Literature, Open1

This time in 1932 there was only one category in the literature competition, although in the brochure three groups were mentioned. An artist could apply with … lyrical and descriptive works (e.g., song, ode, hymn, cantata, lyrical prose, essay, etc.), dramatic works (e.g., tragedy, drama, comedy, farce, libretto, Freilichtspiele , dialogue, scenario, etc.) and finally, epic works (e.g., novels, short stories, epic tales, etc), although the topic had to be on sports. The works were limited to no more than 20,000 words, and editors could not submit any works.

The jury included eminent writers such as William Lyon Phelps, Thornton Savage, Hugh Walpole and André Maurois. The catalogue only indicated that 18 artists participated with 18 exhibits from eight countries, and does not mention the title of the writings submitted, because the submissions arrived so late in Los Angeles that they could no longer be included in the catalog. The jury also came together very late. It cannot be determined when the prizes were distributed.

An Honorable Mention went to Avery Brundage, and it can be assumed that the jury wished to reward the President of the US Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), and future IOC President. Brundage was a lifelong advocate of pure amateurism, which he described in his essay The Significance of Amateur Sport.

The gold medal was awarded to German adventurer and author Paul Bauer for The Struggle with the Himalaya. The Munich-based Bauer executed an expedition to Kangchenjunga in 1929, and climbed partway up the third-highest mountain on Earth, at 8,586 meters. The expedition reached 7,300 meters, followed in 1931 by a second expedition in which they reached the Ostsporn (7,756 meters). One mountaineer and one sherpa were seriously injured and died, while two other climbers died from diseases. Bauer had submitted eight chapters of the manuscript for his planned book titled On Kangchenjunga.

The silver medal went to Danish writer Josef Petersen for The Argonauts. Petersen wrote mostly about ancient and medieval motifs and was well-known for his knowledge of ancient cultures. He won all his Olympic art medals (1924, 1932 and 1948) with works on ancient Greek sports motifs. The example of his work submitted in Los Angeles was the Argonauts Saga, which appeared in book form in 1932. No bronze medal was awarded.