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00:00 [music]
00:23 2716 years ago, within the shadow of beautiful Mount Olympus in the land of ancient Greece,
00:32 was born an institution known as the Olympic Games.
00:37 Emblematic of these glorious athletic festivals is the torchbearer,
00:42 who down through the ages has carried aloft the precious flame to the far corners of the earth.
00:48 Rome, Egypt, India, China,
00:56 through forests and trackless ways, over mountains and sea,
01:03 down to the present day.
01:07 The ritual of the Olympiads demands that this heroic flame shall not become extinguished,
01:13 but shall be kept burning at all costs, serving as a beacon whose unfailing light
01:19 shall guide all athletes in fair play and clean sportsmanship.
01:24 To give them courage and forever remind them of the brave and the strong,
01:29 whose nerves of steel and cool heads shall keep alive and preserve at any sacrifice
01:35 this precious spark for posterity,
01:38 that all mankind shall benefit by the light that never fails.
01:44 [music]
01:47 The first Olympic event was foot racing.
01:51 Therefore, let us briefly analyze the fundamental strides.
01:56 First, the sprinter.
01:58 Note the powerful piston-like action of the legs as compared to the long distance
02:03 or space-devouring stride of the miler.
02:09 And then that of the marathon runner,
02:11 whose effortless, untiring stride carries him for amazing distance.
02:16 And last but not least, the walk.
02:19 Perhaps one of the most graceful of all,
02:21 exacting the perfect coordination of all the muscles of the body.
02:25 Note the similarity of the walk to a dance.
02:28 [music]
02:45 Hey, wait a sec. We're off the track.
02:48 Uh, track.
02:50 Oh, yes, track.
02:52 One of the most spectacular of all track events is the hurdles.
02:57 Ready, set, go!
03:01 Nothing can compare to the ease and grace of the hurdles for sheer beauty of motion.
03:07 [music]
03:21 The pole vault.
03:25 Beginning with a short run, the pole is planted in the pit.
03:29 The swing up. Hold it!
03:31 We are now at the apex of the vertical lift.
03:34 Notice the position of the legs just coming into the jackknife.
03:37 Observe the swing of the hips and the knee flexation
03:40 as the legs progress into their arc, proprietary to crossing the bar.
03:45 Crossing the... You know, that reminds me of a poem by Tennyson, "Crossing the Bar."
03:50 Sunset and evening star, and one clear call for me.
03:57 And may there be no moaning of the bar when I put out to sea.
04:02 Don't you think that's a lovely thought?
04:04 I do.
04:06 All right, jump!
04:08 [music]
04:10 Oh, yes.
04:12 From this position, the body arches itself in a graceful glide,
04:17 clearing the crossbar and settling it gently into the sawdust below.
04:22 [music]
04:46 Hammer throwing, more than any other event, calls for terrific muscular development,
04:52 plus height, weight, and mental alertness.
04:56 The hammer must be swung in a circle until terrific speed is attained.
05:01 [music]
05:18 [music]
05:37 And last, but far from least, the decathlon,
05:41 a group of ten events arranged to test the athlete's stamina and power.
05:48 [music]
06:10 [music]
06:39 [music]
06:49 To the victor belong the spoils.
06:54 [music]