The Cricketing Olympians

In 1931, the man attributed with resurrecting the modern Olympic Games, Pierre de Coubertin, wrote that his intentions were to bring back the “intellectual, philosophical and moral” characteristics of the ancient Games.

A frequent visitor to England and an admirer of the English public-school system, the aristocrat had acknowledged the sense of morality and intellectualism displayed through the notion of Muscular Christianity, the development of physical and spiritual well-being, that dominated cricket’s ethos during the Victorian age.

A sporting competition made up of a range of activities that sought to propel sport to a higher moral plane surely had to have cricket as one of its key events.

The problem, however, as pointed out by Saad Shafqat in Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper, was that cricket is very much an acquired taste and “in cricket’s case, the most effective way to acquire this taste has been to suffer through British Colonial rule.”

In spite of this handicap, cricket was one of the original sports listed in the provisional Olympic programme for 1896. A lack of entries meant that the competition was abandoned, but in 1900, the Paris games featured the only Olympic final in cricket.

There were only two entries, England and France, and the sides might not have known that they were taking part in the historic Olympic Games. Events were spread out over a long summer, and the 1900 Games were more likely to be known as the Great Exposition or the World’s Fair instead of the Olympics.

Rather than a national side, England were represented by the Devon & Somerset Wanderers, who were victorious over their French opponents in front of a crowd that barely reached double figures at an impressive 20,000 capacity cycling track.

Cricket had failed to catch on in France, and in true imperial fashion this was blamed on the French themselves because, according to one correspondent: “A cricketer in France is a stranger in a strange land looked upon with mingled awe and contempt by the average Frenchman.”

It was not surprising then that the French side had a strong British influence. They included players from the Albion Cricket Club and the Standard Athletic Club, a sporting club for expatriates living in Paris. The team included names such as Robinson, Browning, Jordan, and McEvoy.

Other anomalies included sides of 12 and awards of silver and bronze medals rather than the traditional gold for victors—though each competitor was given a miniature replica of the eleven-year-old Eiffel Tower.

Cricket was not included in the 1904 Games in St. Louis, but was expected to appear in 1908, originally awarded to Rome. However, the tournament never took place as Mt. Vesuvius erupted and the Games were moved to London. Cricket was not included then, nor since.

The emergence of Twenty20 cricket provides a format that could enable the sport’s return to the Olympics. Played over roughly the same length of time as baseball and by more countries, cricket could justify its inclusion.

Ex-Australian players Steve Waugh and Adam Gilchrist are championing its addition and current captain Ricky Ponting has said that he could not think of anything better or more exciting than cricket being part of the Olympics.

If it happens, it is most likely to be in the 2020 Games, as the decision as to what sports are included is made as early as 2013. Rumour has it that Delhi is one of the frontrunners to host, and the opportunity to promote their national sport on the world stage would be an opportunity the Indian Board are unlikely to miss.