Le Nord : revue internationale des Pays de Nord - 01.06.1940, Page 161

FINLAND AND THE XII OLYMPIC GAMES
By Sulo Kolkka,
Sports editor of the Helsingin Sanomat.
THE Chairman of the International Olympic Committee,
Count Baillet-Latour of Belgium, paid a visit to Finland
in the middle of June 1936, and was present when the
foundation-stone of the Helsinki Stadium was laid. Prior to that,
Count Baillet-Latour had made a journey to Japan and ac-
quainted himself with athletic life in that country. Tokio and
Helsinki came forward as equally qualified applicants for the
XII Olympic Games already the previous year at the Olympic
Congress held in Oslo. The choice was ultimately decided at
the end of July 1936 at the Berlin Olympic Games. After a
ballot that gave her 36 votes against 27, Tokio was chosen as
host for the 1940 Games. Finnish propaganda, which had kept
strictly to the path of athletics, suffered a defeat on that occa-
sion. Japan, on her part, had gone in for a powerful political
propaganda and in this way gained 15 so-called written votes
from non-European states.
Nevertheless, the Finnish delegates, who returned from Berlin
after their defeat, did not abandon the idea of organizing the
Games. The preliminary preparations were continued, chiefly
with an eye to the 1944 Games, and the building of the Helsinki
Stadium was hastened.
The political situation in the Far East meanwhile developed
during 1937—38 in such a way as to thrust the Olympic Games
into the Sackground. Already at the meeting of the International
Olympic Committee at Cairo in January 1938, it was becoming
apparent that Japan would not be able to play the host in 1940.
The Japanese delegates still assured the meeting that preparations
for the Games were continuing, but on July i4th 1938 Tokio
officially announced that she had abandoned all further work
on the Olympic Games.
Helsinki’s time had come. When, on July i8th, the Inter-
national Olympic Committee cabled an offer of the Games to
Helsinki, the Helsinki Munipical Executive was able to reply
in the affirmative already the next day. Although the period
of preparation had shrunk to half the normal, there was not
3. moment’s hesitation in Finland. The Government had promised