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Welcome to the issue Volker Kluge Editor Our Journal to mark the 25th anniversary of ISOH features It has long been established that the victors in the the story of two strong women. The first, Barbara Rotraut ancient Games were seldom amateurs. The Greek Pleyer, went into history as the “Peace Angel”. Her failed cities granted them privileges, but also played a role attempt to combine the opening of the 1952 Games in fostering talents. Until now this aspect has not with an appeal for peace, prompted the IOC to explicitly been examined. Professor Christian Mann reveals the forbid any form of demonstration or propaganda within motivation and financial backing for this practice. Olympic sites. Her story remained largely unknown Don Macgregor, himself an Olympic marathoner, until now but Pleyer’s life as a “peace worker” began spotlights an earlier era in his sport. His article on the in Helsinki. “Fantastic Four” is the story of British marathoners Ferris, Our second strong woman made headlines 50 years Harper, Robertson and Wright. The quartet enjoyed later. Swedish heptathlete Carolina Klüft was the world’s considerable success in the twenties and thirties. Ferris best from 2002 to 2007. Leif Yttergren and John Hellström and Harper both came home with medals, Wright and examine the change to her media profile. Klüft began as Robertson achieved top ten finishes. The author is well carefree as “Pippi Longstocking”. Enjoyment was more qualified for this task, he finished seventh in the 1972 race. important than victory. But by at the end of her career Environmental issues are a central part of the Olympic her serious side had come to the fore. With the greater Movement but the first “Smoke-free Games” were only interest in her personality there was also a more critical declared 25 years ago. Alberto Aragón-Perez details a scrutiny. process which began hesitantly only at the start of the Even 80 years on, the 1936 Games still offer fascinating 01980s and articulated itself by protests from individual themes for discussion. This time Elizabeth Hanley environmentalists. Today it is at the very core of the analyses the role of dance in the service of Nazi Olympic Movement. Without sustainability the Games propaganda. Stars such Mary Wigman, Gret Palucca have no future. and Harald Kreutzberg performed on the opening To prove that a sport took place is simple, provided that day in the festival of “Olympic Youth”, which ended there is access to results, documents and pictures. There in the glorification of “heroic death”. What a contrast is still it seems, uncertainty amongst some over the early to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and the humanistic football tournaments. In particular there is confusion message of the “Ode to Joy”, with which the evening between the Athens Games of 1896 and 1906. This has ended. The use of this music fulfilled a dearly-held wish prompted Bill Mallon and me to examine the subject for Pierre de Coubertin as Jeffrey Segrave explains. again to set the record straight. ISOH Executive Committee | 2016-2020 President David Wallechinsky (USA) Vice-President Dr. Christian Wacker (GER) Secretary-General Markus Osterwalder (SUI) Treasurer Dr. Laurel A. Zeisler (USA) Members Philip Barker (GBR) Secretary-General Dr. Kostas Georgiadis (GRE) Markus Osterwalder Volker Kluge (GER) Eggweg 6 9100 Herisau Leif Yttergren (SWE) Switzerland on behalf of the IOC Richard W. Pound (CAN) Phone: +41 71 351 77 19 ex-officio Dr. Bill Mallon (USA) E-mail: [email protected] JOH 1 | 2017 1 Message from the President David Wallechinsky ISOH President On 9th December 2016, Richard H. McLaren released steroids – trenbolone, methenolone (Primobolan) and the second and final report of his investigation into oxandrolone (Anavar) – which had been developed allegations of widespread government-sponsored by Grigory Rodchenkov, director of the Moscow Anti- doping in Russia. Doping Centre from 2005 and a FSB agent since 2007. The report makes it clear that, from the highest levels, These athletes were authorized to continue taking the the Russian government conspired to make a mockery “Duchess Cocktail” during the Sochi Games. of the Olympic Movement and the ideals of Olympism by Prior to the Sochi Olympics, the FSB transferred the systematically manipulating and covering up positive clean samples to large freezer units inside a secret FSB doping tests at the London 2012 Summer Games, command centre adjacent to the Sochi laboratory. the Universiade Games 2013, the Moscow IAAF World Whenever a doped athlete was tested, he or she would Championships 2013, and the Winter Games in Sochi in take a photo of their Doping Control Form and then 2014. This cheating continued after the Sochi Olympics. transmit the photo to Rodionova. In the words of the McLaren Report, “The Russian FSB agent