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The Games were originally awarded to Rome. But when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 1906, destroying the southern Italian countryside and claiming the lives of 85,000, Olympic funds were transferred to the reconstruction effort. London came to the rescue thanks to King Edward VII's great interest in the Olympic movement. The largest stadium of the time was built in Shephard's Bush, where 100,000 people could enjoy simultaneously track and field, swimming, cycling and other sports. | |
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