1948 Olympics: Running for records

As the Games approached, thoughts turned to the possibilities of records. In the Observer article below, published on 20 June 1948, Charles Davy pondered whether we were "near the limits of achievement...or are new records in reach?" Davy had some interesting thoughts on the training and psychology of winners, not least the potential application of hypnotism in order to perform record breaking feats. Throughout the article, however, he refers to the temperament and training of the male - when the true record breaking star of the 1948 Olympics would turn out to be Fanny Blankers-Koen , who won four gold medals.