animated special about Peppermint Patty preparing for an upcoming skating competition.

Skating Shoes: A 1951 children's novel about a young girl who gets into figure skating to recuperate.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ⚜ More: References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

This makes me so happy to hear, thanks so much for this update (would love to read if it's okay with you)! Hope these notes help as well. You can find more terminologies and examples in the sites linked above. Choose which ones are suitable for your specific story, and always keep in mind your target audience/readers when using the more technical terms.

[queenmelancholy]

Saw a reel of tug of war in the 1908 London Olympic Games, went 👀 and immediately thought of Downton.

Did a bit of research:

Considering how well Team GB did in this sport, it could be quite respected among the Brits around that time. Then, was there more serious contempt for Thomas in Jimmy’s questioning about whether he could manage this rather formal and popular sport? Like, there’s difference in asking someone who attempted breakdancing if they found it rough in the 1970s vs today. This certainly adds another layer to Jimmy’s passive-aggressive behaviour.

Credits to papa-evershed

Meanwhile, I can only imagine a “Downton Club” standing on the podium. What a pity they cancelled it after 1920. We should really bring it back.

[barbucomedie]

1908 Pattern Cavalry Sword of the 10th (Prince of Wales's Own) Royal Hussars from the British Empire dated to 1914 on display at Horsepower, The Museum Of The King's Royal Hussars in Winchester, England

Introduced in 1908 this pattern of cavalry sowrd was considered the most effective cavalry sword ever made, albeit during a time when swords had been becoming more obsolete in war. It was designed as a thrusting weapon, using the point of the sword to kill rather than the edge. During the First World War most soldiers painted the scabbard as a form of camoflage. Officers used a similar, more ornate sword, known as the 1912 Pattern Cavalry Sword.

This particular sword was used by Major Crichton of the 10th Hussars until he was wounded in 1915 on the Western Front. He opted to use a Troopers sword rather than an officers one, although the grip has been modified. Major Crichton was an Olympic Gold medalist for the mixed 6 metres sailing in the 1908 games.

Photographs taken by myself 2023

[a-roguish-gambit]

How morph and Logan meet in you au a cabaret preformece perhaps?

Nah. They have done that before briefly, but Cabaret was kinda a low end form of performance at the time, and they were already working on Broadway by the time they met.

They actually first met at the 1904 st Louis world's Fair/US Olympic games when morph was 24, when they were visiting for a brief vacation. They ironically enough actually saw Logan performing at a wild West demonstration (Logan needed money where he could get it, and world's fairs not only paid big bucks in wages for the time but he also got tips) where he rode a live, angry bull rodeo style. They spent the afternoon together after Logan fell off the bull and had to fake a shoulder strain at least to seem normal, and morph decided to introduce them self as a bit of a hot and bothered fan. Morph figured out he was a mutant from the fact he wasn't even wincing or avoiding using his shoulder at all, and came out to him about their own powers. they bonded a bit, but had to part ways as neither of them were living in St. Louis permanently. Morph only had a week off after all.

After morph's vacation ended, they didn't see each other again for a while. Logan got recruited by charles, morph got busy landing their biggest role as captain hook in Peter Pan and was not even in the states for a bit. in 1908, when morph was stuck inbetween a rock and a hard place as a tabloid threatened to out them for homosexual behavior in exchange for dirt on their fellow stage actors, Logan seemed to pop back up "like a knight in shining armor" with Charles to recruit them for their help. And so they left Broadway and joined Charles' institute, soon drunkenly admitting their feelings for Logan one night, which to their pleasant surprise, were enthusiastically and drunkenly returned that evening...and throughout the night if you catch my drift. ;)

[worstjourney]

Fr Jeffrey John on Sportsmanship and Competition, Paris Olympics 2024

This sermon was broadcast on Radio 4's Sunday Worship from St George's Anglican Church in Paris on the opening weekend of the 2024 Olympics. I thought it worth saving because it speaks to the ethos of the time period in which the modern Olympic Games were born, and in which Our Guys were brought up.

Baron Pierre de Coubertin is generally acknowledged as the father of the modern Olympic Games. He was born in Paris in 1863, and convened the first International Olympic Congress at the Sorbonne in 1894. He was the energy behind the first games to be held in Paris, in 1900, and then again in Paris on a much larger scale in 1924. So it is wonderfully appropriate that, another a hundred years later, the games are in Paris again.

