Sports

Bizarre Fact #111:
Did you know...
The last Olympic gold medals that were made entirely out of gold were awarded in 1912.

Bizarre Fact #112:
Did you know...
The Olympic medals are designed especially for each individual Olympic Games by the host city's organizing committee. Each medal must be at least three millimeters thick and 60 millimeters in diameter. Also, the gold and silver Olympic medals must be made out of 92.5 percent silver, with the gold medal covered in six grams of gold.

Bizarre Fact #113:
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The first opening ceremonies were held during the 1908 Olympic Games in London.

Bizarre Fact #114:
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During the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, the procession of athletes is always led by the Greek team, followed by all the other teams in alphabetical order (in the language of the hosting country), except for the last team which is always the team of the hosting country.

Bizarre Fact #115:
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When choosing locations for the Olympic Games, the IOC specifically gives the honor of holding the Games to a city rather than a country.

Bizarre Fact #116:
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In order to make the IOC an independent organization, the members of the IOC are not considered diplomats from their countries to the IOC, but rather are diplomats from the IOC to their respective countries.

Bizarre Fact #117:
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James B. Connolly (United States), winner of the hop, step, and jump (the first final event in the 1896 Olympics), was the first Olympic champion of the modern Olympic Games.

Bizarre Fact #118:
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Women were first allowed to participate in 1900 at the second modern Olympic Games.

Bizarre Fact #119:
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In 490 BCE, Pheidippides, a Greek soldier, ran from Marathon to Athens (about 25 miles) to inform the Athenians the outcome of the battle with invading Persians. The distance was filled with hills and other obstacles; thus Pheidippides arrived in Athens exhausted and with bleeding feet. After telling the townspeople of the Greeks' success in the battle, Pheidippides fell to the ground dead. In 1896, at the first modern Olympic Games, held a race of approximately the same length in commemoration of Pheidippides.

Bizarre Fact #120:
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During the first several modern Olympics, the marathon was always an approximate distance. In 1908, the British royal family requested that the marathon start at the Windsor Castle so that the royal children could witness its start. The distance from the Windsor Castle to the Olympic Stadium was 42,195 meters (or 26 miles and 385 yards). In 1924, this distance became the standardized length of a marathon.