The Cruise of the Branwen

THE WREATH OF OLIVE excrescence upon this series which the Council cheerfully agreed to help. But their chief duty has lain in the organisation of the English Games of 1908. They will also endeavour to secure in the future, whether in London, in Athens, or elsewhere, that only those athletes participate in the Olympic Games who are duly accredited by the associations at the head of their respective sports, and that only those jurymen appointed by the various associations shall officiate in the various sections of the international jury. This is but the slightest sketch of their functions, but it is sufficient to show their paramount importance; and the Games in Athens em– phasised the vital necessity of some such organisa– tion. For one thing, it is clear that the programme at Athens was too long. It is also clear that some contests are better suited for international com– petitions than others. In running or jumping, for instance, the victory of one man is usually evident to all. But in such events as high-diving or fencing, the result is far too much dependent on the quality of the judging and the method by which the judges are first selected and after– wards exercise their functions. In the high– diving at Athens, for example, the Greek news– papers followed general opinion in attributing the highest excellence either to the Swedes or to the English; but as the jury was composed of various nationalities, each with its own standard of efficiency and its own method of scoring, the result was that neither was awarded the prize. G 97