The 1904 Olympics

There's quite a funny article in today's WSJ about the 1904 Olympics (the "Deja Vu" column). It describes the farce that was the 1904 Olympics, at St. Louis. Highlights include:

- 12 countries participated (sea travel was long, and expensive)

- A marthon runner was chased off the track by two large dogs. Another marathon runner picked up a couple of apples off the orchard and was then held up by cramps! He eventually finished 4th, which goes to show you can't hold a good man (or his stomach contents) down.

- The 400m track had no lanes marked

- The Olympics also featured events for "uncivilized tribes" - pygmies, and the like. It was the one and only time such an even took place.

Aah yes, that's the America we've come to know and love. Back then they didn't need the Simpsons as a mirror to their idiocies.