1912 Olympic Games Official Report Part 2

that is held in special favour by elderly men, and is a somewhatunique “Old man’s game”.The “varpan” (quoit) consists of a flat, nearly round, and somewhatthick stone, 15 centimetres (6 inches) or a little less in diameter.The quoit is held in the right hand so that the forefingerrests along the rounded edge of the stone, with the other fingers onthe under side of the quoit. When the stone is thrown forward, it isgiven a slight rotary movement in order to get it to move steadilythrough the air and to remain on the spot where it strikes the ground.After having learned to throw the quoit in this manner, the game is,to throw at a mark at a certain distance, usually about 20 metres.The marks consist of pins, or hobs, fastened in the ground. Theplayers stand by the one pin and throw at the other. When everyonehas thrown his quoit, the players go to the mark, and the onewhose stone lies nearest to the pin gains one point. Each player nowcasts his quoit at the pin where he was standing when he began thegame, and the casts are continued from each hob alternately, untilone of the players gains 12 points, when he becomes the victor.The game can be played by two or three persons, but also bymore; in the latter case the players divide themselves into two parties,the best throw of each side deciding the point.“STÅNGSTÖRTNING”(Tossing the Caber)is a sport that presupposes an amount of bodily strength somewhatsurpassing the ordinary.The caber, which is of timber, should have a length of about 5metres, with a bottom diameter of 13 centimetres (51/S inches) and atop diameter of about 7 cm. (3 inches). The caber must first belifted from the ground with one hand round the thin end, the polebeing then grasped by the other hand, at a distance of about */3 of ametre (26 inches) higher up. Then, supporting the caber on thebended knee, and with the body bent somewhat backwards, the playermust try to heave up the pole, so that the thick end is lifted upwards,until the caber stands almost perpendicular, supported somewhatagainst the shoulder. Both hands now grasp the thin end ofthe pole. With the caber in this position, a slight run is permittedup to a certain mark and then, when this is reached, the thick end ofthe pole is allowed to fall slowly forwards, and, at the same time,the caber is thrown forcibly upwards and forwards, so as to getthe pole to turn over. The thick end of the caber touches the groundfirst, and it ought to pitch over with the thin end foremost. In order tocount a point, the thin end must fall forwards at right angles to thethrowing point, and the thrower must not step past the mark. The one whothrow farthest and who gets the caber to turn over properly, is the winner.ICELANDIC “GLIMA”=WRESTLING.THE RULES.The wrestlers shall stand erect. They grasp each otherwith the right hand on the opponent’s left hip (the players wear trunks),821