London's First Olympics

After Mount Vesuvius erupted - and original hosts Rome pulled out - the British Olympic council sent a letter, dated 19th November, 1906, agreeing to host the fourth modern Olympic games. With just two years to go, the event was put together hastily, and on a paltry budget; a stadium erected at the White City home of the Franco-British exhibition, and the chosen events ones that British athletes excelled at, including polo, lacrosse, tug of war, deer-shooting, and duelling. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal what a ‘flip-flap’ was; consider the calculation done to establish the length of the modern-day marathon; and establish how a small swig of champagne contributed to one of the Games' greatest ever controversies... Further Reading: ‘The 08 Olympics... 1908, that is’ (BBC News Magazine, 2008): http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7544392.stm ‘Why Is a Marathon 26.2 Miles?’ (HISTORY, 2014): https://www.history.com/news/why-is-a-marathon-26-2-miles • ‘The 1908 London Olympics - extracts from surviving footage of Track & Field and Marathon events’ (BFI, 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IqE2KEqZJI For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/Retrospectors We'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.  #1900s #Sport #UK Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices