London and the Olympics
Until September 2012.
Ahead of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games the Museum of London reflects upon the heritage of the Olympic Games in a new display.
London and the Olympics takes visitors back to the London games of 1908 and 1948, the last time London hosted the Olympics.
The display is a local and global perspective on the Games, highlighting not only the experience for Londoners but for visiting athletes like that of the Peruvian team in 1948.
In 1948 Peru sent a team of 41 men to London. They competed in 7 sports, including the ‘free pistol’ shooting where Edwin Vásquez won a gold medal. Vasquez, a 26 year old graduate in civll engineering from Lima’s Catholic University, remains Peru’s only Olympic gold medallist.
The 1948 Peruvian team included William Ahrens, a basketball player, Luis Poggi a cyclist and athlete Enrique Mendizabal Raig. Some of the pictures used in the display are from an album Enrique Mendizabal made in 1948 to record the team’s visit to London.
London and the Olympics is free and will be on display until September 2012.
