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Talk of the Town: No nudity in the Olympics these days...no how!

By Regina Ford

Published: Thursday, August 14, 2008 10:33 PM MST

While some of us have the stamina to stay up late and watch the Olympics, others (like me) like to read about it or view the results on the TV the next day in a more acceptable time slot.

Here is just a little bit of bizarre Olympic coverage thanks to Justin Feinstein who is a frequent contributor to Mental Floss magazine:

According to Feinstein, the ancient Olympic Games served as the basis for our modern Olympics. Many things did not survive the Olympic journey, he notes.

“Competing in the nude” wasn’t the only thing that was eventually canned. Athletes who arrived late to compete were fined big time. The only acceptable excuses were being shipwrecked, weather or pirates. Athletes that were caught cheating were also fined, but were allowed to keep their winnings.

It seems the men won regardless of what was going on. Married women caught watching the Games lost big time though. They were executed. Of course, that probably had something to do with the whole competing in the nude thing.

Scoring a perfect 10 in yesteryear was the ultimate dream of every Olympian. In 1924, 22 male gymnasts made this dream a reality in the same event. Strange, but true. The event was rope climbing, which has since been discontinued.

Basketball’s debut at the 1936 Olympics was a muddy mess. Not only were the finals a low scoring affair (the United States snagged gold from Canada in a sleep-inducing 19-8 game), but the conditions were downright dirty. Part of the problem was Germany’s choice of venue. The game was played outdoors on a dirt court in a downpour. Consequently, dribbling was a drag. Things weren’t much better for the spectators. A lack of seating forced all (approximately 1,000) of the fans to stand and watch in the rain.

The 1900 Paris Olympics were the only Games to feature such time-wasters as pigeon shooting and swimming through an obstacle course - which included swimming under boats.

The first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896 and yielded perhaps the most unlikely champion in Olympic history. A student at Oxford, John Boland traveled to Greece as a spectator to enjoy the games. As it turns out, a friend on the Olympic committee had signed him up for the tennis competition. Despite a lack of proper attire, the gutsy Boland decided to go ahead and play (in his dress shoes, no less) and actually won.

Valley Quilters Guild had their annual Charity Sew Day on July 24 with more than 30 members meeting at the American Legion Post # 66 for a full day of sewing for charities. It was a wonderful day filled with humming sewing machines, flying fabric and laughter. Members donate their time, talents and fabric to support our selected charities.

More than 250 pillow slip tote bags were sewn for the Ronald McDonald House in Tucson and the local women’s shelter for domestic violence?—Hands of a Friend Safe House. Each person going through both of these charities receives one of the bags to hold all of their personal items, in addition to being used as a pillow slip.

Charity Chairperson, Nina Keck, invited Matt Hitchcock from the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern Arizona and Patti O’Berry from Hands of a Friend to speak to the group about their charities. Both agencies are in constant need of items to continue to operate and also appreciate monetary donations.

In addition, the Safe House operates Dazee’s Resale Shop which accepts donations of clothing, furniture and household items. If you’re interested in finding out more about the Valley Quilters Guild, you may either come to a general meeting on the fourth Thursday of every month at 1 p.m. at the American Legion Post # 66, 1560 W. Duval Mine Rd., Sahuarita or e-mail: vgq-info@cox.net

Green Valley Elks Lodge #2592 is busy raising money for the Arizona Elks Major Projects, a non-profit Arizona-based corporation that helps support children’s health through funding research at the Steele Children’s Research Center at University Medical Center in Tucson.

Elks Exalted Ruler Phyllis Curran recently received a check for $1,100 from Jerry Baldridge, president of the Green Valley Elks Lodge bowling league, earmarked for the Arizona Elks Major Projects. AEMP also maintains a camp providing youth with life experiences that build self-esteem, team work and family values.

Let’s not forget three favorite but pretty unknown Olympic athletes. Swede Oscar Swahn won a silver medal in a deer-shooting event at the 1920 Olympics at the age of 72! In 1904, American gymnast George Eyser won six medals (three gold) despite having a wooden left leg, which is even more amazing. But Hungarian pistol shooter Karoly Takacs taught himself how to shoot left-handed after his right (shooting) hand was shattered by a grenade, and then went on to win the rapid-fire shooting event at the 1948 Olympics. Give that man the gold!

rford@gvnews.com | 547-9740


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