We start this months page with an article from the Victor about the man who lead the succesful bid which brought the Olympics to London in 2012, Lord Sebastian Coe. As an athlete, he won four Olympic medals, a gold (1500m) and silver (800m) at the 1980 Moscow Olympics and a gold (1500m) and silver (800m) at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. The article from the Victor issue 1161 (May 1983), tells the story of Lord Coe's running achievements. Scans courtesy of Vic Whittle.

Also below are a couple of pages of Alf's athletic tips. No doubt Lord Coe would have followed all of the Tough's advice, including a daily meal of fish and chips!

Two of Great Britain's strongest disciplines in recent Olympics has been cycling and rowing. I couldn't find any cycling or rowing stories with an Olympic theme, but I did find a series about bicycle speedway chasing from The Hotspur (issue 633) comic and a complete Point-to-Point Cyclo-Cross cycling story from the Victor 1972 annual. Artwork for the former story is by Ron Smith and the latter story by Anthony Coleman.

Rowing stories are even thinner on the ground, but I did manage to find a Oxford and Cambridge rowing text story from the Victor issue 242. I've selected the final episode from the series. It's race day on the River Thames, but who will win, Oxford or Cambridge?

Here's a chance to exercise your brains with the Olympic quiz from the 1980 Victor Summer Special. Be warned some of the questions are rock hard as you will have to think of the answer that would be relevant for 1980, as opposed to 2012!

Athletics has always been popular with crowds and below is an episode featuring William Wilson at the Black Olympics. This story is from the Hornet issue 634, artwork by Ripol.

Lastly, there are two links below which will take readers to other pages on this website that feature stories with an Olympic theme. Security is a major issue at this years Olympics, but how was crime tackled at the 1968 Mexico Olympics? Follow the link to the Big Palooka's page and see Inspector Jim Ransom tackle crime in his inimitable style.

And finally, no Olympics page would be complete without some Alf Tupper stories. Join Alf and "Flapper" Farmer in Mexico at the 1968 Olympics. Can they win a medal or will the high altitude defeat the runners? Classic action from one of the great British comic characters.

Come on Team GB!

The Big Palooka. A tough police series.
The Big Palooka. -
(police).

Alf Tupper, Tough of the Track -

(Athletics).