poetry in motion
August 9, 2024 4:17 AM Subscribe
Did Camus confound the judges with an absurdist goalkeeper’s lament? [lithub]
[Smithsonian:] Coubertin argued that the partnership of sport and art had “outlasted the destruction of Olympia,” and the time had come to “restore this ideal completely.” Now that the first three modern Games had gotten the ball rolling, it was “possible and desirable to bring muscles and thought together again.”
[lithub:] The 1948 London Olympics were the final artistic competitions at the games. At a meeting in Rome the following year, the committee concluded that “it appeared illogical that professionals should compete at such exhibitions and be awarded Olympic medals.” Among the final winners were gold medalist Aale Tynni of Finland—the first woman to win—and silver medalist Ernst Van Heerden, a South African poet who was the first openly gay Olympic medal winner.
[Smithsonian:] Coubertin argued that the partnership of sport and art had “outlasted the destruction of Olympia,” and the time had come to “restore this ideal completely.” Now that the first three modern Games had gotten the ball rolling, it was “possible and desirable to bring muscles and thought together again.”
[lithub:] The 1948 London Olympics were the final artistic competitions at the games. At a meeting in Rome the following year, the committee concluded that “it appeared illogical that professionals should compete at such exhibitions and be awarded Olympic medals.” Among the final winners were gold medalist Aale Tynni of Finland—the first woman to win—and silver medalist Ernst Van Heerden, a South African poet who was the first openly gay Olympic medal winner.
The arts were removed from the Olympics because it was felt that professional artists should not be competing at what was supposed to be an all amateur event (at least that was the excuse).
Given that the olympics have long given up on the whole amateur thing it's time we brought back the arts events.
I want to see the colour commentary on the town planning final ....
posted by mbo at 5:37 PM on August 9 [2 favorites]
Given that the olympics have long given up on the whole amateur thing it's time we brought back the arts events.
I want to see the colour commentary on the town planning final ....
posted by mbo at 5:37 PM on August 9 [2 favorites]
> it's time we brought back the arts events.
Very obviously the only intelligent way to do this is as here (obligatory Monty Python).
posted by flug at 3:39 AM on August 10 [1 favorite]
Very obviously the only intelligent way to do this is as here (obligatory Monty Python).
posted by flug at 3:39 AM on August 10 [1 favorite]
Pharrell has also recently called for the arts to be brought back for the LA games. I hope it happens - at least they should commission some murals, sculptures, have the skate park feature graffiti artists, etc.
posted by coffeecat at 10:23 AM on August 10 [1 favorite]
posted by coffeecat at 10:23 AM on August 10 [1 favorite]
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We do know, however, that Nobel Prize winner Selma Lagerlöf (the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, at that) was a judge for the literature category in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. She never went to Paris, though.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 7:13 AM on August 9 [2 favorites]