1908 Summer Olympics

Uncommon card · No. 160147

The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were relocated to London after Italy withdrew from hosting on financial grounds. Rome had been awarded the games at the 6th IOC Session in 1904, but Italy formally relinquished its obligation during the 8th IOC Session at the Intercalated Games in Athens in April 1906, with Italy's IOC member Count Eugenio Brunetta d'Usseaux citing the financial consequences of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius (4–22 April 1906) as the reason. Mallon and Buchanan cite personal communications from Italian Olympic historian Giuseppe Odello, suggesting that the decision to withdraw had effectively been made before the eruption, claiming that Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti had already withheld the government funds necessary to finance the games, which were competing with major public works projects...

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