Viewers were left astonished by the mysterious, emerald-green swimming pool that became a feature of the Rio Olympic Games.
But those who think that this is one of the most bizarre scenes in Olympic history will have to think again.
Over the 120 years since the first modern Games took place, countless weird and wonderful moments have bemused and delighted onlookers, from a diet of whale meat for the British athletes to a champion gymnast with a wooden leg...
Athletes drinking brandy during races, a marathon runner DRIVING to the finish and the gymnast with a wooden leg... Oddest Olympic moments in history even put Rio's green swimming pool in the shade
There have been countless weird moments in the 120 years since the first modern Games took place
Odd sports include duelling, croquet, a water-obstacle race and tug-of-war
Marathon runners have been caught in cars, running the wrong way and taking naps
Heroes of the past include the 'Flying Housewife' and a wooden-legged gymnast
All of this makes Rio's green swimming pool fiasco seem positively tame
By Jake Wallis Simons, Associate Global Editor, For Mailonline
19 August 2016
Daily Mail
Viewers were left astonished by the mysterious, emerald-green swimming pool that became a feature of the Rio Olympic Games.
But those who think that this is one of the most bizarre scenes in Olympic history will have to think again.
Over the 120 years since the first modern Games took place, countless weird and wonderful moments have bemused and delighted onlookers, from a diet of whale meat for the British athletes to a champion gymnast with a wooden leg.
A Swedish athlete attempts the high jump at the White City Stadium in London 1908, against a backdrop of empty seats
American gymnast George Eyser, top, won an astonishing six medals in 1904 Olympics despite having a wooden leg, bottom
Frederick Lorz, number 31, who won the 1904 marathon but was disqualified for using a car, poses with the eventual winner, Thomas Hicks, number 20, who was sustained throughout the race by brandy and rat poison and then collapsed
Olympic athletes compete in the sport of 'barrel jumping', one of the disciplines at the 1904 Olympics in St Louis, USA
The Olympic tug-of-war competition at the 1904 Games in St Louis, USA. Few foreign competitors turned up, and both of the teams pictured are American
Argentine track athletes Adan Torres, Fernando Lapuente and Delfo Cabrera do their own laundry whilst in London for the 1948 Summer Olympics, which was known as the 'Austerity Games' on account of Britain's post-war poverty
The start of the 100 metres freestyle race at the 1904 Olympics at St Louis, USA. It was won by Hungary's Zoltan Halmay
The notorious green swimming pool that has provoked so much controversy and hilarity at the Rio Olympics 2016
An expert takes a sample of the green swimming pool water in Rio, top, which has done little to deter athletes, bottom
Paris, 1900
Live pigeons were used for the shooting competitions, and the list of sports included ballooning, cricket, croquet, a water obstacle race, life-saving, motor racing and underwater swimming.
The Games took place over an incredible five-and-a-half months, in conjunction with a major event called the Exposition Universelle, which celebrated Europe's achievements of the last 100 years, and included sporting competitions.
The two events quickly got muddled up, and – as historian David Wallechinsky noted – 'many athletes died without ever knowing that they had participated in the Olympics'.
Trophies and cups were used rather than medals, and there were no opening or closing ceremonies. American athletes complained about being forced to compete on a Sunday, the day of rest.
Pierre de Coubertin, the French founder of the International Olympic Committee, later commented: 'It's a miracle that the Olympic Movement survived that celebration'.
St Louis, 1904
Odd sports included roque, an American version of croquet, and barrel jumping, in which competitors had to - of course - jump through barrels. The undisputed hero of the Games was American gymnast George Eyser, who managed to win an astonishing brace of six medals despite having a wooden leg.
The men's marathon race deserves a special mention. Ed Lorz, the original winner, was found to have hitched a lift in a car after running just nine miles. The car broke down five miles from the finish line, so he jogged in as if nothing had happened.
When the truth came out, the title was passed to a Briton Thomas Hicks, who was representing the USA. He had apparently been sustained throughout the race by egg whites and slugs of brandy mixed with a stimulant derived from rat poison, and he collapsed on crossing the finish line (he later pointedly posed for a picture sitting in a car).
Charles Lucas, a race official, later wrote of the athlete's altered state: 'Hicks was running mechanically, like a well-oiled piece of machinery.
