Barcelona's Olympic Dream 1924

Abstract

The centenary of Spain's first official participation in the Olympic Games (Antwerp, 1920) calls into question the need to review the historical state of the question. From the existing histography, new finds and greater knowledge of the historical period the opportunity has arisen to look at the subject again Here we consider the candidature presentation by the Commonwealth of Catalonia (Mancommunitat) to organize the 1924 Games in Barcelona. We try to answer the question: Why did Barcelona aspire to hosting the Olympic Games in 1924 and why did the candidature presentation fail? We provide more details to the story and interpretative elements which together can give a clearer picture of the events. and why the application failed. Using historiographic-type methodology which is linked to previous studies, and also to the heuristics of new primary documentary sources held in the National Archive of Catalonia, we offer a narrative built on the events, the complicated social context at the time and the decisions made as a result.