WEBVTT - Poodle Grooming and Other (Nearly) Olympic Sports

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<v Speaker 1>You're listening to part Time Genius, the production of Kaleidoscope

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<v Speaker 1>and iHeartRadio. Guess what Will?

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<v Speaker 2>What's that Mango?

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<v Speaker 1>So you know how I love all those obscure Olympic

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<v Speaker 1>sports that are kind of on the bubble right.

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<v Speaker 2>This is something you and I have talked about for

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<v Speaker 2>a long time. We both love learning about all the

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<v Speaker 2>weird sports, the strange sports like chest boxing, extreme ironing,

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<v Speaker 2>all the good stuff like that.

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<v Speaker 1>Dream ironing is like my favorite easily. I was reading

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<v Speaker 1>an article on GQ about historic Olympic sports, and the

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<v Speaker 1>number one straightest Olympic sport on their list is poodle clipping.

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<v Speaker 1>Can you believe that?

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<v Speaker 2>Actually, no, I don't think that.

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<v Speaker 1>I did. Wait, was poodle clipping actually a sport? According

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<v Speaker 1>to the article, it was just a test event. But

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<v Speaker 1>in the Paris nineteen hundred Games, one hundred and twenty

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<v Speaker 1>eight poodle groomers supposedly competed in front of a lively

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<v Speaker 1>crowd of six thousand cheering fans where they had to

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<v Speaker 1>trim as much for off as many poodles as they

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<v Speaker 1>could in two hours, which sounds utterly ridiculous.

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<v Speaker 2>That is incredible, and I do have to say I

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<v Speaker 2>don't want to brag, but I feel like I could

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<v Speaker 2>have gold zoned the heck out of that event. But

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<v Speaker 2>I am curious, like, how many poodles do you have

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<v Speaker 2>to shave to win an event like that?

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<v Speaker 1>Well, I am certain that poodle clipping training and technology

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<v Speaker 1>has only advanced since nineteen hundred, but at the time,

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<v Speaker 1>the gold medal was supposedly won by a farmer's wife

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<v Speaker 1>named a real lafoul who gave fancy haircuts to seventeen poodles.

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<v Speaker 1>And this is the fact. You can find all over

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<v Speaker 1>the web, from the Sunday Times to the BBC's Olympics

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<v Speaker 1>live blog from Beijing and of course GQ where I

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<v Speaker 1>found it. So of course I was super excited to

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<v Speaker 1>talk about it. But it turns out, and this totally

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<v Speaker 1>broke my heart. Poodle clipping is a hoax.

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<v Speaker 2>No, oh man, this is heartbreaking because I was actually

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<v Speaker 2>really going to get into it, Like, once a poodle

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<v Speaker 2>is shaved, do they go back to that same poodle

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<v Speaker 2>or do they just have this long line of poodles,

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<v Speaker 2>Like once you shaved, you're done.

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<v Speaker 1>But you have to toss the poodle to move on.

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<v Speaker 2>I think I guess so. But anyway, if it's a hoax,

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<v Speaker 2>so there's there's no poodle clipping in the Olympics.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, and so this comes from the Museum of Hoaxes.

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<v Speaker 1>But in two thousand and eight, a writer named Christopher

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<v Speaker 1>Lyles was writing a daily countdown column for the Daily Telegraph,

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<v Speaker 1>and every day he wrote some sort of story or

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<v Speaker 1>fact about Olympic history. But on April first, he decided

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<v Speaker 1>to have some fun with his column and he made

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<v Speaker 1>up this bit about poodle clipping. Now, the Olympics obviously

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<v Speaker 1>has tested a whole bunch of unusual games over the years,

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<v Speaker 1>from pigeon shooting to tandem cycling, and when he published

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<v Speaker 1>that poodle clipping was a test event in the nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>hundred France Olympics, it kind of felt too good to

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<v Speaker 1>be true, right, Like it's French, it's historic, it involves poodles.

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<v Speaker 1>But of course one of the clearest tells was the

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<v Speaker 1>name of the winner of real lafool aka the French

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<v Speaker 1>word for April and lafool. Anyway, as the Museum of

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<v Speaker 1>Hoaxes put it, the April Fools joke has a slow

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<v Speaker 1>burn because people forget about it, and then every four

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<v Speaker 1>years of resurfaces, making anyone in the nose smile again,

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<v Speaker 1>which is a pretty wonderful legacy.

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<v Speaker 2>That's pretty great.

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<v Speaker 1>Anyway, Now that the Paris Games are over, and you know,

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<v Speaker 1>we're setting our sites on the La Olympics, I thought

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<v Speaker 1>it would actually be fun to revisit some ridiculous sports

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<v Speaker 1>and competitions. Not poodle clipping, but you know, games that

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<v Speaker 1>were actually a part of the Olympics, and I thought

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<v Speaker 1>you might be up for that.

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<v Speaker 2>I love this because I'm having that withdrawal. You know,

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<v Speaker 2>it's been so much fun. I'm not getting to watch

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<v Speaker 2>anybody win medals for trampolining and all that good stuff.

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<v Speaker 2>So let's do what I'm in. Hey, their podcast listeners,

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<v Speaker 2>welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and is all.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm joined by my good friend menges Sha Ticketer and

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<v Speaker 2>sitting behind that big booth practicing twirling in his office

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<v Speaker 2>chair like it's an Olympic sport. I mean, he actually,

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<v Speaker 2>I would say, looks like an Olympic gymnast as qualified

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<v Speaker 2>as he is with this. It's just amazing. Look at

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<v Speaker 2>him go a mango.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean it's impressive. He was doing handstands earlier. But

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<v Speaker 1>Dylan does know that desk twirling isn't an Olympic sport, right.

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<v Speaker 2>No, No, he knows this. He's been hard at work

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<v Speaker 2>petitioning in the IOC, and he'll be ready when they

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<v Speaker 2>admit it to the twenty twenty eight Games. He's optimistic.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm optimistic.

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<v Speaker 1>I cannot wait to cheer him on. Well.

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<v Speaker 2>I don't know about you, Mango, but I'm still coming

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<v Speaker 2>down from all the excitement of the Olympic Games. And

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<v Speaker 2>it's fun to look back at some of the unusual

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<v Speaker 2>events that used to be included. Like this comes for

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<v Speaker 2>the International Society of Olympic Historians, and it talks about

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<v Speaker 2>some of the contests that took place in the nineteen

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<v Speaker 2>hundred Paris Olympics. They included cannon firing, pigeon racing, firefighting,

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<v Speaker 2>and kite flying. Some of this just seems so fun.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, they all sound crazy, I but firefighting is

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<v Speaker 1>a sport is kind of amazing.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I mean this comes from a time when the

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<v Speaker 2>World's Fair used to run in tandem with the Olympic Games,

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<v Speaker 2>and there was actually a lot of crossover between the

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<v Speaker 2>two events. And there's some disagreement from the IOC about

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<v Speaker 2>which ones were fully part of the Olympics, but there

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<v Speaker 2>were definitely a lot of experimental and exhibition games taking

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<v Speaker 2>place really sort of all over Paris.

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<v Speaker 1>So of course, part of the reason we're doing this

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<v Speaker 1>episode is because we love stories about things on the bubble,

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<v Speaker 1>like we love tales about pedigree dogs that are on

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<v Speaker 1>the cusp of being allowed to compete in the Westminster

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<v Speaker 1>Dog Show, or words that got cut from the dictionary.

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<v Speaker 1>And of course there are a lot of Olympic sports

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<v Speaker 1>that fall into this category as well, including breakdancing or breaking,

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<v Speaker 1>which was just add to the Olympic Games this year,

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<v Speaker 1>and I was curious, did you enjoy watching breakdancing the Olympics.

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<v Speaker 2>I have to say people sometimes question why it's in

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<v Speaker 2>the Olympics, but if you think about it, if you're

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<v Speaker 2>out in public and breakdancing is on TV. This actually

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<v Speaker 2>happened to me just a couple of weeks ago during

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<v Speaker 2>the Olympics, and you see it on TV, and the

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<v Speaker 2>response from everybody this was in a restaurant, is they

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<v Speaker 2>all start acting like their break dancing, Like there's something

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<v Speaker 2>so fun and almost contagious about it, Like everybody starts

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<v Speaker 2>doing their same awful moves. It it's it's just a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of fun.

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<v Speaker 1>Honestly, yeah, I agree, But what fact are you going

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<v Speaker 1>to lead off with?

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<v Speaker 2>All right, Well, you know, I'm a fan of American

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<v Speaker 2>Ninja Warrior. Like from wayback in the earliest days, Big

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<v Speaker 2>Time used to set up courses for my kids all

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<v Speaker 2>through our den and everywhere, and it was just so

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<v Speaker 2>much fun to turn our house into the ultimate obstacle course. Now, look,

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<v Speaker 2>I wasn't fooling myself. I didn't think my kids would ever,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, end up in American Ninja Warrior, because I

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<v Speaker 2>certainly didn't have the coordination to do it. But it

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<v Speaker 2>was fun to be able to pretend at home. And

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<v Speaker 2>so I was delighted when I found out that swimming

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<v Speaker 2>obstacle race used to be an event in the Olympics.

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<v Speaker 2>I love obstacle races, just like cannon shooting and kite flying.

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<v Speaker 2>This comes from the nineteen hundred Olympic Games in Paris,

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<v Speaker 2>but the event almost sounds like it was just made

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<v Speaker 2>up on the spot. So swimmers had to get across

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<v Speaker 2>this two hundred meter course on the River sind which

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<v Speaker 2>included quote, climbing over a pole, scrambling over a row

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<v Speaker 2>of boats, swimming under another row, of boats. I mean,

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<v Speaker 2>it's just again, it's like they're making it up along

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<v Speaker 2>the way. And the event was supposed to show strength,

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<v Speaker 2>agility and swimming prowess, which I guess it did.

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<v Speaker 1>It almost sounds like a doubledare course right in the slime. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, there's no like flag you pull out of a

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<v Speaker 2>nose or anything like that. But you know, of course

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<v Speaker 2>that the river was apparently really muddy during the event,

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<v Speaker 2>so it might have been a thicker swim than you'd

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<v Speaker 2>expect for an Olympic game. So even back then they

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<v Speaker 2>were having some trouble with what they needed out of

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<v Speaker 2>the water. But what's also interesting is that an Australian

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<v Speaker 2>athlete named Fred Lane won the obstacle course race and

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<v Speaker 2>he also won the two hundred meter freestyle, so this

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<v Speaker 2>was a very good athlete. But according to the Olympic

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<v Speaker 2>dot COM's profile of him, it was at a time

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<v Speaker 2>when people were still trying to figure out what the

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<v Speaker 2>fastest stroke was. So people competing in swim competitions with breastroke,

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<v Speaker 2>doggy style, something called the trudgeon, which later morphed into

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<v Speaker 2>the crawl. But you know, people were trying all these

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<v Speaker 2>different strokes out, but Fred's stroke of choice and the

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<v Speaker 2>two hundred meter was a trudgeen where he swam on

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<v Speaker 2>his left side but used a scissor kick to cut

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<v Speaker 2>through the water. I actually, I don't know why I'm

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<v Speaker 2>acting it out right now, but listeners can't see that.

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<v Speaker 2>But you know, you can see how fast it would be.

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<v Speaker 1>I can't see you because I'm just paying attention to

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<v Speaker 1>Dylan still spinning.

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<v Speaker 2>Back, guys still going.

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<v Speaker 1>It is funny to think, though that, you know, everything

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<v Speaker 1>from the way we start sprints off blocks to the

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<v Speaker 1>way we swim has changed so much over the years.

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<v Speaker 1>I kind of wish they'd bring that event back though.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, But you know, weirdly, despite the popularity of it

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<v Speaker 2>with spectators, they only held the swimming obstacle race at

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<v Speaker 2>that one Olympics. I agree, though, I don't see why

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<v Speaker 2>they don't bring it back.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, here's another event you might be surprised was once

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<v Speaker 1>an Olympic sport, and that's pistol dueling.

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<v Speaker 2>Did you say dueling?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I mean, I guess when you think about it,

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<v Speaker 1>it's not that different from like fencing or boxing, like

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<v Speaker 1>two people facing off trying to kill each other.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, except for the guns. Part of it, manga. That

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<v Speaker 2>part's a little weird.

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<v Speaker 1>That's right, except for the guns. So if there's any

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<v Speaker 1>sport that's truly been on the cost of the Games,

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<v Speaker 1>it's dueling. So dueling was part of the nineteen oh

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<v Speaker 1>six Summer Olympics, or the nineteen oh six Intercalated Games

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<v Speaker 1>as they're called. But the dueling there was more like

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<v Speaker 1>a target practice. There was a dummy who wore a

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<v Speaker 1>fancy coat, I guess to make it seem more human,

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<v Speaker 1>but it had a bull's eye on the chest and

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<v Speaker 1>competitor shot at it. So it wasn't really that much

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<v Speaker 1>more exciting than archery. But then the nineteen oh eight

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<v Speaker 1>Olympics were slated and a doctor and dueling enthusiast named

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<v Speaker 1>Paul Devilers really saw this as his chance. And this

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<v Speaker 1>comes from our old friend Jake Rossen at Mental Floss.

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<v Speaker 1>But basically dueling didn't lead to that many deaths when

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<v Speaker 1>it was popular. Often the guns misfired or people missed

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<v Speaker 1>and the duel was called off because of the strict rules.

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<v Speaker 1>So aside from the poor case of Alexander Hamilton, which

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<v Speaker 1>we all now know about, it didn't lead to that

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<v Speaker 1>many debts. And then during the Civil War, when there

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<v Speaker 1>was an enormous amount of death and people aimed guns

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<v Speaker 1>at one another, dueling really lost its charm. But Devilar

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<v Speaker 1>saw it as this gentleman's sport and he wanted to

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<v Speaker 1>bring it back in a safe way, so he came

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<v Speaker 1>up with all these rules to make it safer. He

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<v Speaker 1>devised a way for the guns to shoot wax bullets

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<v Speaker 1>without melting them. He made people wear protective gear kind

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<v Speaker 1>of like the chain mail you'd wear for fencing, and

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<v Speaker 1>metal helmets as well with goggles. There was a shield

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<v Speaker 1>on the gun to protect your hands, so your hand

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<v Speaker 1>wouldn't get hit by the bullet. And as Jake points

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<v Speaker 1>out in his article, one reporter described the effects this

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<v Speaker 1>way quote, instead of the soft wax bullets shrieking through

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<v Speaker 1>the bodies of the duel lists, they will yield up

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<v Speaker 1>their fair young lives like tomatoes hurled against a barn door.

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<v Speaker 1>So the whole point was that the wax bullet would splatter,

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<v Speaker 1>and an arbiter could declare someone dead without really declaring

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<v Speaker 1>someone dead.

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<v Speaker 2>That is wild, and so dueling gets incorporated in the games.

0:11:06.080 --> 0:11:09.040
<v Speaker 1>Not exactly, so the sport gets some momentum. In France,

0:11:09.080 --> 0:11:12.240
<v Speaker 1>and England, and it has these really big supporters, including

0:11:12.320 --> 0:11:15.400
<v Speaker 1>the former French president, but instead of being a real event,

0:11:15.480 --> 0:11:19.760
<v Speaker 1>it gets sort of an exhibition status. Eleven duelers from

0:11:19.800 --> 0:11:22.880
<v Speaker 1>all over the world, including Russia, France, America and Sweden

0:11:22.920 --> 0:11:26.200
<v Speaker 1>all competed, partially because many of them were Fencers and

0:11:26.240 --> 0:11:28.720
<v Speaker 1>they would have come for the Olympic competition anyway. But

0:11:28.960 --> 0:11:30.760
<v Speaker 1>while the sport is allowed to take place on the

0:11:30.760 --> 0:11:33.760
<v Speaker 1>Olympic rounds, it's kind of shoved into a corner before

0:11:33.760 --> 0:11:37.000
<v Speaker 1>the real games begin. And while there was some excitement

0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:39.199
<v Speaker 1>around dueling, it really didn't last.

0:11:39.600 --> 0:11:41.320
<v Speaker 2>And why do you think it gets cast aside as

0:11:41.360 --> 0:11:43.079
<v Speaker 2>a sport or an Olympic event.

0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:45.920
<v Speaker 1>Part of it is that World War One starts not

0:11:46.000 --> 0:11:48.840
<v Speaker 1>too long after, and that kind of dulls people's enthusiasm

0:11:48.880 --> 0:11:52.000
<v Speaker 1>for seeing people shoot guns at other humans, much like

0:11:52.000 --> 0:11:54.600
<v Speaker 1>the Civil War before it. But the other is that

0:11:54.760 --> 0:11:57.920
<v Speaker 1>devilers and others couldn't really make a strong case for it.

0:11:58.000 --> 0:12:01.679
<v Speaker 1>This one sharpshooter named Walter wins He tried to claim

0:12:01.720 --> 0:12:04.680
<v Speaker 1>that dueling is actually a net benefit and as he

0:12:04.760 --> 0:12:08.120
<v Speaker 1>put it, quote, a man thinks twice before being rude.

0:12:08.120 --> 0:12:09.840
<v Speaker 1>If he thinks he will have to face a pistol

0:12:09.880 --> 0:12:12.760
<v Speaker 1>in consequence. But I guess that wasn't enough of an

0:12:12.800 --> 0:12:14.120
<v Speaker 1>argument for the Olympic committees.

0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:15.320
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I guess not.

0:12:16.760 --> 0:12:18.560
<v Speaker 1>So what's next on your list?

0:12:18.840 --> 0:12:21.080
<v Speaker 2>Why don't we talk a little bit about ski ballet,

0:12:21.120 --> 0:12:24.120
<v Speaker 2>which is sort of like figure skating on skis. Obviously,

0:12:24.480 --> 0:12:24.880
<v Speaker 2>I have.

0:12:25.000 --> 0:12:26.880
<v Speaker 1>Never heard of this, and it sounds incredible to me.

0:12:27.040 --> 0:12:28.960
<v Speaker 2>It is incredible. Yeah, I'm going to send you some

0:12:29.080 --> 0:12:31.760
<v Speaker 2>videos because it is really fun to watch. Actually, I'm

0:12:31.760 --> 0:12:34.959
<v Speaker 2>sending this link to your phone right now. You should

0:12:35.040 --> 0:12:37.400
<v Speaker 2>check this out. Watch it. I mean, don't you feel

0:12:37.440 --> 0:12:39.160
<v Speaker 2>like this is something that you'd be pretty good at.

0:12:42.920 --> 0:12:46.040
<v Speaker 1>I'm watching now. It is. It is beautiful.

0:12:46.280 --> 0:12:48.840
<v Speaker 2>Yeah. Yeah. Anyway, there's a grant Land story on the

0:12:49.000 --> 0:12:51.520
<v Speaker 2>history of the sport, and what's interesting is that the

0:12:51.559 --> 0:12:55.000
<v Speaker 2>sport really emerges in the nineteen seventies, and according to

0:12:55.000 --> 0:12:58.160
<v Speaker 2>the article, apparently youth were just rebelling against any sort

0:12:58.200 --> 0:13:01.040
<v Speaker 2>of rules or restrictions. This was in the era of

0:13:01.040 --> 0:13:03.920
<v Speaker 2>the Vietnam War, of course, and indulging in this sort

0:13:03.960 --> 0:13:08.440
<v Speaker 2>of beautiful, artsy rule free dance skiing became part of

0:13:08.480 --> 0:13:11.040
<v Speaker 2>that revolt, not a type of revolt I can imagine

0:13:11.080 --> 0:13:12.760
<v Speaker 2>but it was still pretty funny to see.

0:13:13.480 --> 0:13:15.640
<v Speaker 1>That sounds fake, but I like it.

0:13:15.880 --> 0:13:18.760
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, it's true. I mean, that's actually what sport organizers

0:13:18.760 --> 0:13:21.520
<v Speaker 2>attribute it to. And you know, because we really haven't

0:13:21.559 --> 0:13:24.319
<v Speaker 2>seen much ski ballet in our lifetime. In the Olympics,

0:13:24.679 --> 0:13:27.280
<v Speaker 2>it was a demonstration sport in the nineteen eighty eight,

0:13:27.440 --> 0:13:30.200
<v Speaker 2>nineteen ninety two Olympics. And I do not remember this

0:13:30.280 --> 0:13:31.800
<v Speaker 2>from when we were younger, and those would have been

0:13:31.840 --> 0:13:35.319
<v Speaker 2>Olympics we were paying attention to. But I never realized

0:13:35.320 --> 0:13:38.600
<v Speaker 2>how popular it was. It was both an individual event

0:13:38.760 --> 0:13:42.640
<v Speaker 2>a team event. There were these synchronized routines and lifts.

0:13:42.679 --> 0:13:44.520
<v Speaker 2>It's a lot like figure skating as you see it

0:13:44.520 --> 0:13:47.079
<v Speaker 2>now or ice dancing, I guess. But according to the

0:13:47.120 --> 0:13:51.880
<v Speaker 2>Grantland piece, ski ballet also featured in chapstick commercials, Bond movies.

0:13:52.200 --> 0:13:54.280
<v Speaker 2>There was even a nineteen eighty four movie set in

0:13:54.280 --> 0:13:57.319
<v Speaker 2>the world of ski ballet, and it was called Hot Dog,

0:13:57.440 --> 0:14:00.800
<v Speaker 2>which the New York Times praised as quote less moronic

0:14:00.880 --> 0:14:02.880
<v Speaker 2>than it might have been, which is just a you know,

0:14:03.040 --> 0:14:04.160
<v Speaker 2>fantastic review.