De Coubertin was an aristocrat, an educationist and an anglophile. He believed strongly in the ancient Greek philosophy of sport as building character and esprit de corps, and thought it was ideally exemplified in English public schools. He was a great friend and admirer of Thomas Arnold, and strove hard, though unsuccessfully, to introduce the same ethos into the French school system.

His real and enduring success was the Olympic games themselves, though clearly it was never going to be easy to achieve the kind of harmonious agreement and international co-operation that the games demand. Inevitably there were problems.

In the London Olympics of 1908, there was a particularly bitter dispute between the British and American delegations, with the Americans complaining that a British jury had unfairly disqualified some of their best athletes. The dispute escalated even to the White House and Downing Street.

In a special service for the Olympics held that year in St Paul’s Cathedral, the sermon was given by an American Bishop, Ethelbert Talbot,  who tried to calm the quarrel by reminding both sides that according to St Paul (in the text that we just heard) winning the game was not the most important thing. Runners may compete to win a prize, says Paul, but the earthly prize is nothing: 

"Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one."

So Bishop Talbot concluded:

"If England be beaten on the river, or if America be outdistanced on the racetrack, well, what of it? The Games themselves are better than the race and the prize. St. Paul tells us how insignificant is the prize.  Our true prize is not perishable but imperishable, and though only one may wear the laurel wreath, all may share the equal joy of the contest."

De Coubertin heard the bishop’s sermon and wrote later how deep an impression it had made on him. It made him see more clearly than before that the Olympic aim was not simply a sporting or educational ideal, but a human and religious one; and that overcoming both personal and national ambition in a spirit of genuine co-operation is essential to real flourishing. As he put it:

What matters in the Olympic games is not winning but taking part, because what matters in life is not to triumph but to compete well. We must hold fast to this truth: it is basic to every area of human experience.

That dictum, ‘It is not whether you win or lose but how you play the game’ has become proverbial in French and English, but do we actually believe it?

It is easy to be cynical. Oscar Wilde said it would be truer to say ‘It is not whether you win or lose, but how you lay the blame’. 

We know very well how much corruption, drugs, commercialisation, and the buying and selling of athletes for obscene sums of money have tarnished every kind of sport. 

Some modern athletes have flatly contradicted Coubertin’s grand ideal: ‘Of course winning isn’t everything; winning is the ONLY thing’ said one.

But I think the cynics are wrong.  Even if sport can be abused, ‘abusus non tollit usum’ – abuse doesn’t cancel out proper use. And even if some athletes are obsessed with winning, what inspires is not the gold medal but the extreme dedication and courage it takes for all the competitors to reach their peak of perfection.

The motto of the games isn’t ‘Fastest, Highest, Strongest’, it’s ‘Faster, Higher, Stronger Together’.  In other words, as De Coubertin said, what counts for everyone in every sphere of life, is the determination to do the best you possibly can, against whatever odds. The explosion of enthusiasm for the Paralympic Games in recent years is because somehow, we fell that we are all made braver and nobler in reaching our goals by seeing their bravery and nobility in reaching theirs.  The beauty revealed by the games isn’t just of the body, it’s of the soul.

Whether it is in sport or anything else, if we strive to do the best we can with what we’ve got, in the end we can all hope to say, as St Paul said at the end of his life, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith’.

[stephensmithuk]

The Illustrious Client

First published in the US in 1924 and the UK in 1925, the latter as a two-parter, this forms part of Case-book.

The first part in The Strand ends with Watson seeing the newspaper headline about the attack on Holmes.

Northumberland Avenue is a street running from Trafalgar Square to the Thames Embankment. It includes a pub called The Sherlock Holmes.

The Carlton Club was founded by the Conservative Party and was long its defacto headquarters. Originally on Carlton Terrace, it moved to Pall Mall in 1835, with the building rebuilt in 1856. A direct hit by a German bomb in 1940 destroyed the building and the Club moved to 69 St James's Street, former home of Arthur's Club. Women were not allowed to be associate members until the 1970s and not full members until 2008, with Margaret Thatcher getting honorary membership when she become Tory leader in 1975. She later become club president in 2009, although by his point she had dementia and died in 2013.

The general consensus is that the "Illustrious Client" is no less than Edward VII himself, who Holmes may have previously gotten the Beryl Coronet back for.

