In\n1896, in Athens, the first edition of the “Modern Olympic Games” took\nplace. They are called like that because, long before them, there were the ancient<\/strong> Olympics, dedicated to Zeus and\nwhich took place in the city of Olympia in Greece. Only men could take part in\nthem, regardless of their status. (There were tests considered far too harsh\nfor women \u2013 throwing the spear, running in long or short races, fighting, horse\nracing etc.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first ancient Olympics goes back a long time, before Christ, in the year 776. It was an edition during which, what do you know, a Chef<\/strong> becomes an Olympic champion in an athletics competition \u2013 600 feet. I imagine that the man trained in running away from the clients for whom he cooked J.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don’t think that any medals were given to the champions. They were receiving palm leaves. In ancient Greek mythology, palm leaves were the symbol of Nike<\/strong>, the goddess of victory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n All the\nathletic competitions of the ancient Olympics were organized under the\npatronage of a deity. It was believed that the gods gave athletes the physical\nabilities to be able to successfully participate in the Games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tradition\nsays that starting with 720 BC, athletes competed… naked! Maybe that’s why\nwomen weren’t allowed to be there, not even as spectators? J))<\/p>\n\n\n\n I found\nanother great thing: one of the tests of the ancient Olympics was the test of…\nart and literature<\/strong>! The men competed\nin poetry, music and painting. Isn’t that cool?<\/p>\n\n\n\n During\nthe Olympic Games, any political and military conflicts between Greek cities\nceased. “Olympic peace” was established.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After\n12 centuries (293 editions), the games were stopped. In 393 BC, the Roman\nemperor Theodosius I, being a Christian, considered the Olympics a pagan\ntradition and banned it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In one\nform or another, we’ve all heard of this man, to whom we owe the rebirth of the\nOlympics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However,\nwhat I find very interesting, is that, before Coubertin, a Romanian led the\nfirst battles in this direction: Evanghelie\nZappa<\/strong> (1800-1865), born in Greece, but settled in Wallachia, where he got\nthe Romanian citizenship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Enriched\nby the grain trade, Mr. Zappa left in his will a huge sum to the Greek state,\nin order to <\/p>\n\n\n\n re-establish\nthe Olympic Games. And he also set some conditions, including the construction\nof an Olympic venue. Which the Greeks actually did, in 1888.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pierre\nde Coubertin (1863-1937) proposed the resumption of the Olympic Games in 1894,\nat an international congress organized in France. And from here it all started…<\/p>\n\n\n\n From\nwhat I read, the man dedicated himself to the Olympic movement until his death.\nMoreover, although buried in Switzerland, he wanted his heart to be buried in\nGreece, right on the site of the ancient ruins of Olympia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pierre\nde Coubertin paid great attention to the organization of the Olympic ceremony\nand symbols, considered to be a true spiritual and traditional force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nmost famous Olympic symbols are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 the\nOlympic motto<\/strong> “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (Faster, higher,\nstronger)<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 the\nOlympic flame<\/strong>, which symbolizes sacredness in Greek mythology. (It is lit\nfrom the rays of the sun in Olympia, in the temple of Goddess Hera and then\ncarried by various means to the place of the Olympics.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 the\nOlympic circles<\/strong> \u2013 representing the union of the five continents, through\nthe participants in the Olympics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even\nthough there are 7 continents on the globe (Africa, North America, South\nAmerica, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe), the Olympic Committee tried to\nreconcile everyone and divided the world into 5 continents: America, Asia,\nAfrica, Europe and Oceania-Antarctica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I never\nknew the significance of the colors of the 5 intertwined Olympic circles. I\nthought someone invented a color for each continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But I\nunderstand that these colors were chosen for a clear reason: at least one of\nthe 5 colors on the circles (plus white in the background, where it exists…)\nis found on the flag of every country in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n WHAT I FOUND UNIQUE, INTERESTING OR EVEN TRAGIC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ATHENS 1896<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n From\nthe first edition of the Modern Olympic Games, we have the youngest participant\nin the history of the Olympics: a Greek gymnast who was only 10 years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n PARIS 1900<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It is\nthe first edition in which a Romanian athlete participates: George A. Plagino,\nwho competes in shooting, plate competition, and ranks 13th out of 51\nparticipants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nParis edition is also the first edition in which women compete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nwinners do not receive gold medals, but… paintings! The French considered\nthem much more important. The truth is that for a Picasso I would have run too…<\/p>\n\n\n\n SAINT LOUIS (USA) 1904<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It is\nthe first edition to award gold, silver and bronze medals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Speaking\nof medals, the American gymnast George Eyser wins six medals, although he has a\nwooden left leg!