0:14:04.840 --> 0:14:08.199
<v Speaker 1>That is an amazing compliment. So, while you were talking

0:14:08.240 --> 0:14:10.599
<v Speaker 1>about watching this video and it's really kind of spectacular,

0:14:10.679 --> 0:14:13.480
<v Speaker 1>It's like a guy doing flips and skating around on

0:14:13.559 --> 0:14:16.360
<v Speaker 1>skis and using his polls to lift himself and do

0:14:16.400 --> 0:14:19.840
<v Speaker 1>all these crazy spins, all to John Williams music. It

0:14:19.960 --> 0:14:23.360
<v Speaker 1>is great. So what happened to Skibala? Like, how come

0:14:23.440 --> 0:14:24.800
<v Speaker 1>this didn't last?

0:14:25.200 --> 0:14:27.440
<v Speaker 2>You know, believe it or not, It somehow didn't attract

0:14:27.520 --> 0:14:29.960
<v Speaker 2>enough young people to the sport. I mean it's one

0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:32.320
<v Speaker 2>of those that I guess people were amused by it,

0:14:32.360 --> 0:14:33.840
<v Speaker 2>but not a lot of people being like I'm going

0:14:33.920 --> 0:14:36.680
<v Speaker 2>to go train for this. And unlike snowboarding, where you

0:14:36.720 --> 0:14:38.480
<v Speaker 2>put it on in the Olympics and the numbers of

0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:43.240
<v Speaker 2>young snowboarders really dramatically increases, ski Bala just didn't have

0:14:43.280 --> 0:14:44.200
<v Speaker 2>that kind of pull.

0:14:44.520 --> 0:14:44.720
<v Speaker 3>You know.

0:14:44.760 --> 0:14:47.560
<v Speaker 2>The TV numbers weren't that great either, so they decided

0:14:47.600 --> 0:14:49.880
<v Speaker 2>to ax it, which I think is tragic.

0:14:50.640 --> 0:14:53.880
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, it feels like the world of ski La is

0:14:53.880 --> 0:14:57.880
<v Speaker 1>perfect for a Will Ferrell movie. But right it like

0:14:58.160 --> 0:15:00.560
<v Speaker 1>it was in the wrong era, Like you could see

0:15:00.560 --> 0:15:02.600
<v Speaker 1>it being a hot trend on Instagram or TikTok.

0:15:02.600 --> 0:15:05.120
<v Speaker 2>Now, Oh that's a good point. Yeah, I'm curious whether

0:15:05.160 --> 0:15:07.040
<v Speaker 2>it would have taken off if it was more in

0:15:07.080 --> 0:15:09.520
<v Speaker 2>the social era. But you're right. I think it was

0:15:09.560 --> 0:15:12.280
<v Speaker 2>just ahead of its time. So what's next on your list?

0:15:13.000 --> 0:15:15.880
<v Speaker 1>Well, since we're talking about winter sports, one I think

0:15:15.960 --> 0:15:18.280
<v Speaker 1>is really fun is a type of ice getting called

0:15:18.360 --> 0:15:22.320
<v Speaker 1>special figures. So this event reminded me of my friend Howard,

0:15:22.360 --> 0:15:24.840
<v Speaker 1>who I'm sure I've told you about. But Howard, it

0:15:24.920 --> 0:15:28.240
<v Speaker 1>was this super funny, mischievous and really artsy friend of

0:15:28.240 --> 0:15:30.120
<v Speaker 1>mine that I grew up with since we were in

0:15:30.120 --> 0:15:33.520
<v Speaker 1>elementary school. And when he was in a frat in college,

0:15:33.560 --> 0:15:37.000
<v Speaker 1>they had this parade of floats or some competition like that,

0:15:37.440 --> 0:15:41.120
<v Speaker 1>and Howard volunteered to participate. So he decides to do

0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:44.920
<v Speaker 1>something really funny. He decides to mock WWE style of

0:15:44.960 --> 0:15:48.640
<v Speaker 1>wrestling with this doll as his submission, and he has

0:15:48.720 --> 0:15:51.080
<v Speaker 1>these canisters of paint in the corners of this wrestling

0:15:51.160 --> 0:15:53.760
<v Speaker 1>ring that he's built on the flow, and along the

0:15:53.800 --> 0:15:55.840
<v Speaker 1>way he keeps dipping the doll in pain and then

0:15:55.840 --> 0:15:58.440
<v Speaker 1>wrestling it like he drops an elbow on it. He

0:15:58.600 --> 0:16:00.960
<v Speaker 1>dips in pain and throws it to a souplex or

0:16:01.240 --> 0:16:04.200
<v Speaker 1>spins it around on the canvas and keeps dropping down

0:16:04.200 --> 0:16:06.720
<v Speaker 1>on it. And after he's thrown the doll around for

0:16:06.800 --> 0:16:10.440
<v Speaker 1>like twenty minutes, he tilts up the wrestling mat, which

0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:13.120
<v Speaker 1>is actually a canvas, and he's painted Van Goo's Starry

0:16:13.240 --> 0:16:19.440
<v Speaker 1>Night on it. It is so stupid and clever and

0:16:19.560 --> 0:16:24.520
<v Speaker 1>like perfect Howard. But anyway, Special Figures remind me of that,

0:16:24.520 --> 0:16:27.000
<v Speaker 1>because Special Figures is an ice dance in competition where

0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:30.080
<v Speaker 1>you do a whole routine, but actually you're drawing a

0:16:30.200 --> 0:16:33.680
<v Speaker 1>pattern on the ice. So apparently the early schools of

0:16:33.720 --> 0:16:36.640
<v Speaker 1>American and British ice skating actually incorporated a lot of

0:16:36.640 --> 0:16:40.360
<v Speaker 1>this ice drawing, because it's very hard to precisely trace

0:16:40.440 --> 0:16:43.040
<v Speaker 1>patterns with an ice skate, and the patterns could be

0:16:43.080 --> 0:16:47.640
<v Speaker 1>pretty elaborate, like these gorgeous filigreed stars and intricate flowers

0:16:47.680 --> 0:16:51.480
<v Speaker 1>and such. And it takes place in precisely won Olympics,

0:16:51.520 --> 0:16:54.120
<v Speaker 1>the nineteen oh eight Games in London. There is a

0:16:54.200 --> 0:16:57.120
<v Speaker 1>Russian who competes, who is apparently so good that after

0:16:57.160 --> 0:16:59.920
<v Speaker 1>people see the pattern he's made on the ice, they quit,

0:17:00.520 --> 0:17:03.160
<v Speaker 1>so they don't even try to compete because it's such

0:17:03.240 --> 0:17:07.359
<v Speaker 1>good artwork. But if you're wondering why Special Figures didn't

0:17:07.400 --> 0:17:10.520
<v Speaker 1>last in his Olympic sport, this quote from Wikipedia might

0:17:10.520 --> 0:17:14.320
<v Speaker 1>give you a clue quote. According to figure skating historian

0:17:14.320 --> 0:17:18.120
<v Speaker 1>and writer Ellen Kestenbaum, the body movements required to execute

0:17:18.119 --> 0:17:21.679
<v Speaker 1>the design were unpleasant to watch, jerky, and did not

0:17:21.880 --> 0:17:23.959
<v Speaker 1>use the flow of the blade across the ice. So

0:17:24.520 --> 0:17:27.600
<v Speaker 1>even though the patterns were beautiful and needed obvious skill

0:17:27.680 --> 0:17:31.200
<v Speaker 1>and control, it was like this hrky, jerky thing to watch.

