Saturday, August 23

Any time I'm asked about me favorite movies, the top two on the list are always High Noon, a classic Western with Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly, and Chariots of Fire, the story of Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams in the 1924 Paris Olympics.

On today's Olympic broadcast, Mary Carillo did a really good piece on Eric Liddell that included interviews with his daughter and others who knew him. If you don't know the story, Liddell was the son of Scottish missionaries to China. He won an Olympic gold medal in the 400 meters (47.6 seconds) after refusing to compete in the 100 meters heats (his intended event) because they were held on a Sunday. Liddell later returned to China to serve as a missionary, where he died. In fact, there is a monument in his honor in China - a pretty amazing thing for a Scottish missionary. If you can find the video online, it would be worth your time to watch it.

The first Olympic gold medalist born in China? Eric Liddell.

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