Yevgeny Blokhin, who was credentialed as Olympic team corrupted the London Games 2012 on an a “maintenance engineer” for the Bilfinger Company, unprecedented scale, the extent of which will probably would go to the command centre and defrost the clean never be fully established ... The desire to win medals samples of the Russian athletes who had been tested. superseded their collective moral and ethical compass Rodchenkov’s second in command at the Sochi and Olympic values of fair play.” laboratory, Yuri Chizhov, would adjust the specific More than 1000 Russian athletes in 30 sports benefited gravity of the samples to reflect the values of the original from the concealment of positive doping tests. Although dirty sample indicated on the appropriate Doping the names of most of the athletes were redacted from Control Form. the public report, investigators forwarded the details Late at night, after all non-Russian personnel had of 695 of these Russian cases (and those of 19 foreign left the Sochi laboratory, Moscow laboratory employee athletes) to International Federations. Evgeny Kudryavtsev would pass the dirty samples The Russian Ministry of Sport directed the swapping through a hole in the wall to the FSB Command Centre, of samples and the falsifying of doping test results with where Rodchenkov, Chizhov and Blokhin would swap the active participation of the Russian Federal Security the dirty samples for clean ones and pass these back Service (FSB) (the successor to the KGB), the Centre of through the hole in the wall to Kudryavtsev. Sports Preparation of National Teams of Russia (CSP), the McLaren and his associates sought, but were unable Russian Anti-Doping Agency and the Moscow and Sochi to obtain, the Moscow laboratory server or its computer doping laboratories. records. Samples in the laboratory’s storage area were It was Russian President Vladimir Putin who personally sealed off by the Investigative Committee of the Russian appointed Yuri Nagornykh, a member of the Russian Federation. Olympic Committee, to be Deputy Minister of Sport. Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko did not cooperate Nagornykh was put in charge of the implementation with the investigation. He is currently Chairman of the of the doping programme and was informed of every 2018 FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee. positive doping test at the Moscow Laboratory from 2011 The good news is that the IOC is taking aggressive onwards. action to retest doping samples from the most recent Thirty-seven Russian athletes who were considered Olympic Games, including all Russian samples from to be possible Sochi medal winners were asked to 2008 to 2014. As of 5th March 2017, the IOC had already supply up to four or five clean urine samples each. Irina sanctioned 18 Russian athletes from Beijing 2008 and Rodionova, deputy director of the CSP, was in charge of 20 from London 2012. Athletes who might consider receiving these samples. cheating now know that their samples will be preserved The “protected” athletes were then put on a regime for at least ten years to take advantage of improved known as the “Duchess Cocktail”, a mixture of three testing methods. 2 Message from the Secretary-General Markus Osterwalder ISOH Secretary-General In recent weeks, my top priority has been to update and It seems clear that Olympic years bring about a growth improve the membership list. At present we have 421 spurt in memberships regular members, 13 students and 48 patron members The age range of our members varies considerably. as part of our organisation. Unfortunately fewer than Our oldest is already 95 and the youngest 22 years old. 12% of these are women. The breakdown is as follows: 20-29 year olds (1.4%), 51 nations from all five continents are represented. 30-39 year olds (9%), 40-49 year olds (12.3%), 50-59 Most members come from Europe (235) followed by North year olds (22.5%), 60- 69 (24.3%), 70-79 (19%), 80-89 America (144), Asia (23), Central and South America (16), (10.5%), 90-99 (1%). Thus, the largest group of members Oceania (15) and Africa (3). is between 60 and 69 years old. Nevertheless, it can be The greatest potential for development is in Asia where said that in the last five years the membership profile has the next three Games are to be held in PyeongChang become younger than in the previous years. The newly 2018, Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022. Asia is the most designed ISOH website may well be a factor in appealing populous of regions but our members there are few. In to a younger group. Japan there are ten members from a population of 126.9 At the last General Assembly in Rio, the Executive Board million, the People's Republic of China with only three decided to offer published articles on the site in other members amongst its 1380 million inhabitants. India world languages as well as in English.