0:17:32.640 --> 0:17:34.840
<v Speaker 1>That said, it sounds like Special Figures might actually be

0:17:34.840 --> 0:17:38.600
<v Speaker 1>making a comeback today, non the Olympics, but in competitions

0:17:38.640 --> 0:17:41.360
<v Speaker 1>on black ice where you see the patterns better from

0:17:41.400 --> 0:17:43.800
<v Speaker 1>the stands. These have actually started taking place and the

0:17:43.880 --> 0:17:46.240
<v Speaker 1>event is slowly regaining popularity.

0:17:46.760 --> 0:17:49.760
<v Speaker 2>That actually is really cool. I will have to check

0:17:49.800 --> 0:17:52.199
<v Speaker 2>that out more. All right, Well, here's another one that

0:17:52.280 --> 0:17:54.760
<v Speaker 2>I almost feel like our audience has to see because

0:17:54.800 --> 0:17:58.960
<v Speaker 2>it's incredible, and it's called horse vaulting, which when you

0:17:59.000 --> 0:18:01.600
<v Speaker 2>hear the words horse vaulting, you can just picture so

0:18:01.800 --> 0:18:03.119
<v Speaker 2>many different things.

0:18:04.000 --> 0:18:07.399
<v Speaker 1>I know, like it seems like horses jumping, but what

0:18:07.520 --> 0:18:08.200
<v Speaker 1>is it exactly.

0:18:08.680 --> 0:18:10.879
<v Speaker 2>I mean, the horse high jump and the long jump

0:18:10.920 --> 0:18:13.719
<v Speaker 2>were actually competitions in the Olympics before, but this is

0:18:13.760 --> 0:18:16.800
<v Speaker 2>more like if you took the pommel horse but did

0:18:16.800 --> 0:18:19.800
<v Speaker 2>it on a horse, as the horse was trotting along.

0:18:19.840 --> 0:18:21.320
<v Speaker 2>There's a lot involved in this court.

0:18:22.160 --> 0:18:26.119
<v Speaker 1>So people are actually doing gymnastics on a real live horse.

0:18:26.359 --> 0:18:29.159
<v Speaker 2>I'm telling you is it is truly remarkable. Like they

0:18:29.160 --> 0:18:32.359
<v Speaker 2>don't wear helmets. The horses on a high leash type

0:18:32.359 --> 0:18:34.360
<v Speaker 2>of thing where it's kind of running in a circle.

0:18:34.520 --> 0:18:37.760
<v Speaker 2>And while it's trotting, there's music playing and a rider

0:18:38.080 --> 0:18:40.600
<v Speaker 2>or an athlete or gymnast, whatever you want to call them,

0:18:40.600 --> 0:18:43.800
<v Speaker 2>and they're doing flips and balancing on top and spinning

0:18:43.800 --> 0:18:47.600
<v Speaker 2>around on the horse like it's actually really beautiful. This

0:18:47.640 --> 0:18:52.200
<v Speaker 2>is how Time magazine describes it. Quote. Horse vaulters do pirouettes,

0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:56.679
<v Speaker 2>split leaps, handstands, and arabesque while on top of a

0:18:56.760 --> 0:19:00.800
<v Speaker 2>moving steed. Riders perform their jaw dropping routine means to music,

0:19:00.920 --> 0:19:04.280
<v Speaker 2>and compete as individuals or as a pair. In the

0:19:04.359 --> 0:19:07.080
<v Speaker 2>latter instance, partners lift and toss one another in the

0:19:07.119 --> 0:19:11.000
<v Speaker 2>air and perform handstands on top of each other's shoulders.

0:19:11.440 --> 0:19:13.720
<v Speaker 2>The sport, which can be traced back at least two

0:19:13.760 --> 0:19:17.480
<v Speaker 2>thousand years to the Roman Games, includes the musicality of

0:19:17.560 --> 0:19:22.120
<v Speaker 2>synchronized swimming, the daredevil quality of gymnastics, and the beauty

0:19:22.160 --> 0:19:25.400
<v Speaker 2>of equestrian events. Like it really is just so fantastic.

0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:28.480
<v Speaker 1>So, first of all, I one hundred percent agree this

0:19:28.640 --> 0:19:30.600
<v Speaker 1>video of the German team that you sent me at

0:19:30.600 --> 0:19:35.360
<v Speaker 1>the twenty eighteen Equestrian Games is incredible. They're like jumping

0:19:35.400 --> 0:19:38.320
<v Speaker 1>on and off the horse to showpin. But how come

0:19:38.480 --> 0:19:40.400
<v Speaker 1>it isn't an Olympic sport?

0:19:40.800 --> 0:19:43.520
<v Speaker 2>You know, it's It's not entirely clear, and I do

0:19:43.560 --> 0:19:45.760
<v Speaker 2>wonder if it's because it was a very German sport

0:19:45.800 --> 0:19:48.440
<v Speaker 2>when it came to the Antwerp Olympics in nineteen twenty.

0:19:48.880 --> 0:19:51.199
<v Speaker 2>It might have lost favor during the World Wars. But

0:19:51.600 --> 0:19:53.760
<v Speaker 2>in that same article you know that I was looking

0:19:53.800 --> 0:19:56.320
<v Speaker 2>at in time, and this is back in twenty twelve,

0:19:56.760 --> 0:19:59.119
<v Speaker 2>they made the case to drop race walking for the

0:19:59.119 --> 0:20:02.800
<v Speaker 2>Olympics and gested bringing in horse vaulting because hundreds of

0:20:02.840 --> 0:20:06.520
<v Speaker 2>people actually still compete in the international competitions.

0:20:06.520 --> 0:20:08.800
<v Speaker 1>So it doesn't have the same issues as skip la.

0:20:08.880 --> 0:20:12.240
<v Speaker 2>I guess apparently not. Apparently people rushed out to start

0:20:12.280 --> 0:20:14.000
<v Speaker 2>doing this and a lot of folks are hoping it'll

0:20:14.040 --> 0:20:16.640
<v Speaker 2>get pulled into future games. I for one am part

0:20:16.640 --> 0:20:17.160
<v Speaker 2>of that crew.

0:20:18.960 --> 0:20:20.600
<v Speaker 1>Well, I know we've got a few more sports to

0:20:20.600 --> 0:20:22.120
<v Speaker 1>talk about, but before you do that.

0:20:22.240 --> 0:20:38.280
<v Speaker 3>Let's take a quick break.

0:20:39.480 --> 0:20:41.880
<v Speaker 2>Welcome back to Part Time Genius, where we're talking strange

0:20:41.920 --> 0:20:44.920
<v Speaker 2>Olympic sports semengo, what do you have horse next?

0:20:45.520 --> 0:20:48.800
<v Speaker 1>So this isn't exactly a feel good one, but it

0:20:48.880 --> 0:20:52.760
<v Speaker 1>is definitely strange. Have you ever heard about Anthropology Days

0:20:52.800 --> 0:20:53.560
<v Speaker 1>at the Olympics.