Prague was then under Austrian rule.

The Splügen Pass, used for travel since Roman times, connects Switzerland and Italy and with its great height, hairpins and spectacular views, is considered one of the greatest driving challenges on the planet, having featured in Top Gear. The San Bernandino tunnel has taken most of the non-tourist traffic and it is now closed in winter for safety reasons.

Kingston upon Thames, known as Kingston for short, is a town located 10 miles SW of Charing Cross. Until 1965, it was in Surrey before becoming part of Greater London and part of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. Surrey County Council were based there until 2021, when their offices moved to Reigate.

The Hurlingham Club in Fulham is where horse polo's rules were established - it even hosted Olympic polo in the 1908 London Games, but the fields were compulsorily purchased by the local council after the Second World War for housing. It was also home to pigeon shooting and was home of world croquet, still holding major events in the latter. Edward VII was a keen patron of the site.

Charlie Peace was an English burglar and double murderer, executed in 1879. He ended up featuring in Madame Tussaud's Chamber of Horrors, which was oddly enough replaced between 2016 and 2022 with an immersive Sherlock Holmes Experience... which at £66.50 a ticket was a bit too expensive.

HMP Parkhurst, a Category B prison located on the Isle of Wight, merged in 2009 with HMP Albany to form HMP Isle of Wight, although each part retains its own name. Notable inmates include the Kray Twins, Peter Sutcliffe, Ian Brady and currently Serbian war criminal Radovan Karadžić.

Hypnotism was rather in vogue by this time.

Apaches were the name given to various criminal gangs in Paris; named after the Native American tribe. There are various suggestions as to how that came about.

Montmartre, in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, was widely known for its artistic community during this time, with many a famous name living there due to the low rents. It's still there and development is restricted due to the historic character. Pigalle, Paris's red-light district, is next door.

Kitty Winter would feature as a character in Elementary, played by Ophelia Lovibond. Gruner turns up as well.

"Tinker’s curse" is Kitty saying, in the language of the time, that she does not give an [expletive deleted].

Ruritania is a fictional country first featured in the 1894 Anthony Hope novel The Prisoner of Zenda. It has become a byword for quaint small European countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

China was still an Empire in 1902, nominally ruled by the Guangxu Emperor, aka Zaitan, but an 1898 coup resulted in his loss of any real power; he was even in house arrest for a while. He died in 1908, probably poisoned by arsenic. His nephew, Puyi, would be the last Chinese Emperor and is beyond the scope of this article.

I cannot discuss Chinese pottery in any depth and so will not attempt to.

Some husbands might have questioned the gallantry of King Edward VII, who had a box for his mistresses at his coronation.

Armorial bearings are the "shield" part of a coat of arms. The British royal one traditionally depicted a bare-breasted woman as part of the harp on the bottom left, but this is no longer standard practice.

Edward VII, while having no actual political power, was able to exercise quite a bit of influence behind the scenes, especially in foreign and defence policy.

All criminal prosecutions are brought in the name of the monarch, rendered "R" (Rex or Regina) in text and "the Crown" when spoken). i.e. R vs. Winter. In addition, judicial reviews (i.e. is this government decision legal) are also brought in the name of the monarch, with the name of the actual plaintiff in brackets since a 2001 change to the format, e.g. R (Smith) vs. Secretary of State for the Home Department. It is common for initials to be used in those brackets to protect the identity of a plaintiff, such as the recent decision on flying migrants to Rwanda.

[chompinatthebit]

Thanks for the fun, Paris

The two and a half weeks that were the Paris Olympic games are now in the books, it was a great event with a lot of elite athletes competing at the highest level. No matter what your itch is, the olympics will scratch it, I watched everything from table tennis to water polo. Obviously living in the USA, I root for the American athletes to do well but it's fun watching other nations celebrate medals. It's time to reflect on the games, taking a look at what these games will be remembered for as we are on the road to 2028.

I think we can all agree that the idea of breaking or break dancing being involved in the Olympics was going to be intriguing. I can say that it will be remembered for a while, probably not for the best reasons, it was defined by a woman from Australia earning a zero. I'm sure that you've seen the routine, if not, please check it out. As of right now it seems like breaking will be one and done as it won't be returning for the 2028 games.

