The Games faced existential crisis soon as a result of ham-handed organisation in 1900 and 1904.
Chennai: The efforts of a handful of people, among whom Pierre de Coubertin was most prominent, may have borne fruit with the birth of the modern Olympics in 1896 but the Games faced existential crisis soon as a result of ham-handed organisation in 1900 and 1904. Even the inaugural edition was beset by problems on multiple fronts. Given the Greek government’s lack of financial muscle, the Olympics got off the floor thanks to the generous contribution of a wealthy businessman, Georgios Averoff.
In 1896, rowing and sailing were cancelled owing to inclement weather. In swimming events, staged in the chilly waters of the Mediterranean Sea, many competitors struggled to last the distance. Hungary’s Alfred Hajos, who won the 1,200m race after being dropped by a boat at the starting point in the sea, said: “My will to live completely overcame my desire to win.”
Most of the contestants of the first edition, which ran from April 6 to 15, were tourists who had come to Athens. Competition was far from fierce in many events. For example, USA’s Robert Garrett clinched the discus gold though he hadn’t seen the circular disc before!
The second edition in Paris, which went on from May 14 to October 28 in 1900, was a mess. First of all, the Games lost their primacy as they were conducted as an appendage to the World’s Fair. The organisation was so chaotic and haphazard that Frenchman Michael Theato wasn’t aware that he had won the marathon for the next 12 years! USA’s Margaret Abbott, winner of women’s golf, said her fellow competitors had turned up in high heels and tight skirts.
The Games at St Louis, USA, in 1904 put Paris in the shade — in mismanagement. Not many foreign athletes could cough up the money for the long sea trip to Missouri. Just when it appeared that the dream project of Coubertin was on the verge of an early death, Greece once again rose to the occasion by staging interim Games at Athens in 1906 to restore Olympic movement’s credibility. Unfortunately, though, the IOC has refused to recognise the 1906 Games.