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\n15,000-seat stadium built especially by the Americans on the occasion of this\nmajor event remains almost empty during the competitions. The small presence of\nathletes seems to have had two causes: the long distance from Europe and,\ntherefore, complications related to transport, but also the European tension\ncaused by the Russian-Japanese war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LONDON 1908<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n These\nare the longest Olympic Games in history! They started in April and ended in\nOctober, people!!! 187 days, to be precise!<\/p>\n\n\n\n London\nhad not competed to become the host. Rome won then (defeating Berlin and\nMilan), but due to the eruption of Vesuvius in 1906, London had to organize the\nOlympics…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Romania\ndid not officially participate in this edition, but the Romanian Stefan Somodi<\/strong> won the silver medal in\nthe high jump, competing under the Hungarian flag, because Transylvania was at\nthat time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n STOCKHOLM 1912<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Solid\ngold medals are awarded at this Olympics. What luck for the champions! J<\/p>\n\n\n\n After\nthis edition, Olympic gold becomes… silver plated with gold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1916 Berlin<\/strong> was to host the Olympic\nGames, but due to the First World War, they were no longer held.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ANTWERP 1920<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\noldest medalist in the history of the Summer Olympics was awarded the medal\nhere: the Swede Oscar Swahn (72 years old), who wins the silver medal in\nshooting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n PARIS 1924<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nAmerican swimmer of Romanian origin, Johnny\nWeissmuller<\/strong>, wins three gold and one bronze medal. In a few years he would\nbecome the star of the Tarzan movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AMSTERDAM 1928<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n For the\nfirst time, the Olympic flame lighting ceremony takes place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, as\na miscellaneous fact, Coca-Cola<\/strong>\nappears as a sponsor J. We’re talking about 1928, right?…<\/p>\n\n\n\n LOS ANGELES 1932<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Who do\nyou think writes about these Games as a newspaper editor? None other than Mahatma Gandhi<\/strong>!!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now the\nawards ceremony is organized: the podium, then the raising of the flags and the\nsinging of the national anthem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A\nPolish athlete wins the gold medal in the women’s 100 meters (at the next\nOlympics she takes the silver in the same event). After her death, in 1980, it\nwas discovered that she was a hermaphrodite and should not have competed…<\/p>\n\n\n\n BERLIN 1936<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Berlin\n+ year 1936 = not good…<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is\nthe first Olympics to rise political protests. The games are officially opened\nby Adolf Hitler<\/strong> himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A\nRomanian, Henri Rang<\/strong>, loses in a\ntiebreaker race the gold medal for horseback racing, individual training, after\nobtaining the same time with a German. Scheise!<\/p>\n\n\n\n World\nWar II stops the Olympics for 12 years! It was not until 1948 that they\nresumed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LONDON\n1948<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Germany\nand Japan are forbidden to participate in this edition, being considered\nresponsible for the outbreak of World War II.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Romania\nwas also among the countries that were not present, but not because this was\nbanned by anyone, but because the Romanian authorities declared that the\ncountry was in a disastrous economic situation, dried up by the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the\nfirst time in the history of the Olympic Games, the host country does not rank\nin the Top 10.<\/p>\n\n\n\n HELSINKI 1952<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nfirst Olympic gold for Romania, since the competition existed! Iosif Sarbu<\/strong>, in shooting. Well done,\nIosif!!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n MELBOURNE 1956<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nicolae Linca<\/strong> gets the first\nOlympic boxing title, a performance unmatched since then by any Romanian!\n(There were 5 gold medals for Romania at this edition \u2013 shooting, kayaking,\ncanoeing, boxing)<\/p>\n\n\n\n An\nunprecedented fact: due to legislation restricting the entry of animals on the\nAustralian territory, the riding trials took place in Stockholm, Sweden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ROME 1960<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A\nDanish cyclist collapsed during the race, under the influence of amphetamines,\nlater dying in hospital. It is the second Olympic death after that of a\nPortuguese marathon runner, who died during the race, at the 1912 Olympics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n TOKYO 1964<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nfirst edition in Asia!