This was a redemption tour for Simone Biles, re-establishing her dominance after a rough performance in Tokyo back in 2020. In Tokyo she pulled out after citing her mental health, she didn't look like her normal self at all. She medaled in Tokyo but you could tell something was off, didn't want to make it seem like she did nothing. In Paris, Simone earned gold medals for the individual all around, team all around and vault. She added a silver medal for floor exercise, 4 total medals with her expressing joy and confidence that seemed to be missing in Tokyo.

This is 16 year old Quincy Wilson who made his Olympic debut in Paris and earned a gold medal as part of the 4x400 meter relay team. The coolest part of his winning a gold is the fact that he became the youngest ever to win a gold medal, now he becomes someone that I will be looking out for in 2028.

There were many more moments but that's every Olympics, whether it's summer or winter. The 2028 Olympics will be in Los Angeles as was introduced during the closing ceremonies with Tom Cruise lowering in to the arena and taking the flag to LA.

LA will see the return and introduction of 5 sports that weren't part of the Paris games. Baseball and Softball will be making a return, they were last played back in 2008. Lacrosse and Cricket are also making a return, but they haven't been in the Olympics since 1908 and 1900, respectively. Squash and Flag Football will be brand new to the Olympics. I'm excited to see them all in 2028, are you?

Make sure to follow me both @chompinatthebit and @passionandprecision with my co-host who you can also follow @jorissportsstories. Let me know what you think.

Until next time...

[thepastisalreadywritten]

Les Jeux Olympiques en 1908. 🥇🥈🥉

—

The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, from 27 April to 31 October 1908.

The 1908 Games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome but were relocated on financial grounds following the violent eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 1906, which claimed over 100 lives.

Rome eventually hosted the Games in 1960.

[krishsakhala]

The Story of the Marathon: From Ancient Greece to Modern Races

The marathon, one of the most iconic athletic events in modern sports, carries its roots deep into the soil of ancient Greece. While today it’s a race covering 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers), the story behind the marathon is much more than just a test of endurance—it’s a tale of heroism, sacrifice, and the spirit of a people.

The Battle of Marathon (490 BCE)

The origin of the marathon race begins in the year 490 BCE, in the midst of the Greco-Persian Wars. Persia, under King Darius I, had invaded Greece in an attempt to expand its empire. The Persian forces landed at Marathon, a plain about 26 miles northeast of Athens, with the goal of attacking the city-state.The Athenians, with their relatively small army, faced a much larger Persian force. Yet, under the leadership of General Miltiades, they decided to confront the Persians on the battlefield. In a stunning victory, the Athenians defeated the much larger Persian army, sending them into retreat.

The Legendary Run of Pheidippides

The most famous part of this story is the tale of Pheidippides, a young Athenian messenger. After the Athenians won the battle, it is said that Pheidippides was sent to run to Athens to deliver the news of the victory.According to legend, he ran from the battlefield at Marathon to Athens, a distance of approximately 26 miles, without stopping. Upon reaching the city, he reportedly shouted "Νενικήκαμεν" (Nenikēkamen), which translates to "We have won!" before collapsing and dying from exhaustion.While the exact details of Pheidippides' run remain debated by historians, this story became the inspiration for the modern marathon race.

The Marathon's Evolution into a Modern Race

The idea of the marathon race was revived in the modern era, particularly during the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, held in Athens. The race was introduced to commemorate the legendary run of Pheidippides. The distance of the race was set at 40 kilometers (about 24.85 miles), but this was adjusted to 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers) during the 1908 London Olympics to accommodate the route from Windsor Castle to the Olympic Stadium.Today, marathons are run worldwide, from local races to the famous events like the Boston Marathon, New York City Marathon, and the London Marathon. The event has become a symbol of human perseverance, as thousands of people, from elite athletes to everyday runners, test their limits.

The Spirit of Marathon: More Than Just a Race

The marathon race has come to symbolize more than just a physical challenge; it represents the triumph of the human spirit. From ancient Greece, where it was born out of a story of bravery and sacrifice, to the modern-day where it serves as a testament to endurance and dedication, the marathon has endured as a cultural and sporting phenomenon.It’s not just about the race; it’s about the journey, the effort, and the inspiration drawn from those who have run before. Every marathon runner, whether they are completing their first race or competing for a personal best, is connected to the ancient story of Pheidippides and the remarkable endurance of those who fought for the survival of Athens.

