Rules Rule the Game.

It has always been my viewpoint that instead of postponing an Olympic Games because of war the proper thing to do would be to postpone the war during the progress of the Games. This was done in the earliest days of the Olympic movement, many years B.C., but apparently civilisation has moved along since those times. Cable messages from America indicate that this viewpoint has been discussed unofficially, but little hope is held out for a successful outcome. It is a wise man who changes his opinion—consistency is the refuge of fools—and I do not want to be classed as an utter fool! I have changed my viewpoint. My opinion was that a “postponement” of the war during the Olympic festival would enable the individuals to meet in friendly combat with the possible result that the battle would not recommence. So far, so good. But, after reading where the Scottish Rugby Union refuses to allow Rugby matches between soldiers of England and Scotland to be played because the English team included a Rugby League player, and where a Rugby match between French and English soldiers might have to be abandoned because the French take the commonsense viewpoint that professional sports status should be ignored during the war and all sportsmen rank as equals, whereas the English view is against this, I feel that sport is not such a strong force in the world after all. If men, fighting a common fight, cannot be allowed to act as men it is time the sports authorities went into a “blackout” and left sport to look after itself. The bugbear of all sport is the rules which make the game secondary to the control of it.