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Considered\nthe Olympics of Records, because it registered several records: participation \u2013\n95 countries, 76 Olympic records, 45 world records etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And a\nsurprise for everyone: an unknown Romanian, only 17 years old, becomes the\nOlympic champion in throwing the spear, breaking the world record. Mihaela Penes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MEXICO CITY 1968<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A woman\nlit the Olympic flame for the first time in history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\naltitude of Mexico City, located at 2,200 meters, caused breathing problems for\nmany athletes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MUNICH 1972<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 11\nIsraeli athletes were kidnapped and killed by the terrorist organization\n“Black September”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MONTREAL 1976<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nadiaaaaa!!!<\/strong> And I said it\nall!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Only 14\nyears old, our gymnast, Nadia Comaneci<\/strong>,\ngets the first 10 in the history of the Olympic Games (uneven bars) and does\nnot stop here: there were 7 in total!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nOlympic flame for this edition has a long story: from Greece, from the stadium\nwhere the competitions of the first edition of the modern Olympic Games took\nplace, it is transmitted through a special laser beam system, via satellite,\ndirectly to Canada. After the opening of the Olympics, following a storm, the\nflame goes out, and a member of the staff lights it… with a lighter. How\nsimple hihi. The organizers, however, extinguish the torch again and light it\nwith the help of a spare flame, so that the public opinion does not\u2026 catch fire\nfrom indignation J.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MOSCOW 1980<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We go\nto our brothers at the time with the largest delegation in history: 239\nathletes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Where\nthere are many, the power increases, so Romania is on the 7th place in the\nranking, with 25 medals (6 gold, 6 silver, 13 bronze).<\/p>\n\n\n\n LOS ANGELES 1984<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Well,\nhere Romania<\/strong> was the best of the best!\nIt ranked 2nd<\/strong> in the final ranking\n(after the USA), from 140 participating countries. Our athletes were great and\nwon 20 gold medals!<\/p>\n\n\n\n At this\nOlympics, Romania was the only country in the communist bloc who did not\nparticipate in the boycott initiated by the USSR (in response to the American\nboycott of the Moscow Olympics), which I understand made Ceausescu grow in the\neyes of Western countries. During the opening ceremony, Romanian athletes were\ngreeted with applause in response to their decision to defy the boycott.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is\nthe first time that China has won a medal \u2013 something hard to imagine, given\nthe performance of the Chinese now. Here they won a gold medal in shooting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SEOUL 1988<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n After\nwinning the 100-meter race with a great result, a world record \u2013 9.79 seconds,\nthe Canadian Ben Johnson’s record is not approved and the gold medal goes to\nCarl Lewis, because Johnson was found positive. Three times…<\/p>\n\n\n\n BARCELONA 1992<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Belarusian\ngymnast Vitaly Scherbo manages to win six gold medals, four of them in one day!\nGod, I think this man needed a psychologist J.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ATLANTA 1996<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nOlympic flame is lit by Muhammad Ali<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A bomb\nattack takes place on the Olympic Stadium, after which a spectator dies and\nanother 111 are injured. A Turkish cameraman also dies: he has a heart attack\nwhile running to capture images of the tragedy…<\/p>\n\n\n\n SYDNEY 2000<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A memorable\nmoment for us! All-Romanian podium in gymnastics, individual all-around\ncompetition: Andreea Raducan<\/strong>, Simona Amanar<\/strong> and Maria Olaru<\/strong>. God, what ecstasy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then\ncame the agony: Romania was involved in the most controversial doping case.\nAndreea is left without a medal, after being tested positive for doping (she\nhad been treated for a cold with Nurofen).<\/p>\n\n\n\n ATHENS 2004<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The games\nreturn home after 108 years!<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was\nalso there, on vacation in Thassos, where I bought all the souvenirs related to\nthe Olympics hihi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n BEIJING 2008<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n For the\nfirst time, Olympic gold for Romania in judo \u2013 Alina Dumitru<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LONDON 2012<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ngames are officially opened by Queen\nElizabeth II<\/strong>, accompanied by Prince\nPhilip<\/strong>. Each of them had officially opened an Olympics competition: the\nQueen \u2013 in Montreal in 1976, and the Prince \u2013 in Melbourne in 1956.