Conclusion

The marathon’s connection to ancient Greece is more than a simple historical footnote. It is a narrative woven into the fabric of Western civilization, a story that continues to inspire and challenge people to this day. The legacy of the ancient Battle of Marathon and the heroic run of Pheidippides lives on in every marathoner who takes to the starting line, carrying forward a legacy of courage, determination, and the pursuit of greatness.

[psi-zi]

Swimming — A few dates

1896

First Olympic Swimming Event Swimming became an Olympic event for the first time in the 1896 Athens Games, featuring four men’s events.

1908

Introduction of Women's Swimming Events Women’s swimming events were introduced at the 1908 London Olympics, featuring three events.

1926

Introduction of Butterfly Stroke The butterfly stroke was introduced as a new swimming style in a competition held in the town of Sydenham, England.

1956

Introduction of Backstroke The backstroke became an Olympic event for the first time in the 1956 Melbourne Games.

1968

Introduction of Breaststroke The breaststroke became an Olympic event for the first time in the 1968 Mexico City Games.

2000

Introduction of Individual Medley The individual medley, which combines all four swimming styles in one race, was introduced as a new Olympic event in the 2000 Sydney Games.

[scotianostra]

Happy Birthday Scotland’s most successful Olympian, Sir Chris Hoy.

Born in Edinburgh on March 23rd 1975,the 1982 film E.T the Extra Terrestrial inspired Chris Hoy to cycle. He was then a mere six year old boy. Between the age of seven and fourteen, Chris Hoy raced for BMX and was ranked two in Britain, ninth in the World and seventh in Europe. He then received a scholarship from Kwik-Fit and Slazenger to compete in the United States and in Europe.

Chris Hoy was also into rowing and rugby as a student. The first cycling club that he ever joined was Dunedin Cycling Club in 1992. Chris then started focusing on only track cycling from the year 1994 joining the City of Edinburgh Racing Club, his main events included the Team Sprint and the one kilometre Time Trial. It was Team Sprint that brought him his very first World Championship medal. His team came second in 1999. The first World Title for his team came in the year 2002 at Copenhagen in the Ballerup Velodrome. He also won the one kilometre time trial that same very year beating Arnaud Tournant. He was World champion in the years 2004, 2006 and 2007.

Chris won his first Olympic gold medal in Athens 2004 in the Kilo – an event that was dropped from the programme for Beijing 2008. Chris took this in his stride and switched his focus to three other track sprint events – the Keirin, Sprint and Team Sprint. He went on to win a gold medal in all three at the Beijing Olympics, cementing his name in the history books.

Following his historic hat-trick of gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, Chris was voted 2008 BBC Sports Personality of the Year. He was also awarded a Knighthood in the 2009 New Year Honours list, capping an extraordinary year. At the 2012 Olympics in London, Chris won his fifth and sixth gold medals – in the Keirin and Team Sprint – becoming OUR most successful Olympic athlete of all time with six gold medals and one silver.

In all he won 11 Gold medals, 6 Silver and 6 Bronze in World Championships, 6 Golds and a Silver at Olympics, and 2 Gold and 2 Bronze at Commonwealth games.

Chris retired from competitive cycling in 2013 he was the first Briton since 1908 to win three gold medals in a single Olympic Games, and one of the most successful Olympic cyclists of all time.

Following his retirement, Chris remains passionate about bikes and has successfully made the transition into the business world following the launch of his bike range HOY Bikes, cycling accessories and clothing. He has published a series of children’s books – Flying Fergus – and is currently working on a second series.

In June 2016, Chris added to his record list of achievements when he finished the world’s most demanding motorsport endurance race, the Le Mans 24 Hours, on his debut. Last year he had a miracle escape after crashing a racing car at more than 100mph at Silverstone race track.

Chris has become a polished public speaker and media presenter, and he was a key part of the BBC TV’s commentary and punditry team covering the 2016 Rio Olympics and 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Hoy has been Ambassador for SAMH (Scottish Association for Mental Health) since 2009. In that time he has devoted many hours to raising awareness of and funds for the mental health cause.In December 2016 and December 2017, Hoy supported the Scottish Social Enterprise Social Bite by sleeping out at their Sleep in the Park events to end homelessness in Scotland..

Last year Chris revealed he was diagnosed with cancer, although he never said what type, he is upbeat regarding it in February he said;

"I'm optimistic, positive and surrounded by love for which I'm truly grateful. As you might imagine, the last few months have been incredibly difficult. However, I currently feel fine.

