The history of the Olympic Games is filled not only with tales of heroism and grace, but also with some rather strange and unexpected stories, too. Impress your friends and family with these interesting (and sometimes hard-to-believe) facts, and get ready to watch the 2008 Olympic Games!
Did you know? Table Tennis
In its early years, table tennis players often used cigar box tops as rackets and champagne corks for balls. Nowadays, Olympic table tennis players use specially designed rubber-coated wooden rackets that allow them to hit balls at speeds of more than 160 km/h (100 mph) with spin approaching 7,500 rpm!
Did you know? The Marathon
In the 1912 Olympic Games, a struggling Japanese marathon runner stumbled into the garden of a family enjoying an afternoon picnic. After basking in the family's hospitality, he took a nap, woke up, and realized it was too late to finish the race!
* Rosenberg, Jennifer. "Interesting Olympic Facts." Familiar Factoids. 20 January 2008
* "Marathon." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 14 Mar 2008, 09:46 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 14 Mar 2008
* Tibballs, Geoff. The Olympics' Strangest Moments: Extraordinary But True Tales from the History of the Olympic Games. Glasgow: Anova Books, 2004
* "Marathon." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 14 Mar 2008, 09:46 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 14 Mar 2008
* Tibballs, Geoff. The Olympics' Strangest Moments: Extraordinary But True Tales from the History of the Olympic Games. Glasgow: Anova Books, 2004
Did you know? The Water Cube
Encased in a honeycomb-like outer layer of transparent plastic cushions, the new National Aquatic Center, or "Water Cube," will certainly be one of the most striking buildings on Beijing's Olympic Green. It will also be one of the cleanest - apparently birds never alight on transparent surfaces, which nearly ensures that the Water Cube will stay bird excrement free!
* Reuters. "Beijing's bubble-wrapped 'Water Cube' unveiled." abc.net. 28 January 2008
Did you know? Badminton
Badminton holds the unlikely distinction of "world's fastest racket sport." In badminton, players use long-handled rackets to volley an object known as a shuttlecock back and forth over a net. In competition, the shuttlecock (a small "missile" made of cork and goose feathers) can travel at speeds of more than 260 kilometers per hour (about 161 mph).
* "Fun Facts About Badminton." academics.uww.edu
* "Badminton." olympic.org
* "Shuttlecock." badminton-information.com
* "Badminton." olympic.org
* "Shuttlecock." badminton-information.com
Did you know? Greco-Roman Wrestling
Greco-Roman wrestling was not only present in the first Olympic Games, but is also widely considered to be the world's oldest competitive sport.
Did you know? Rainmakers
Literally unwilling to let nature rain on their parade, Beijing is taking extraordinary steps to avoid inclement weather during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games. In the days leading up to the event, anti-aircraft artillery batteries across the city will bombard clouds with silver iodide, causing the clouds to release their moisture and (hopefully) securing a dry August 8th flame lighting ceremony!
* MacLeod, Calum. "China rolls out the big guns, aiming for a dry Olympics." usatoday.com. 29 June 2006
Did you know? Field Hockey
India's Olympic field hockey team remained undefeated from 1928-1960, winning 30 games in a row and outscoring their opponents 197-8!
* Conner, Floyd. The Olympics' Most Wanted, Washington DC: Brassey's Inc., 2004
Did you know? Water Polo
In its earliest incarnation, water polo players sat atop floating wooden barrels and hit the ball with paddles, not unlike the equestrian version of polo played today!
Fischer, David. The Encyclopedia of the Summer Olympics, New York: Franklin Watts, 2003
Did you know? Badminton
16 feathers are used to make a badminton shuttlecock, and the best shuttles are made using feathers from the left wing of the goose!
* "Fun Facts About Badminton." academics.uww.edu
* "Badminton." olympic.org
* "Shuttlecock." badminton-information.com
* "Badminton." olympic.org
* "Shuttlecock." badminton-information.com
Did you know? Fencing
Disagreements during the 1924 Olympic fencing competition resulted in not one, but two real-life duels fought between Hungarian and Italian opponents after The Games.
Did you know? Equestrian: Dressage
The equestrian dressage competition is one of the only Olympic events in which men and women compete directly against each other. Until 1952 though, only male commissioned military officers were allowed to compete in the event.