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was\nin London when the queen “landed” in the arena, helped by agent 007\n(Daniel Craig). I will tell you in a future post the experience of my\nparticipation in the Olympics. As a spectator, of course, you couldn’t have\nthought that I competed in 100 meters fences trials J.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What\nthe English did cool at this edition (among many other things) was to rename\nthe 361 London Underground stations with the names of Olympic champions and\neach line to be dedicated to an Olympic discipline \u2013 athletics, basketball,\nboxing etc. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The new\nsubway map celebrates not only gold medalists, but also other exceptional\nathletes, known for their abilities, and even certain athletes who have had huge\ndefeats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So we\nhad the Cassius Clay, Carl Lewis, Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, Sergey Bubka,\nLeBron James stations, but also the Mary Decker and Zola Budd stations \u2013 two\nrunners that collided on the track in Los Angeles, in 1984, although they were\nfavorites for medals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse\nme, will you get off at Usain Bold?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo,\nI’m going to Rafael Nadal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That’s\nhow the London Underground conversations could have taken place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our\nNadia had a privileged position, which seems natural to me: her name was given\nto the famous King’s Cross station<\/strong> \u2013\nwhich became famous all over the world thanks to the Harry Potter<\/strong> book. On the occasion of the Olympics, the English\nsaid that the train comes to Nadia Comaneci station not on the 9 \u00be platform,\nbut on… the 10th, because of the mark she received in Montreal!<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was\nproud of this, as I was proud of Sandra\nIzbasa<\/strong>, who got the Olympic gold in vault!<\/p>\n\n\n\n (I’ve\nbeen there, in the audience, for some competitions and I can’t wait to tell\nyou!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n RIO DE JANEIRO 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I never\ngot here, although I would have liked it…<\/p>\n\n\n\n What I\nfind unique from what I learned is that the medals awarded at the Paralympic\nGames were equipped with a device that triggers a sound \u2013 this sound allowed\nblind people to know what medal they got. Cool!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nintensity of the sound was higher for the gold medals and it decreased as the\nplace on the podium decreased…<\/p>\n\n\n\n …and then\nthe time came for TOKYO 2020<\/strong>. Well,\n2021, but we don’t fuss about such a small thing. The pandemic played all sorts\nof tricks on us, what can I say. I’m curious what this Olympics will stand out for.\nApart from COVID.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately,\nany attempt to reach the Tokyo Olympics this year was doomed to failure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Olympics\nwithout spectators, Tokyo without tourists \u2013 my God, what times!!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n But I’m\nglad that, on my Japanese vacation in 2018, I took some souvenirs with the Tokyo\nOlympics, because they had started to be sold at the time. Towels, big and\nsmall, pens, bags, badges, caps, T-shirts, posters and many other goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So I,\nfor one, am totally ready for Tokyo 2020!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ready\nto watch the competitions on TV, of course J<\/p>\n\n\n\n And to\nkeep my fingers crossed. Go Romania!!! <\/p>\n\n\n\n (How it was as a spectator at the Opening Ceremony London 2012, you can read here<\/a>. And about the Hollywood stars seen at the Closing Ceremony, here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I was very lucky to be a spectator at one of the summer Olympics: no, not really the one from the 19th century J, but the one in London, in 2012. I read quite a lot about the Olympics before I got to be in the audience, because I couldn’t brag that I knew much… I found out a lot of information that I had no idea about, some even about Romanian athletes! And I discovered a lot of unique things! Telling you what I found during my research, I hope to get you a little into the atmosphere of the Tokyo Olympics, a competition that we have been waiting for during the last year and which is, even now, in the middle of controversies… OLYMPIC GAMES In 1896, in Athens, the first edition of the “Modern Olympic Games” took place. They are called like that because, long before them, there were the ancient Olympics, dedicated to Zeus and which took place in the city of Olympia in Greece. Only men could take part in them, regardless of their status. (There were tests considered far too harsh for women \u2013 throwing the spear, running in long or short races, fighting, horse racing etc.) The first ancient Olympics goes back a long time, before Christ, in the year 776. It was an edition during which, what do you know, a Chef becomes an Olympic champion in an athletics competition \u2013 600 feet. I imagine that the man trained in running away from the clients for whom he cooked J. Don’t think that any medals were given to the champions. They were receiving palm leaves. In ancient Greek mythology, palm leaves were the