[HN Gopher] Baron who revived Olympics believed they were a reli...
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       Baron who revived Olympics believed they were a religion of
       perfection and peace
        
       Author : rntn
       Score  : 20 points
       Date   : 2024-08-04 20:43 UTC (2 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (theconversation.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (theconversation.com)
        
       | bdw5204 wrote:
       | The main value of the Olympics to the world is an opportunity for
       | obscure sports to get attention once every 4 years. They don't
       | seem to do anything whatsoever to promote world peace as
       | evidenced by how nations like Russia always seem to start wars
       | around the time of the Olympics. They're also notorious for
       | bankrupting host nations and being used by dictatorships for
       | propaganda purposes.
       | 
       | Besides, a better substitute for war in the post-WW2 world would
       | be whatever sport is called "football" in your country. That
       | sport seems to consume the tribal energies that would otherwise
       | go into war.
        
         | stavros wrote:
         | The sport called "football" in my country is even more harmful
         | than the Olympics. The original intention of the Olympics was
         | lofty, but unfortunately, as with most popular things, it
         | turned into a money grab.
        
         | borsch wrote:
         | If you put enough bad opinions together, people will be too
         | confused to tackle them.
         | 
         | Well played
        
       | sdwr wrote:
       | The Olympics are anti-war in at least 2 ways.
       | 
       | - The message, that people from around the world come together to
       | compete safely and peacefully
       | 
       | - Practically, nobody can be thinking of war when they are laser
       | focused on that last tenth of a second (or beach volleyball shot)
        
       | Frieren wrote:
       | > Coubertin called this sport in the service of global harmony -
       | nothing short of a new "religio athletae," or "religion of
       | athletics."
       | 
       | I think that he succeeded. I see many people celebrating their
       | nations pride, but also human accomplishment of athletes of any
       | nationality.
       | 
       | One can be cynic about it, but one can be cynic about everything
       | and enjoy nothing. But even that the Olympics exist in our
       | reality, with its problems and injustices, it is still inspiring
       | and enjoyable in many levels.
        
       | g15jv2dp wrote:
       | He was also racist, misogynistic, and reactionary. Even his
       | contemporaries found it too much. There are few sources in
       | English but here is a French one
       | https://www.france24.com/fr/sports/20240713-jeux-olympiques-...
        
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       (page generated 2024-08-04 23:00 UTC)