* "Equestrian at the Summer Olympics." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 4 Mar 2008, 20:49 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 17 Mar 2008
* Conner, Floyd. The Olympics' Most Wanted, Washington DC: Brassey's Inc., 2004
* Gettings, John and Zurlo, Mark. "Equestrain." Infoplease.com
* Conner, Floyd. The Olympics' Most Wanted, Washington DC: Brassey's Inc., 2004
* Gettings, John and Zurlo, Mark. "Equestrain." Infoplease.com
Did you know? Pandas
Everybody loves pandas. Or, at least that's what officials at the Beijing Zoo are hoping for. The zoo will be shipping in up to 8 extra giant pandas for exhibition this summer, making it even easier for Olympic Games attendees to experience one of China's rarest and most distinctive national attractions.
* "Pandas move to Beijing zoo for Olympics" tv3.com. 1 April 2008
Did you know? Steeplechase
In the 3,000 meter steeplechase event, competitors run 7.5 laps around the track and jump over five barriers during each lap. Runners in the 1932 Olympic steeplechase event, though, actually ran an extra lap. This was not due to an overabundance of energy, but rather an official who lost count of how many laps had been run and neglected to end the race.
* Conner, Floyd. The Olympics' Most Wanted, Washington DC: Brassey's Inc., 2004
* "Middle distance track event." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Jan 2008, 15:23 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 17 Mar 2008
* "Middle distance track event." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Jan 2008, 15:23 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 17 Mar 2008
Did you know? The Bird's Nest
Affectionately nicknamed the "Bird's Nest" for its unique shape and construction, Beijing's new National Stadium was designed to seat 91,000 spectators for the 2008 Olympic Games. During The Games, the stadium will be home to both the athletics and soccer competitions.
* "2008 Summer Olympics." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 14 Mar 2008, 18:26 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 14 Mar 2008
* "Venue: National Stadium." en.beijing2008.cn
* "Venue: National Stadium." en.beijing2008.cn
Did you know? Table Tennis
Played competitively by more than 40 million people worldwide, table tennis (also known as Ping-Pong, Whiff-Whaff, Flim-Flam, and Gossima) is the world's largest participation sport.
Did you know? Water Polo
Hungary's gold-medal-winning water polo teams from the 1932 and 1936 Olympic Games featured a player with one leg amputated below the knee.
* Conner, Floyd. The Olympics' Most Wanted, Washington DC: Brassey's Inc., 2004
Did you know? Shooting
In the modern Olympic trap-shooting event, competitors take aim at flying disks known as "clay pigeons." Participants in the 1900 Games, however, shot at real, live birds! Shooting competitions using live pigeons were swiftly removed from the Olympic Games though, after too many birds were killed.
* Oxlade, Chris and Ballheimer, David. Eyewitness Books, Olympics, London: DK Publishing, Ink, 2005
Did you know? Terminal 3
Beijing is expected to receive more than half a million foreign visitors for the Olympic Games, and that means the local airports better be up to the task. At nearly 930,000 square meters (10 million square feet), Beijing Capital International Airport's new Terminal 3 will be the world's largest air terminal when it's completed this summer.
* Chen, Aric. "For Olympics in China, a dizzying hotel boom." International Herald Tribune. 22 August 2007
Did you know? Greco-Roman Wrestling
A Greco-Roman wrestling match during the 1912 Olympic Games lasted more than 11 hours. Although momentarily victorious, the winner was so exhausted by the end of the match that he was unable to compete in the championship and was forced to settle for a silver medal.
Did you know? Named for the Olympic Games
The spirit of the Olympic Games has taken China by storm! As evidence, nearly 3,500 babies have been named "Aoyun" (which translates to "Olympics") since the year 2000.
* "Weird Facts: 3,450 babies in China named 'Olympics' so far" weirdfactshere.blogspot.com. 6 November 2007
Did you know? Javelin
Sometimes, Olympic athletes just get too good. In 1908, the winning javelin throw at the Olympic Games was about 50 meters (approximately 164 ft.). By 1984, however, throws regularly reached double that distance, endangering spectators at the other end of the stadium. Thus, in the mid-1980s the javelin was redesigned so that it traveled shorter distances. As a result, winning javelin throws at the Olympic Games are now approximately 15 meters (about 49 ft.) less than before the new javelin was introduced.
* Haake, Steve. "Physics, technology and the Olympics." physicsworld.com. 1 September 2000
Did you know? Official Mascots - Fuwa
The five Official Mascots of the 2008 Olympic Games, called "Fuwa," embody qualities of four Chinese animals and the Olympic Flame. Each has a rhyming two-syllable name: Beibei is the Fish, Jingjing is the Panda, Huanhuan is the Olympic Flame, Yingying is the Tibetan Antelope, and Nini is the Swallow. Together, they say "Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni," or "Welcome to Beijing."
* "The Official Mascots of the 2008 Olympic Games." en.beijing2008.cn