Olympian Revelations: 5 Things You Didn’t Know About the Olympics

The year 2012 will soon be upon us, but what will it bring?  It’s a leap year, so the bonus of an extra day.  Or, at the other end of the spectrum, perhaps the end of the world (a certain Hollywood blockbuster might have something to do with that theory).

And then there’s that great quadrennial exhibition of sporting prowess, which makes most of us feel either inadequate or envious, or both.  The Olympics.

A New Age of Greatness

We all know what the Olympics is about: athletics – the 100m sprint, the pole vault, the javelin throw, the spectacle of the triathlon.  Aquatics, including swimming, diving and water polo.  There’s also cycling, rowing, sailing and canoeing.  Don’t forget gymnastics, volleyball and badminton.  And then there’s dressage,  fencing, weight-lifting, judo, and poetry.

Hang on. What’s that? Poetry?

What is far less well-known is that up until 1948, the Olympics included many non-sporting disciplines.  The arts were well-represented.  There was Olympic sculpture, painting, music and literature.  The father of the modern Olympic movement, Baron Pierre de Coubertin (who in 1892 conceived the idea of reviving the 1,500-year-old Olympic tradition), competed in the Olympic poetry section and won the gold medal.  There was no sycophancy involved as he had entered anonymously.

Bizarre Olympic Games

Some of the categories were quite bizarre.  Up till 1948 there was a town-planning category.  The oldest medal-winner ever was Britain’s John Copley, who won silver in the engravings and etchings event at the age of 73.  In 1900, a farmer’s wife trimmed 17 poodles in two hours and carried away the gold medal for poodle-clipping.  I kid you not.

This enormous and entertaining variety finally came to an end when it was decided that it compromised the Olympian ideal of amateurism.  Whereas many of the non-sporting competitors earned their living in professions, such as sculpture and engraving, most athletes held down other jobs – the profession of archer or gymnast simply didn’t exist.

However, what remained uncompromising was Baron de Coubertin’s philosophy that the most important thing in life is not to triumph, but to compete.

Why the Gold Medal Isn’t Real Gold

In 1964, the Pierre De Coubertin medal was introduced to commemorate his enormous contribution to the world of sport.  This special medal, awarded by the International Olympic Committee to athletes who show a spirit of great sportsmanship, carries with it great value and respect and is considered more precious than the traditional bronze, silver and gold medals.

I say gold.  What is also little-known is that the greatest constituent of the coveted Olympic gold medal is… silver.  92.5% silver in fact.  Its gold content is a mere six grams.  If it was made of solid gold it would have a value of $5,000, and the overall cost to the Olympic Committee would be $2.5 million.

A final fascinating fact: in the whole of human history only 161,000 tonnes of gold has been mined, most of it in the last 50 years.  That amount of gold wouldn’t even fill two Olympic-size swimming pools!

Treasure that 6g medal, Olympians.