Len Taunyane was allowed to compete in the 1904 Olympics in St Louis and finished ninth despite being chased a mile off-course by wild dogs
'His eyes were dull, lusterless; the ashen color of his face and skin had deepened; his arms appeared as weights well tied down; he could scarcely lift his legs, while his knees were almost stiff.'
He was eventually carried over the finishing line by his trainers while his feet moved back and forth.
In fourth place came a five-foot, beret-wearing Cuban postman, Felix Carbajal, who was running in trousers that a fellow Olympian had cut to make them look like shorts. He had stopped during the race to eat some apples from an orchard, but had passed out after finding the fruit to be rotten.
Two black men, Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani, made history as the first to compete. Taunyane, who came ninth, was chased a mile off-course by a pack of wild dogs.
The Russo-Japanese War and poor roads meant that barely 12 teams turned up for this four-month-long event, meaning that most events had no non-American athletes. Even Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the French founder of the modern Olympics, decided to stay at home.
The 1976 East German swimmers, who were later exposed as long-term steroid users, had alarmingly muscular physiques and deep voices. They won 11 out of 13 medals, whereas at the previous Olympics they had failed to win even one
Kornelia Ender of East Germany's steroid-using 1976 swimming team.
London, 1908
The seven-month extravaganza, marred by antagonism between the Americans and the hosts, included a tug-of-war competition which was said to favour the British. It rained constantly and was often a mud bath.
Other sports included real tennis – an indoor court game originally played with no raquets – 'water motorsports', and duelling, which was carried out with revolvers loaded with wax bullets.
Once again, the marathon proved controversial. The Italian athlete Dorando Pietri, the first man over the line, was found to have been assisted by officials after collapsing several times and running in the wrong direction.
This incensed the American runner-up, Johnny Hayes, who made such a fuss that Pieri was eventually disqualified, but was still presented with a silver trophy by Queen Alexandra as a consolation prize.
Interestingly, a third of the £15,000 budget was allocated to 'entertainment'. Some things never change.
The tug-of-war at the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris, thought to be between France and a combined Swedish-Danish team
Italian marathon runner Dorando Pietri collapsed several times and ran the wrong way during the 1908 London Olympics, but was helped to victory by obliging officials – an act of kindness that got him later disqualified
Pieri may have been disqualified, but he was still presented with a silver trophy by Queen Alexandra as a consolation prize
London, 1948
Post-war Britain was broke, and the Games – which cost just cost £730,000 – were quickly nicknamed the ‘Austerity Olympics’.
British athletes desperate for protein resorted to eating whale meat, and the highlight of the opening ceremony was nothing more spectacular than the release of pigeons above north London.
International contestants were asked to bring their own towels, and many also brought their own food (taking no chances, the French arrived with a supply of wine).
The Usain Bolt of 1948 was 'the Flying Housewife', Fanny Blankers-Kohn. The indomitable, 30-year-old Dutch mother-of-two won four gold medals in a variety of track events.
Britain had to appeal to its international friends for provisions. Food, drinking water and gym equipment were all borrowed from abroad, and the Canadians donated two pine planks for the diving competitions.
Miss Queenie Newall won the ladies' archery competition at the London Olympic Games in 1908
Great Britain's Charlotte Cooper won gold in the singles and mixed doubles competitions at the 1900 Olympics in Paris
There was a silver lining, however. The austerity Olympics ended up making a profit of almost £30,000, of which the taxman received £9,000. There's a lesson in there, somewhere.
The Usain Bolt of 1948 was 'the Flying Housewife', Fanny Blankers-Kohn. The indomitable, 30-year-old mother-of-two won four gold medals in a variety of track events
British train driver Charles Bennett wins the 1,500 metres event at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris
French athlete Micheline Ostermeyer won gold at the shot put during the summer 1948 Olympics in London
Montreal, 1976
More than 20 African countries boycotted the games in response to the New Zealand rugby team playing in apartheid South Africa (rugby was not an Olympic sport at the time).
Mysteriously, East German women won 11 out of 13 swimming events, when they had failed to win even one medal four years before. Equally strangely, they all had large, muscular physiques and alarmingly deep voices.
The controversy prompted one East German official to complain, 'we came to swim, not sing'. Evidence later emerged that proved their widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs.
