1935
The progress made in the work of preparation was announced to the National Olympic Committees in January, 1935 through our first circular letter, which also contained information concerning the costs and planning of expeditions as well as a time-table, the regulations for sojourn in the Olympic Village and the conditions governing the sale of admission tickets. Up to this time we had carried on a 'direct correspondence 'with the various countries, but the idea of a circular letter proved to be practical, and we sent out a total of eight in all. They were especially valuable in supplementing correspondence of an individual nature.
Our attention was directed in an increasing degree to the extension of our technical organization, and we began with the problem of providing the necessary sporting facilities. The courses for the road races, the Marathon event, the 50 kilometre walking race and the 100 kilometre cycling competition were laid out. The German technical departments for the various sports approved the plans of Dr. Diem, the authorities promised to take the necessary steps for closing off the stretches and the German Railway agreed to stop transportation on the Potsdam-Nauen route, which would be crossed during the long-distance cycling race. The "Reichsamt fьr Landesaufnahme" (Reich Department of Topography) measured the courses and designed a topographical map which was distributed in July, 1935. The long-distance runners and cyclists of the various nations were thus able to begin final training, taking into consideration the degrees of incline and decline they would meet with in Berlin. Furthermore, the Reich Department produced a topographical map in the ratio of 1:50,000 for the entire Olympic district extending from the Olympic Village and the most distant point of the long-distance cycling race to Grьnau, so that the Olympic Committees could gain a definite idea of the location of the various Olympic centres as well as the intervening distances.
Publication of the Regulations
We then began publication of the regulations booklets which, after they had been studied and approved by the International Olympic Committee at its meeting in Oslo towards the end of February, 1935 and revised to include the decisions made there, were printed in five languages and despatched
in July, 1935 to all the National Olympic Committees. The entire edition comprised 115,000 booklets with a total of 5,750,000 printed pages, the demand having exceeded our most optimistic estimates. In addition to these, our publications also included various pamphlets, the "Blue Guide Book," the guide book for the Olympic Village with complete information concerning accommodations, reductions in fares and transportation, customs regulations, the torch relay run, entry instructions and a list of the participants. Our printing bill alone for this information material was 117,493 Reichsmarks. We introduced an innovation in the form of special films of the compulsory gymnastic exercises for men and women, which were sent to the nations participating in this event. Our technical preparations included the construction of three scoring apparatuses, a timing camera for the races, an electrical touch recorder for fencing and a scoring apparatus for the diving competition. We enjoyed in this connection the assistance of the "Physikalisch-Technische Reichsanstalt" (Reich Institution for Physical-Technical Research), where, under the supervision of Dr. Keil, the plans were perfected. The first apparatus was completed by the Zeiss Ikon and Agfa Companies, while the other two were executed by an engineering expert, Herr Himer. Experiments with these various apparatuses were begun as early as February, 1935, and constant improvements and changes were made until the summer of 1936, when, in their final form, the apparatuses were of invaluable service and gained the recognition of sporting experts throughout the world.