"It's an exciting year of work ahead, not least with the Paris Olympics in July. I can't wait to get stuck in, have fun and share it with you all."

[ozma914]

Old Olympics Events Leave Fans Confused

Here's a look at some past Olympic sports that are no longer in the games.

Several years ago, baseball and softball were pulled from competition. The American women dominated in softball, while in baseball Americans … well, they only got three medals in five tries. The Cuban team grabbed the gold. There’s not much else to do in Cuba, except play baseball and stare longingly toward Florida, where senior citizens have high speed internet and all-you-can-eat buffets.

In lacrosse, a medal event in 1904 and 1908, people in face masks hit their balls with big fly swatters. It died out in the early 1900’s because only the Canadians, British, and Americans were willing to take the punishment. Former lacrosse players are now employed as dog catchers and butterfly collectors.

Basque pelota was only a medal event in 1900, because nobody could figure out how to pronounce it. It’s played on a court with a ball, sometimes using a racket, but sometimes not.

In other words, it’s handball. If they’d called it that, basque pelota-ites would be on Wheaties boxes.

Downhill skiing initially fared poorly, with over a dozen cases of heat stroke before it was moved to the WINTER games.

Tandem cycling was popular in the Olympics, from 1920-72. It’s being considered again with more interesting rules: The guy in front steers, while the guy in back can lash out at other competitors with lacrosse sticks. It’s now a favorite of retired hockey players.

In 1948 winter pentathlon was put on as a demonstration sport, and consisted of downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, shooting, fencing, and horse riding.

All together. In the same event.

Cat Pool proved particularly popular with pooch preference people.

Sweden, which remained more or less neutral through World War II, had a whole army of young men just itching to shoot something: They swept all the winter pentathlon medals. However, the sport was discontinued after ski-clad Swedes on horseback shot all the competitors’ horses while jumping over the fencing.

Motorboarding--I initially thought this was something altogether different--was tried in 1908. It ended with only one boat finishing in each of three races. It turns out the Swedes used their winter pentathlon rifles to shoot up the other boat engines, leading officials to change to rowing.

Polo was a favorite Olympic event in the early 1900’s, but it was canceled after the Swedes sent in their entry forms.

The Olympics also tried an obstacle course … for swimmers. Competitors had to climb over a pole, go over a row of boats, and then swim under another row of boats. Luckily they had an excess of boats left over from the motorboat races.

Speaking of swimming, in 1984 they tried solo synchronized swimming.

Think about it.

Synchronized Ball Inflation preceeded most Olympic sports that included balls, but failed badly after the tennis event caused several aneurysms.

Then there’s the one Olympic sport I actually participated in: Tug of war. Not in the Olympics, but we won, and didn’t have to borrow Swedish rifles to do it. Between 1900 and 1920 the sport was dominated by Great Britain, which sent teams of police officers. And remember, their cops were unarmed. Good thing the Swedes didn’t have a team.

Distance plunging would have been interesting … or not. Athletes would dive into the pool and coast underwater, without moving.

That’s it. The winner is the one who drifted the longest in sixty seconds, or when they floated to the surface, whichever came first. An American won the gold, although it should be noted that this competition happened only once, in the 1904 St. Louis Olympics. It should also be noted that only Americans competed.

I’m not sure how they could tell whether the athlete was winning, or drowning.

Groundhog Racing was halted after a series of crashes--and rabies.

Also at St. Louis, another US competitor did an impressive job winning gold in a sport that still gives old gym class haters nightmares: the rope climb. Why was George Eyser so impressive? Because he had a wooden leg.

In 1906 they tried the sport of pistol dueling. No, it wasn’t won by a Swede. It wasn’t really dueling, either: Competitors shot at a dummy dressed in a frock coat, and by dummy I don’t mean the guy who planned the Sochi games. It’s a good thing, because it could have been the one sport where the silver and bronze medals were awarded posthumously.

Finally, here’s a sport they tried just once, at the 1900 Paris Olympics:

Live pigeon shooting.

When the feathers cleared, a Belgian named Leon de Lunden got the gold for downing 21 birds, none of which had a say in the matter. Then he celebrated with a steak dinner.

Once the onlookers got a look at the mess left behind, they decided the Swedes weren’t so bad.

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