But those who think that this is one of the most bizarre scenes in Olympic history will have to think again.
Over the 120 years since the first modern Games took place, countless weird and wonderful moments have bemused and delighted onlookers, from a diet of whale meat for the British athletes to a champion gymnast with a wooden leg...
Athletes drinking brandy during races, a marathon runner DRIVING to the finish and the gymnast with a wooden leg... Oddest Olympic moments in history even put Rio's green swimming pool in the shade
There have been countless weird moments in the 120 years since the first modern Games took place
Odd sports include duelling, croquet, a water-obstacle race and tug-of-war
Marathon runners have been caught in cars, running the wrong way and taking naps
Heroes of the past include the 'Flying Housewife' and a wooden-legged gymnast
All of this makes Rio's green swimming pool fiasco seem positively tame
By Jake Wallis Simons, Associate Global Editor, For Mailonline
19 August 2016
Daily Mail
Viewers were left astonished by the mysterious, emerald-green swimming pool that became a feature of the Rio Olympic Games.
But those who think that this is one of the most bizarre scenes in Olympic history will have to think again.
Over the 120 years since the first modern Games took place, countless weird and wonderful moments have bemused and delighted onlookers, from a diet of whale meat for the British athletes to a champion gymnast with a wooden leg.
A Swedish athlete attempts the high jump at the White City Stadium in London 1908, against a backdrop of empty seats
American gymnast George Eyser, top, won an astonishing six medals in 1904 Olympics despite having a wooden leg, bottom
Frederick Lorz, number 31, who won the 1904 marathon but was disqualified for using a car, poses with the eventual winner, Thomas Hicks, number 20, who was sustained throughout the race by brandy and rat poison and then collapsed
Olympic athletes compete in the sport of 'barrel jumping', one of the disciplines at the 1904 Olympics in St Louis, USA
The Olympic tug-of-war competition at the 1904 Games in St Louis, USA. Few foreign competitors turned up, and both of the teams pictured are American
Argentine track athletes Adan Torres, Fernando Lapuente and Delfo Cabrera do their own laundry whilst in London for the 1948 Summer Olympics, which was known as the 'Austerity Games' on account of Britain's post-war poverty
The start of the 100 metres freestyle race at the 1904 Olympics at St Louis, USA. It was won by Hungary's Zoltan Halmay
The notorious green swimming pool that has provoked so much controversy and hilarity at the Rio Olympics 2016
An expert takes a sample of the green swimming pool water in Rio, top, which has done little to deter athletes, bottom
Paris, 1900
Live pigeons were used for the shooting competitions, and the list of sports included ballooning, cricket, croquet, a water obstacle race, life-saving, motor racing and underwater swimming.
The Games took place over an incredible five-and-a-half months, in conjunction with a major event called the Exposition Universelle, which celebrated Europe's achievements of the last 100 years, and included sporting competitions.
The two events quickly got muddled up, and – as historian David Wallechinsky noted – 'many athletes died without ever knowing that they had participated in the Olympics'.
Trophies and cups were used rather than medals, and there were no opening or closing ceremonies. American athletes complained about being forced to compete on a Sunday, the day of rest.
Pierre de Coubertin, the French founder of the International Olympic Committee, later commented: 'It's a miracle that the Olympic Movement survived that celebration'.
St Louis, 1904
Odd sports included roque, an American version of croquet, and barrel jumping, in which competitors had to - of course - jump through barrels. The undisputed hero of the Games was American gymnast George Eyser, who managed to win an astonishing brace of six medals despite having a wooden leg.
The men's marathon race deserves a special mention. Ed Lorz, the original winner, was found to have hitched a lift in a car after running just nine miles. The car broke down five miles from the finish line, so he jogged in as if nothing had happened.
When the truth came out, the title was passed to a Briton Thomas Hicks, who was representing the USA. He had apparently been sustained throughout the race by egg whites and slugs of brandy mixed with a stimulant derived from rat poison, and he collapsed on crossing the finish line (he later pointedly posed for a picture sitting in a car).
Charles Lucas, a race official, later wrote of the athlete's altered state: 'Hicks was running mechanically, like a well-oiled piece of machinery.