0:20:54.200 --> 0:20:56.240
<v Speaker 2>I have not, but I'm definitely intrigued.

0:20:57.119 --> 0:20:59.280
<v Speaker 1>So I first read about this as a footnote in

0:20:59.280 --> 0:21:01.240
<v Speaker 1>a book on the lip, and then I found more

0:21:01.280 --> 0:21:04.399
<v Speaker 1>on slate. But it is pretty wild. So, as we

0:21:04.480 --> 0:21:07.520
<v Speaker 1>mentioned above, the World's Fair and the Olympics often coincided

0:21:07.560 --> 0:21:11.200
<v Speaker 1>in the earliest days, and during the nineteen oh four games,

0:21:11.560 --> 0:21:14.960
<v Speaker 1>the Olympics slash World's Fair had a pre Olympic event

0:21:15.119 --> 0:21:18.600
<v Speaker 1>called Anthropology Days. This comes from History News Now, but

0:21:19.000 --> 0:21:21.440
<v Speaker 1>the site states that on August twelfth and thirteenth of

0:21:21.560 --> 0:21:26.399
<v Speaker 1>nineteen oh four, quote savages in native costume from Congolese

0:21:26.520 --> 0:21:30.959
<v Speaker 1>Pygmy tribes, the Philippines, Patagonia and various Native American tribes

0:21:30.960 --> 0:21:34.440
<v Speaker 1>who were barred from regular Olympic games competed against each

0:21:34.480 --> 0:21:39.520
<v Speaker 1>other in such nonstandard events as mud fighting, rock throwing,

0:21:39.880 --> 0:21:45.000
<v Speaker 1>greased pole climbing, and spear throwing. It is horrible.

0:21:44.960 --> 0:21:47.200
<v Speaker 2>I mean, that is ridiculous. So how did this event

0:21:47.240 --> 0:21:47.879
<v Speaker 2>even come to be?

0:21:48.600 --> 0:21:50.159
<v Speaker 1>I mean, I think it was part of the World's

0:21:50.160 --> 0:21:53.000
<v Speaker 1>Fair crossover, where there were definitely displays of people like

0:21:53.119 --> 0:21:56.720
<v Speaker 1>Ota Benga, the pigmy who ended up in the Bronxio

0:21:56.840 --> 0:22:00.359
<v Speaker 1>and the Anthropology Days games, which I can you not

0:22:00.440 --> 0:22:04.199
<v Speaker 1>were called the Special Olympics were partially a way to

0:22:04.200 --> 0:22:08.240
<v Speaker 1>show the superiority of progress and really of white Anglo Americans.

0:22:08.240 --> 0:22:11.840
<v Speaker 1>So the whole thing was utterly disastrous. On the first day,

0:22:11.880 --> 0:22:14.359
<v Speaker 1>they tried to take all these native peoples who didn't

0:22:14.359 --> 0:22:17.479
<v Speaker 1>speak the language and just set them on a course

0:22:17.680 --> 0:22:20.600
<v Speaker 1>like they didn't take time to teach anyone how to

0:22:20.600 --> 0:22:22.640
<v Speaker 1>play the games. They tried to get them the high

0:22:22.720 --> 0:22:25.679
<v Speaker 1>jump or shot put, and the people were very confused.

0:22:26.119 --> 0:22:28.560
<v Speaker 1>As Slate points out, even the one hundred yard dash

0:22:28.680 --> 0:22:32.159
<v Speaker 1>was problematic. The starting gun concept was understandably lost on

0:22:32.200 --> 0:22:34.560
<v Speaker 1>many of the participants, so too was the idea of

0:22:34.560 --> 0:22:37.320
<v Speaker 1>breaking through the finish line. Many would stop short or

0:22:37.440 --> 0:22:40.639
<v Speaker 1>run below the tape. So you know, they're putting them

0:22:40.640 --> 0:22:43.600
<v Speaker 1>in these events that they didn't explain and made no sense.

0:22:43.960 --> 0:22:46.040
<v Speaker 1>And the second day was even worse. This is where

0:22:46.080 --> 0:22:49.080
<v Speaker 1>they did the so called savage games like mud fighting,

0:22:49.280 --> 0:22:52.520
<v Speaker 1>tree climbing, and spear throwing. But again, none of this

0:22:52.680 --> 0:22:55.119
<v Speaker 1>was comprehensible to any of these people, like they'd never

0:22:55.200 --> 0:22:57.639
<v Speaker 1>seen a javelin before, so they were just baffled and

0:22:57.760 --> 0:23:02.199
<v Speaker 1>also uninterested. The games were a disaster, except for in

0:23:02.240 --> 0:23:05.560
<v Speaker 1>the organizer James E. Sullivan's mind, who claimed the whole

0:23:05.640 --> 0:23:08.840
<v Speaker 1>thing had scientific purpose. As he put it, quote, the

0:23:08.880 --> 0:23:11.800
<v Speaker 1>meeting proves conclusively that the savage has been a very

0:23:11.840 --> 0:23:15.000
<v Speaker 1>much overrated man from an athletic point of view, which

0:23:15.040 --> 0:23:19.480
<v Speaker 1>is so racist and so dumb. Anyway, what's interesting is

0:23:19.480 --> 0:23:23.800
<v Speaker 1>that the modern Olympics founder Pierre Kobuta wholly disagreed with

0:23:23.920 --> 0:23:28.520
<v Speaker 1>these savage games, calling it appalling, a charade and an embarrassment,

0:23:28.680 --> 0:23:31.600
<v Speaker 1>and he concluded that the whole thing will quote lose

0:23:31.640 --> 0:23:34.840
<v Speaker 1>its appeal when essentially all these men on display learned

0:23:34.880 --> 0:23:37.959
<v Speaker 1>to run, jump, and throw and leave the white men behind.

0:23:38.440 --> 0:23:40.920
<v Speaker 1>He couldn't have distanced himself more from the event, and

0:23:40.960 --> 0:23:43.879
<v Speaker 1>he ensured that it wasn't a part of any future Olympics.

0:23:44.480 --> 0:23:48.119
<v Speaker 2>Wow, it's just so disturbing, and it makes sense that

0:23:48.160 --> 0:23:50.399
<v Speaker 2>he wanted to distance the event from the Olympics. It

0:23:50.440 --> 0:23:53.320
<v Speaker 2>just feels against the you know, the spirit of the Games.

0:23:53.400 --> 0:23:55.240
<v Speaker 2>But I feel like we need to take this in

0:23:55.280 --> 0:23:58.040
<v Speaker 2>a different direction. Mango, that was a weird story. I'm

0:23:58.040 --> 0:23:59.640
<v Speaker 2>glad you shared it, but I feel like we need

0:23:59.640 --> 0:24:02.840
<v Speaker 2>to go as spitting history though it really is. It

0:24:02.920 --> 0:24:05.960
<v Speaker 2>is definitely fascinating history. One of the things I love

0:24:06.040 --> 0:24:08.080
<v Speaker 2>is when you see an Olympic sport and you're like,

0:24:08.720 --> 0:24:09.880
<v Speaker 2>I could totally do that.

