Fact of the Day

Gliding was due to become an Olympic sport at Helsinki in 1940 having been a demonstration event at Berlin in 1936, despite a competitor having been killed in practice the day before

Gliding was due to become an Olympic sport at Helsinki in 1940 having been a demonstration event at Berlin in 1936, despite a competitor having been killed in practice the day before the comeptition. But the Games in the Finnish capital were cancelled because of the Second World War and gliding has never come close since to being included on the Olympic programme.

The Lopez family made history at Beijing 2008, becoming the first three siblings since St Louis 1904 to make the same Olympic team, and the first three siblings in history to win medals at the same Games when they all stood on the podium in taekwondo

The Lopez family made history at Beijing 2008, becoming the first three siblings since St Louis 1904 to make the same Olympic team, and the first three siblings in history to win medals at the same Games when they all stood on the podium in taekwondo. Mark took the silver medal and Steven and Diana both won bronze. Overall, the Lopez family has won five medals as Steven took gold at Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.

Hungary's Alfred Hajos, a double swimming gold medallist at Athens 1896, won a silver medal in the architectural division of the art contest at Paris 1924.

Hungary's Alfred Hajos, a double swimming gold medallist at Athens 1896, won a silver medal in the architectural division of the art contest at Paris 1924. Specialising in sports facilities, Hajos's architectural partner was Dezso Lauber, who had represented Hungary at tennis at the 1908 Olympics in London. The jury did not award a gold medal in the competition. The best known sports facility designed by Hajós is the swimming stadium built on Margitsziget in the Danube in Budapest, which was built in 1930, and used for the 1958, 2006 and 2010 European Aquatics Championships.

Poland's Halina Konopacka became the first woman to ever win an Olympic gold medal in track and field

Poland's Halina Konopacka became the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field when she broke her own world record with a throw of 39.62 metres to claim victory in the discus at Amsterdam 1928. She became a writer after retiring from athletics and was a published poet, whose work was praised for its feminist approach in analysing the relationship between the man and the woman.

Canadian show jumper Ian Millar holds the record for the most appearances in the Olympics.

Canadian show jumper Ian Millar holds the record for the most appearances at the Olympics. When he competed at London 2012 at the age of 65 it was his tenth appearance, 40 years after making his debut at Munich in 1972. Millar would have been making his 11th appearance but for Canada's boycott of Moscow in 1980. He won his only Olympic medal at Beijing in 2008, a silver in the team event, on In Style.

In the Hungarian Olympic trials for the 1960 Rome Olympics, Aladár Gerevich was told at the age of 50 he was too old to compete

At Hungary's Olympic trials for Rome 1960, fencer Aladár Gerevich was told at 50 he was too old. He challenged the sabre team to matches, won every one and went onto win his sixth Olympic gold medal in the team event in the Italian capital, his first having come at Los Angeles 1932. He is the only athlete to win six Olympic titles in the same event and he has the longest gap between his first and last gold medal at 28 years.

American speed skater Charles Jewtraw was the first athlete to claim a gold medal at the Winter Olympics when he won the 500 metres by opening event of the first Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix1924.

American speed skater Charles Jewtraw was the first athlete to claim a gold medal at the Winter Olympics when he won the 500 metres at the opening event of the first Games at Chamonix 1924. His gold medal is now at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. He later worked with the Spalding Sports Good Company and was a bank security guard in New York City before retiring to Florida.

Lieutenant-General Sir Philip Neame is the only person to have won an Olympic gold medal and Victoria Cross

Lieutenant-General Sir Philip Neame is the only person to have won an Olympic gold medal and Victoria Cross, Britain's highest military award. In December 1914 in Neuve Chapelle, France, shortly after the start of World War One, as a member of the Royal Engineers he single-handedly delayed a German enemy advance using "jam tin" hand grenades and received the Victoria Cross. Then at the 1924 Olympics in Paris he won a gold medal as a member of Britain's running deer team, a competition involving teams of four firing single shots, where a moving target simulated the animal.

Bolivia have been competing in the Olympics longer than any other country without winning a medal

Bolivia have been competing in the Olympics longer than any other country without winning a medal, having made their debut at Berlin in 1936. The South American country has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Games since Tokyo 1964, except when they participated in the American-led boycott of Moscow 1980. They have also taken part in the Winter Games on several occasions since Cortina d'Ampezzo in 1956, but not since Albertville 1992.

Czechoslovakian gymnast Věra Čáslavská won four gold medals at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City but afterwards was denied the right to travel, work and attend sporting events

Czechoslovakian gymnast Věra Čáslavská won four gold medals at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City but afterwards was denied the right to travel, work and attend sporting events, forcing her retirement. It followed two incidents on the medal podium when she quietly turned her head down and away during the playing of the Soviet national anthem. The action was Čáslavská's silent protest against the recent invasion of Czechoslovakia and her actions made her a persona non grata in the new regime

The most successful athlete in the history of the Winter Olympics is Norwegian cross country skier Bjørn Dæhlie

The most successful athlete in the history of the Winter Olympics is Norwegian cross country skier Bjørn Dæhlie, who won a total of 12 medals between Albertville in 1992 and Nagano in 1998, eight gold and four silver. The next most successful athlete is also a Norwegian, Ole Einar Bjørndalen, who has so far won 11 medals in the biathlon, six gold, four silver and a bronze, since he made his Olympic debut at Nagano.

Estonia's Kristjan Palusalu became the first and only wrestler in Olympic history ever to win both the Greco-Roman and freestyle heavy weight events at Berlin in 1936.

Estonia's Kristjan Palusalu became the only wrestler in Olympic history ever to win both the Greco-Roman and freestyle heavy weight events at Berlin in 1936. A third of the inhabitants of the capital Tallinn turned out to greet him upon his return and the Estonian Government gave him a farm as a reward. It was the last time Estonia were to compete as an independent country in the Olympics until Barcelona in 1992 as they competed under the Soviet Union banner.