Len Taunyane was allowed to compete in the 1904 Olympics in St Louis and finished ninth despite being chased a mile off-course by wild dogs
'His eyes were dull, lusterless; the ashen color of his face and skin had deepened; his arms appeared as weights well tied down; he could scarcely lift his legs, while his knees were almost stiff.'
He was eventually carried over the finishing line by his trainers while his feet moved back and forth.
In fourth place came a five-foot, beret-wearing Cuban postman, Felix Carbajal, who was running in trousers that a fellow Olympian had cut to make them look like shorts. He had stopped during the race to eat some apples from an orchard, but had passed out after finding the fruit to be rotten.
Two black men, Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani, made history as the first to compete. Taunyane, who came ninth, was chased a mile off-course by a pack of wild dogs.
The Russo-Japanese War and poor roads meant that barely 12 teams turned up for this four-month-long event, meaning that most events had no non-American athletes. Even Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the French founder of the modern Olympics, decided to stay at home.
The 1976 East German swimmers, who were later exposed as long-term steroid users, had alarmingly muscular physiques and deep voices. They won 11 out of 13 medals, whereas at the previous Olympics they had failed to win even one
Kornelia Ender of East Germany's steroid-using 1976 swimming team.
London, 1908
The seven-month extravaganza, marred by antagonism between the Americans and the hosts, included a tug-of-war competition which was said to favour the British. It rained constantly and was often a mud bath.
Other sports included real tennis – an indoor court game originally played with no raquets – 'water motorsports', and duelling, which was carried out with revolvers loaded with wax bullets.
Once again, the marathon proved controversial. The Italian athlete Dorando Pietri, the first man over the line, was found to have been assisted by officials after collapsing several times and running in the wrong direction.
This incensed the American runner-up, Johnny Hayes, who made such a fuss that Pieri was eventually disqualified, but was still presented with a silver trophy by Queen Alexandra as a consolation prize.
Interestingly, a third of the £15,000 budget was allocated to 'entertainment'. Some things never change.
The tug-of-war at the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris, thought to be between France and a combined Swedish-Danish team
Italian marathon runner Dorando Pietri collapsed several times and ran the wrong way during the 1908 London Olympics, but was helped to victory by obliging officials – an act of kindness that got him later disqualified
Pieri may have been disqualified, but he was still presented with a silver trophy by Queen Alexandra as a consolation prize
London, 1948
Post-war Britain was broke, and the Games – which cost just cost £730,000 – were quickly nicknamed the ‘Austerity Olympics’.
British athletes desperate for protein resorted to eating whale meat, and the highlight of the opening ceremony was nothing more spectacular than the release of pigeons above north London.
International contestants were asked to bring their own towels, and many also brought their own food (taking no chances, the French arrived with a supply of wine).
The Usain Bolt of 1948 was 'the Flying Housewife', Fanny Blankers-Kohn. The indomitable, 30-year-old Dutch mother-of-two won four gold medals in a variety of track events.
Britain had to appeal to its international friends for provisions. Food, drinking water and gym equipment were all borrowed from abroad, and the Canadians donated two pine planks for the diving competitions.
Miss Queenie Newall won the ladies' archery competition at the London Olympic Games in 1908
Great Britain's Charlotte Cooper won gold in the singles and mixed doubles competitions at the 1900 Olympics in Paris
There was a silver lining, however. The austerity Olympics ended up making a profit of almost £30,000, of which the taxman received £9,000. There's a lesson in there, somewhere.
The Usain Bolt of 1948 was 'the Flying Housewife', Fanny Blankers-Kohn. The indomitable, 30-year-old mother-of-two won four gold medals in a variety of track events
British train driver Charles Bennett wins the 1,500 metres event at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris
French athlete Micheline Ostermeyer won gold at the shot put during the summer 1948 Olympics in London
Montreal, 1976
More than 20 African countries boycotted the games in response to the New Zealand rugby team playing in apartheid South Africa (rugby was not an Olympic sport at the time).
Mysteriously, East German women won 11 out of 13 swimming events, when they had failed to win even one medal four years before. Equally strangely, they all had large, muscular physiques and alarmingly deep voices.
The controversy prompted one East German official to complain, 'we came to swim, not sing'. Evidence later emerged that proved their widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs.
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