0:24:10.600 --> 0:24:12.760
<v Speaker 1>Oh my gosh. I feel like that's half of the

0:24:12.760 --> 0:24:15.560
<v Speaker 1>Olympics is just like feeling like you could do these

0:24:15.560 --> 0:24:18.200
<v Speaker 1>things that are so beyond you. I read this piece

0:24:18.200 --> 0:24:21.200
<v Speaker 1>about Olympic ping pong players being challenged all the time

0:24:21.400 --> 0:24:26.560
<v Speaker 1>and just how ridiculous it is that that anyone thinks

0:24:26.560 --> 0:24:28.280
<v Speaker 1>that they can even get a point off these people.

0:24:28.320 --> 0:24:31.080
<v Speaker 1>But I feel like curling is also an example of this.

0:24:31.280 --> 0:24:33.399
<v Speaker 1>Like I always think that if I spent half a

0:24:33.480 --> 0:24:35.440
<v Speaker 1>year training, I'd be an amazing curler.

0:24:35.920 --> 0:24:38.639
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I mean, curling is actually a great example of this.

0:24:38.760 --> 0:24:41.160
<v Speaker 2>And obviously there was a period when you had things

0:24:41.200 --> 0:24:43.480
<v Speaker 2>that we all did in school, like tug of war,

0:24:43.760 --> 0:24:46.280
<v Speaker 2>rope climbing, and these things were part of the Olympics

0:24:46.320 --> 0:24:47.119
<v Speaker 2>at some point.

0:24:47.359 --> 0:24:49.600
<v Speaker 1>Which also makes me wonder where they draw the line

0:24:49.600 --> 0:24:52.720
<v Speaker 1>on sports, like why isn't dodgeball an Olympic game or

0:24:52.800 --> 0:24:55.880
<v Speaker 1>capture the Flag or kickball like all things that could

0:24:55.960 --> 0:24:57.480
<v Speaker 1>legitimately be competitions.

0:24:57.800 --> 0:25:00.439
<v Speaker 2>No, it's true, and one of the games it doesn't

0:25:00.440 --> 0:25:02.679
<v Speaker 2>really feel like it should be an Olympic sport in

0:25:02.720 --> 0:25:04.320
<v Speaker 2>my opinion is croque.

0:25:05.080 --> 0:25:07.200
<v Speaker 1>Huh, I didn't realize croque was part of the games.

0:25:07.520 --> 0:25:09.720
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, this is another sport that was included in the

0:25:09.800 --> 0:25:12.959
<v Speaker 2>nineteen hundred Games in Paris, and they were still figuring

0:25:12.960 --> 0:25:15.439
<v Speaker 2>out a lot about how to run the Olympics. And

0:25:15.480 --> 0:25:18.719
<v Speaker 2>so according to croque World online, there were four croque

0:25:18.800 --> 0:25:22.200
<v Speaker 2>events in the nineteen hundred Olympics. There was one ball singles,

0:25:22.480 --> 0:25:26.720
<v Speaker 2>two ball singles doubles, and something called singles handicap. But

0:25:27.280 --> 0:25:31.199
<v Speaker 2>apparently this is from the official report from the second Olympics.

0:25:31.560 --> 0:25:34.480
<v Speaker 2>The reason the game was included is quote due to

0:25:34.520 --> 0:25:37.520
<v Speaker 2>the fact that its governing body wish to elevate this

0:25:37.600 --> 0:25:41.680
<v Speaker 2>gently pastime to the rank of sport by holding annual

0:25:41.840 --> 0:25:45.199
<v Speaker 2>championships end quote. So that was their thinking there, And

0:25:45.240 --> 0:25:47.919
<v Speaker 2>it goes on to say one would be wrong, however,

0:25:48.000 --> 0:25:52.080
<v Speaker 2>to disdain crok It develops a combative mind. One has

0:25:52.080 --> 0:25:55.399
<v Speaker 2>only to see it transform young girls into reasoners, and

0:25:55.440 --> 0:25:58.919
<v Speaker 2>from reasoners into reasonable people. I don't even really know

0:25:59.000 --> 0:26:00.800
<v Speaker 2>what that means the quote.

0:26:01.119 --> 0:26:03.600
<v Speaker 1>I mean croquet has always done that for people, right.

0:26:03.680 --> 0:26:06.120
<v Speaker 1>It sounds pretty sexist.

0:26:06.080 --> 0:26:09.360
<v Speaker 2>Yes, I would agree, But oddly enough, the Olympics allowed

0:26:09.400 --> 0:26:12.440
<v Speaker 2>women to compete with men in croquet and these games,

0:26:12.560 --> 0:26:16.000
<v Speaker 2>so the first female Olympians they were actually croquet players.

0:26:16.359 --> 0:26:18.720
<v Speaker 1>Oh that's actually pretty cool. Yeah.

0:26:18.800 --> 0:26:21.520
<v Speaker 2>And the game was not popular, so that was the

0:26:21.560 --> 0:26:25.120
<v Speaker 2>downside here, where there was only one spectator who traveled

0:26:25.119 --> 0:26:28.439
<v Speaker 2>from England to watch, and because the French insisted that

0:26:28.520 --> 0:26:31.679
<v Speaker 2>the croque tournament be spread out over something like eight weeks,

0:26:31.920 --> 0:26:35.200
<v Speaker 2>no other countries participated eight weeks. I don't know what

0:26:35.240 --> 0:26:38.120
<v Speaker 2>they were thinking here. So France ended up winning all

0:26:38.160 --> 0:26:41.400
<v Speaker 2>the medals, of course, which did not help the game's popularity,

0:26:41.840 --> 0:26:44.840
<v Speaker 2>and according to Croque World, the games were eliminated from

0:26:44.880 --> 0:26:48.520
<v Speaker 2>the Olympics due to a lack of spectatorship and because

0:26:48.560 --> 0:26:53.000
<v Speaker 2>the sport had quote hardly any pretensions to athleticism. So

0:26:53.240 --> 0:26:54.440
<v Speaker 2>not a great ending there.

0:26:55.840 --> 0:26:59.840
<v Speaker 1>I love that quote. So for my final sport, I

0:26:59.880 --> 0:27:02.440
<v Speaker 1>was going to go with solo synchronized swimming, which has

0:27:02.480 --> 0:27:04.960
<v Speaker 1>a bit of controversy because the name is kind of laughable.

0:27:05.240 --> 0:27:08.640
<v Speaker 1>It's water dancing, which is obviously much more impressive when

0:27:08.680 --> 0:27:11.040
<v Speaker 1>you're doing it in sync with a full team of dancers.

0:27:11.040 --> 0:27:13.240
<v Speaker 1>By the way, did you see the team doing the

0:27:13.240 --> 0:27:14.160
<v Speaker 1>moonwalk underwater?

0:27:14.680 --> 0:27:17.919
<v Speaker 2>It was just incredible. Like I know, synchronized swimming is

0:27:17.960 --> 0:27:20.600
<v Speaker 2>one of those sports that over the years has kind

0:27:20.600 --> 0:27:22.719
<v Speaker 2>of been made fun of. It was of course involved

0:27:22.720 --> 0:27:25.520
<v Speaker 2>in one of the greatest SNL sketches of all time

0:27:25.640 --> 0:27:28.879
<v Speaker 2>thanks to Martin Short's involvement in that one. But it

0:27:28.960 --> 0:27:31.679
<v Speaker 2>really is just amazing to watch these dancers, Like the

0:27:31.680 --> 0:27:34.680
<v Speaker 2>way they control their bodies and sync is just insane

0:27:34.680 --> 0:27:34.919
<v Speaker 2>to me.

