Image details: Olympics Day 16 – Closing Ceremony served by picapp.com

As the Beijing Games draw closer and closer, here are some more Olympic facts and trivia to get you in the Olympic mood:

1. The founder of the modern Olympic Games was a French sports fan, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who believed that the Games would promote world peace. He was the one who founded the International Olympic Committee in 1894.

2. The athlete to win the most medals is Larysa Latynina, a Soviet gymnast who won 18 medals between 1956 and 1964.

3. The 1992 Lithuanian Olympic basketball team lacked the necessary funds for uniforms, as the country was newly re-organized and independent from the Soviet Union. The team’s star player was a fan of the band, the Grateful Dead, whom he convinced to donate the necessary apparel (tie-dyed, of course). The team won the Bronze medal.

4. Boxing is one of the few Olympic sports still open only to amateurs. Several boxing champions had their first world notice at the Olympic Games, including Muhammed Ali (then, Cassius Clay), Joe Frazier, Floyd Merriweather, and Sugar Ray Leonard.

5. The youngest person to ever compete in the modern Olympics was a coxswain who assisted the Dutch rowing crew to win the Gold medal in 1900. The French boy, whose name is not known, was seven years old.

6. A new Soccer (football) rule, adopted in 1992, set an age limit of 23 years for Olympic players. Each team is allowed three exceptions (called Wild Cards). This was done to limit the number of World Cup players in the Olympics.

7. Javelins used in the Olympic competition were modified in 1986 to limit the distance they could be thrown. Before, officals were concerned for the safety of spectators and other athletes on the field.

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Olympic Facts

Some more Olympic facts for you:

• “Amateur” was eliminated from the Olympic charter in 1971.
• The Olympic flag was introduced at the 1920 Olympic games, in Belgium.
• Russian gymnast, Maria Gorokhovskaya holds the record for the most medals one in a single Olympic games, seven medals in 1952.
• The host nation always marches last in the opening procession.
• Tug of War was an Olympic sport from 1900 to 1920.
• The tradition of the opening procession of athletes began in 1908, in London.
• The last solid gold medals were awarded in 1912. Today’s “gold” medals are really sterling silver with a thin coat of pure gold.

(photo © Newscom)

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More Olympic Trivia

As the Beijing Olympics approach, let’s take a moment to learn a few facts about the games.

• There will be 28 sports at the Beijing games.
• 302 events are scheduled.
• 10,708 athletes from around the world will be competing.
• 5600 press journalists and photographers have been accredited for the games.
• 12,000 television broadcast staff have been accredited.
• 70,000 volunteers will help the events run smoothly.

^{(photo © Newscom)}

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Beijing Olympics Trivia

Image details: Olympics – Around The Olympics Venues served by picapp.com

The Beijing Olympic Games are just slightly more than 100 days away. Just how much do you know about the Olympic Games and their history and traditions? For instance, did you know…?

• that the original Olympic games, called the PanHellenic Games in ancient Greece, were held as part of national religious festivals
• that women were not permitted to participate…or even watch…the Olympic games until the 2nd century A.D.
• that the first record of Olympic Games dates from 776 B.C.
• that the last record of the original Olympic Games was in 261 A.D.
• that the modern Olympics were reborn in Athens in 1896
• that the Olympic five-ring symbol was taken from an emblem on an altar in the ruins of ancient Delphi, in Greece.
• that the first Winter Games were held in 1924, in Chamonix, France

Post from: EveryJoe

Olympic Trivia