symbol of Nike, the goddess of victory. All the athletic competitions of the ancient Olympics were organized under the patronage of a deity. It was believed that the gods gave athletes the physical abilities to be able to successfully participate in the Games. Tradition says that starting with 720 BC, athletes competed… naked! Maybe that’s why women weren’t allowed to be there, not even as spectators? J)) I found another great thing: one of the tests of the ancient Olympics was the test of… art and literature! The men competed in poetry, music and painting. Isn’t that cool? During the Olympic Games, any political and military conflicts between Greek cities ceased. “Olympic peace” was established. After 12 centuries (293 editions), the games were stopped. In 393 BC, the Roman emperor Theodosius I, being a Christian, considered the Olympics a pagan tradition and banned it. PIERRE DE COUBERTIN In one form or another, we’ve all heard of this man, to whom we owe the rebirth of the Olympics. However, what I find very interesting, is that, before Coubertin, a Romanian led the first battles in this direction: Evanghelie Zappa (1800-1865), born in Greece, but settled in Wallachia, where he got the Romanian citizenship. Enriched by the grain trade, Mr. Zappa left in his will a huge sum to the Greek state, in order to re-establish the Olympic Games. And he also set some conditions, including the construction of an Olympic venue. Which the Greeks actually did, in 1888. Pierre de Coubertin (1863-1937) proposed the resumption of the Olympic Games in 1894, at an international congress organized in France. And from here it all started… From what I read, the man dedicated himself to the Olympic movement until his death. Moreover, although buried in Switzerland, he wanted his heart to be buried in Greece, right on the site of the ancient ruins of Olympia. Pierre de Coubertin paid great attention to the organization of the Olympic ceremony and symbols, considered to be a true spiritual and traditional force. The most famous Olympic symbols are: \u2022 the Olympic motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (Faster, higher, stronger) \u2022 the Olympic flame, which symbolizes sacredness in Greek mythology. (It is lit from the rays of the sun in Olympia, in the temple of Goddess Hera and then carried by various means to the place of the Olympics.) \u2022 the Olympic circles \u2013 representing the union of the five continents, through the participants in the Olympics. THE OLYMPIC CIRCLES Even though there are 7 continents on the globe (Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe), the Olympic Committee tried to reconcile everyone and divided the world into 5 continents: America, Asia, Africa, Europe and Oceania-Antarctica. I never knew the significance of the colors of the 5 intertwined Olympic circles. I thought someone invented a color for each continent. But I understand that these colors were chosen for a clear reason: at least one of the 5 colors on the circles (plus white in the background, where it exists…) is found on the flag of every country in the world. FROM THE HISTORY OF THE OLYMPICS WHAT I FOUND UNIQUE, INTERESTING OR EVEN TRAGIC. ATHENS 1896 From the first edition of the Modern Olympic Games, we have the youngest participant in the history of the Olympics: a Greek gymnast who was only 10 years old. PARIS 1900 It is the first edition in which a Romanian athlete participates: George A. Plagino, who competes in shooting, plate competition, and ranks 13th out of 51 participants. The Paris edition is also the first edition in which women compete. The winners do not receive gold medals, but… paintings! The French considered them much more important. The truth is that for a Picasso I would have run too… SAINT LOUIS (USA) 1904 It is the first edition to award gold, silver and bronze medals. Speaking of medals, the American gymnast George Eyser wins six medals, although he has a wooden left leg! The 15,000-seat stadium built especially by the Americans on the occasion of this major event remains almost empty during the competitions. The small presence of athletes seems to have had two causes: the long distance from Europe and, therefore, complications related to transport, but also the European tension caused by the Russian-Japanese war. LONDON 1908 These are the longest Olympic Games in history! They started in April and ended in October, people!!! 187 days, to be precise! London had not competed to become the host. Rome won then (defeating Berlin and Milan), but due to the eruption of Vesuvius in 1906, London had to organize the Olympics… Romania did not officially participate in this edition, but the Romanian Stefan Somodi won the silver medal in the high jump, competing under the Hungarian flag, because Transylvania was at that time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. STOCKHOLM 1912 Solid gold medals are awarded at this Olympics. What luck for the champions! J After this edition, Olympic gold becomes… silver plated with gold. In 1916 Berlin was to host the Olympic Games, but due to the First World War, they were no longer held. ANTWERP 1920 The oldest medalist in the history of the Summer Olympics was awarded the medal here: the Swede Oscar Swahn (72 years old), who wins the silver medal in shooting. PARIS 1924 The American swimmer of Romanian origin, Johnny Weissmuller, wins three gold and one bronze medal. In a few years he would become the star of the Tarzan movie. AMSTERDAM 1928 For the first time, the Olympic flame lighting ceremony takes place. And, as a miscellaneous fact, Coca-Cola appears as a sponsor J. We’re talking about 1928, right?