0:27:35.440 --> 0:27:38.040
<v Speaker 1>I really do not understand it, and I feel like

0:27:38.160 --> 0:27:40.639
<v Speaker 1>anyone who thinks it isn't a sport is out of

0:27:40.640 --> 0:27:43.440
<v Speaker 1>their mind. But I actually want to talk about something

0:27:43.480 --> 0:27:45.760
<v Speaker 1>that doesn't feel like as much of a sport. It's

0:27:45.760 --> 0:27:47.399
<v Speaker 1>called distance plunging.

0:27:48.040 --> 0:27:50.000
<v Speaker 2>And what is distance plunging.

0:27:50.600 --> 0:27:52.760
<v Speaker 1>It's basically like a kid's game where you jump in

0:27:52.760 --> 0:27:55.159
<v Speaker 1>the water and see how far you can dive without

0:27:55.200 --> 0:27:59.320
<v Speaker 1>moving your limbs underwater, and the rules were it was

0:27:59.400 --> 0:28:02.120
<v Speaker 1>as far as you went in sixty seconds or when

0:28:02.160 --> 0:28:05.119
<v Speaker 1>your body floated to the top, whatever came first. But

0:28:05.760 --> 0:28:08.920
<v Speaker 1>much like croquet, this was a sport that only Americans

0:28:08.960 --> 0:28:11.879
<v Speaker 1>participated in at the nineteen oh four Olympics in Saint Louis.

0:28:12.280 --> 0:28:14.640
<v Speaker 1>And I actually heard a funny story about this. Apparently

0:28:14.680 --> 0:28:17.040
<v Speaker 1>the nineteen oh four Games weren't supposed to go to

0:28:17.080 --> 0:28:21.000
<v Speaker 1>Saint Louis. They were actually awarded to Chicago, but because

0:28:21.000 --> 0:28:23.160
<v Speaker 1>the World's Fair was happening there that summer, the city

0:28:23.200 --> 0:28:25.800
<v Speaker 1>made this huge fuss to make sure that the Olympics

0:28:25.800 --> 0:28:29.119
<v Speaker 1>didn't outshine their event, and both events could take place

0:28:29.160 --> 0:28:32.920
<v Speaker 1>at the same city. So Pierre de Coberta gave Saint

0:28:32.960 --> 0:28:36.600
<v Speaker 1>Louis the Olympics, but, as Slate writes, quote, the prospect

0:28:36.600 --> 0:28:38.960
<v Speaker 1>of an arduous trip to a second tier city in

0:28:38.960 --> 0:28:42.360
<v Speaker 1>the American Midwest kept almost all of the top European

0:28:42.400 --> 0:28:45.880
<v Speaker 1>athletes away. Ultimately fewer than half the events had even

0:28:46.000 --> 0:28:49.720
<v Speaker 1>one non American entrant. The Baron himself steered clear of

0:28:49.760 --> 0:28:53.040
<v Speaker 1>the Games, later recalling that he believed quote the Olympia

0:28:53.200 --> 0:28:57.720
<v Speaker 1>would match the mediocrity of the town, which is, you know, unfortunate.

0:28:58.200 --> 0:29:00.160
<v Speaker 1>I do love Saint Louis. I think we should a

0:29:00.160 --> 0:29:02.680
<v Speaker 1>field trip to the city museum. But it's funny that

0:29:02.880 --> 0:29:05.200
<v Speaker 1>because the city wasn't perceived as a big enough sell

0:29:05.320 --> 0:29:08.200
<v Speaker 1>to competitors, Americans ended up dominating the events and the

0:29:08.280 --> 0:29:10.920
<v Speaker 1>medal count in things like Olympic plunging.

0:29:11.840 --> 0:29:15.000
<v Speaker 2>I did not know that that's that's awesome and it's

0:29:15.000 --> 0:29:17.920
<v Speaker 2>a great fact. I know that people might think that

0:29:18.000 --> 0:29:21.320
<v Speaker 2>you should win the trophy this week, But I have

0:29:21.400 --> 0:29:24.320
<v Speaker 2>to say, I'm still seeing Dylan over there spinning. I

0:29:24.360 --> 0:29:26.880
<v Speaker 2>have no idea whether he's actually recorded this episode because

0:29:26.880 --> 0:29:29.320
<v Speaker 2>he has not sent focus on anything other than spinning.

0:29:29.920 --> 0:29:31.959
<v Speaker 2>Because he's still going. I think we got to give

0:29:32.040 --> 0:29:33.320
<v Speaker 2>him the medal this week. What do you think?

0:29:33.920 --> 0:29:37.320
<v Speaker 1>I think? So he's got two trophies this year, and

0:29:37.800 --> 0:29:40.960
<v Speaker 1>I think he just wants to collect more and more. Well,

0:29:41.200 --> 0:29:43.560
<v Speaker 1>that is it for this week's episode. If you have

0:29:43.600 --> 0:29:46.720
<v Speaker 1>any great Olympic stories you want to share, or sports

0:29:46.800 --> 0:29:48.720
<v Speaker 1>you think we should lobby to be in the Olympics,

0:29:48.840 --> 0:29:52.520
<v Speaker 1>or you just want to send Dylan some congratulations, feel

0:29:52.520 --> 0:29:55.200
<v Speaker 1>free to send those to our email address at Petgenius

0:29:55.320 --> 0:29:58.040
<v Speaker 1>Moms at gmail dot com. You know, our moms are

0:29:58.080 --> 0:30:00.640
<v Speaker 1>sitting around waiting for you to write us and if

0:30:00.680 --> 0:30:02.960
<v Speaker 1>you happen to be in the Apple iTunes store looking

0:30:03.000 --> 0:30:06.040
<v Speaker 1>at podcasts, don't forget to rate and review this show.

0:30:06.360 --> 0:30:08.640
<v Speaker 1>One of the many ways we procrastinates by reading the

0:30:08.680 --> 0:30:12.440
<v Speaker 1>comments from Will, Dylan, Mary, and me. That's it for

0:30:12.520 --> 0:30:27.520
<v Speaker 1>this week's episode. Thank you so much for listening. Part

0:30:27.520 --> 0:30:31.200
<v Speaker 1>Time Genius is a production of Kaleidoscope and iHeartRadio. This

0:30:31.280 --> 0:30:35.600
<v Speaker 1>show is hosted by Will Pearson and Me Mongashtikler, and

0:30:35.720 --> 0:30:39.960
<v Speaker 1>research by our good pal Mary Philip Sandy. Today's episode

0:30:40.000 --> 0:30:42.960
<v Speaker 1>was engineered and produced by the wonderful Dylan Fagan with

0:30:43.040 --> 0:30:46.560
<v Speaker 1>support from Tyler Klang. The show is executive produced for

0:30:46.680 --> 0:30:50.360
<v Speaker 1>iHeart by Katrina Norbel and Ali Perry, with social media

0:30:50.360 --> 0:30:54.479
<v Speaker 1>support from Sasha Gay, trustee Dara Potts and Viney Shorey.

0:30:55.160 --> 0:30:59.280
<v Speaker 1>For more podcasts from Kaleidoscope and iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio

0:30:59.320 --> 0:31:03.160
<v Speaker 1>app full podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.