… LOS ANGELES 1932 Who do you think writes about these Games as a newspaper editor? None other than Mahatma Gandhi!!! Now the awards ceremony is organized: the podium, then the raising of the flags and the singing of the national anthem. A Polish athlete wins the gold medal in the women’s 100 meters (at the next Olympics she takes the silver in the same event). After her death, in 1980, it was discovered that she was a hermaphrodite and should not have competed… BERLIN 1936 Berlin + year 1936 = not good… It is the first Olympics to rise political protests. The games are officially opened by Adolf Hitler himself. A Romanian, Henri Rang, loses in a tiebreaker race the gold medal for horseback racing, individual training, after obtaining the same time with a German. Scheise! World War II stops the Olympics for 12 years! It was not until 1948 that they resumed. LONDON 1948 Germany and Japan are forbidden to participate in this edition, being considered responsible for the outbreak of World War II. Romania was also among the countries that were not present, but not because this was banned by anyone, but because the Romanian authorities declared that the country was in a disastrous economic situation, dried up by the war. For the first time in the history of the Olympic Games, the host country does not rank in the Top 10. HELSINKI 1952 The first Olympic gold for Romania, since the competition existed! Iosif Sarbu, in shooting. Well done, Iosif!!! MELBOURNE 1956 Nicolae Linca gets the first Olympic boxing title, a performance unmatched since then by any Romanian! (There were 5 gold medals for Romania at this edition \u2013 shooting, kayaking, canoeing, boxing) An unprecedented fact: due to legislation restricting the entry of animals on the Australian territory, the riding trials took place in Stockholm, Sweden. ROME 1960 A Danish cyclist collapsed during the race, under the influence of amphetamines, later dying in hospital. It is the second Olympic death after that of a Portuguese marathon runner, who died during the race, at the 1912 Olympics. TOKYO 1964 The first edition in Asia! Considered the Olympics of Records, because it registered several records: participation \u2013 95 countries, 76 Olympic records, 45 world records etc. And a surprise for everyone: an unknown Romanian, only 17 years old, becomes the Olympic champion in throwing the spear, breaking the world record. Mihaela Penes. MEXICO CITY 1968 A woman lit the Olympic flame for the first time in history. The altitude of Mexico City, located at 2,200 meters, caused breathing problems for many athletes. MUNICH 1972 11 Israeli athletes were kidnapped and killed by the terrorist organization “Black September”. MONTREAL 1976 Nadiaaaaa!!! And I said it all! Only 14 years old, our gymnast, Nadia Comaneci, gets the first 10 in the history of the Olympic Games (uneven bars) and does not stop here: there were 7 in total! The Olympic flame for this edition has a long story: from Greece, from the stadium where the competitions of the first edition of the modern Olympic Games took place, it is transmitted through a special laser beam system, via satellite, directly to Canada. After the opening of the Olympics, following a storm, the flame goes out, and a member of the staff lights it… with a lighter. How simple hihi. The organizers, however, extinguish the torch again and light it with the help of a spare flame, so that the public opinion does not\u2026 catch fire from indignation J. MOSCOW 1980 We go to our brothers at the time with the largest delegation in history: 239 athletes! Where there are many, the power increases, so Romania is on the 7th place in the ranking, with 25 medals (6 gold, 6 silver, 13 bronze). LOS ANGELES 1984 Well, here Romania was the best of the best! It ranked 2nd in the final ranking (after the USA), from 140 participating countries. Our athletes were great and won 20 gold medals! At this Olympics, Romania was the only country in the communist bloc who did not participate in the boycott initiated by the USSR (in response to the American boycott of the Moscow Olympics), which I understand made Ceausescu grow in the eyes of Western countries. During the opening ceremony, Romanian athletes were greeted with applause in response to their decision to defy the boycott. This is the first time that China has won a medal \u2013 something hard to imagine, given the performance of the Chinese now. Here they won a gold medal in shooting. SEOUL 1988 After winning the 100-meter race with a great result, a world record \u2013 9.79…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5100,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[1109,1110,1108,1114,1115,1111,1117,1107,1113,1116,1112],"class_list":["post-5099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-viata-asa-cum-e","tag-informatii-inedite-despre-olimpiade","tag-istoria-jocurilor-olimpice","tag-jocurile-olimpice","tag-jocurile-olimpice-antice","tag-jocurile-olimpice-moderne","tag-londra-2012","tag-nadia-comaneci","tag-olimpiada","tag-olimpiade","tag-produse-promotionale-tokyo-2020","tag-scurta-istorie","main-post"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"2.12.2","language":"en","enabled_languages":["ro","en"],"languages":{"ro":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5099"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5099"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5099\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6664,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5099\/revisions\/6664"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}PIERRE DE\nCOUBERTIN<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
THE OLYMPIC CIRCLES<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/tower-bridge_olympic-games.jpg\")
<\/a>FROM THE HISTORY OF THE OLYMPICS<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n