Photograph of Pierre de Coubertin
Under the pseudonyms Georges Hohrod and Martin Eschbach, IOC founder Pierre de Coubertin won a gold medal in the literature category at the 1912 Summer Olympics.

There were 146 medalists in the art competitions that were part of the Olympic Games from 1912 until 1948. These art competitions were considered an integral part of the movement by International Olympic Committee (IOC) founder Pierre de Coubertin and necessary to recapture the complete essence of the Ancient Olympic Games. Their absence before the 1912 Summer Olympics, according to journalism professor Richard Stanton, stems from Coubertin "not wanting to fragment the focus of his new and fragile movement".[1] Art competitions were originally planned for inclusion in the 1908 Summer Olympics but were delayed after that edition's change in venue from Rome to London following the 1906 eruption of Mount Vesuvius.[2] By the 1924 Summer Olympics they had grown to be considered internationally relevant and potentially "a milestone in advancing public awareness of art as a whole".[3]

During their first three appearances, the art competitions were grouped into five broad categories: architecture, literature, music, painting, and sculpture. The Dutch Organizing Committee for the 1928 Summer Olympics split these into subcategories in the hopes of increasing participation.[4] Although it was a successful strategy, the 1932 Summer Olympics eliminated several of these subcategories, which led to fewer entries in the broader categories.[5] For the 1936 Summer Olympics, the German government proposed the addition of a film contest to the program, which was rejected.[6]

Following a final appearance at the 1948 Summer Olympics, art competitions were removed from the Olympic program. Planners of the 1952 Summer Olympics opposed their inclusion on logistical grounds, claiming that the lack of an international association for the event meant that the entire onus of facilitation was placed on the local organizing committee.[7] Concerns were also raised about the professionalism of the event, since only amateurs were allowed to participate in the sporting tournaments,[8] and the growing commercialization of the competitions, as artists had been permitted to sell their submissions during the course of the Games since 1928. In 1952 an art festival and exhibition was held concurrent with the Games, a tradition that has been maintained in all subsequent Summer Olympics.[9]

The IOC does not track medalists in Olympic art competitions in its database and thus the prize winners are only officially recorded in the original Olympic reports. Judges were not required to distribute first, second, and third place awards for every category, and thus certain events lack medalists in these placements. Since participants were allowed multiple submissions, it was also possible for artists to win more than one in a single event, as Alex Diggelmann of Switzerland did in the graphic arts category of the 1948 edition.[10] Diggelmann is tied with Denmark's Josef Petersen, who won second prize three times in literature, for the number of medals captured in the art competitions. Luxembourg's Jean Jacoby is the only individual to win two gold medals, doing so in painting in 1924 and 1928. Of the 146 medalists, 11 were women and only Finnish author Aale Tynni was awarded gold. Germany was the most successful nation, with eight gold, seven silver, and nine bronze medals,[11] although one was won by Coubertin himself, a Frenchman. He submitted his poem Ode to Sport under the pseudonyms Georges Hohrod and Martin Eschbach, as if it were a joint-entry, and won first prize in the 1912 literature category. The original report credits this medal to Germany.[12] Two individuals, Walter W. Winans[13] and Alfréd Hajós, won medals in both athletic and art competitions.[14]

Architecture

Mixed architecture

Photograph of Alfréd Hajós
Alfréd Hajós was one of two individuals to win medals in sport and art competitions.
Olympic medalists in mixed architecture
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1912 Stockholm  Eugène-Edouard Monod & Alphonse Laverrière (SUI)
Building-plan of a modern Stadium 		none awarded none awarded
1920 Antwerp none awarded  Holger Sinding-Larsen (NOR)
Project pour une Ecole de Gymnastique 		none awarded
1924 Paris none awarded  Alfréd Hajós & Dezső Lauber (HUN)
Plan d'un Stade 		 Julien Médecin (MON)
Stade pour Monte-Carlo

Mixed architecture, architectural designs

Photograph of Jan Wils
Jan Wils, 1928 gold medalist in architectural designs
Olympic medalists in mixed architecture, architectural designs
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Jan Wils (NED)
Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam 		 Ejnar Mindedal Rasmussen (DEN)
Swimming pool at Ollerup 		 Jacques Lambert (FRA)
Stadium at Versailles
1932 Los Angeles  Gustave Saacké, Pierre Bailly, & Pierre Montenot (FRA)
Design for a "Cirque pour Toros" 		 John Russell Pope (USA)
Design for the Payne Whitney Gymnasium, New Haven, Conn. 		 Richard Konwiarz (GER)
Design for a "Schlesierkampfbahn" in the Sport Park of Breslau
1936 Berlin  Hermann Kutschera (AUT)
Skiing Stadium 		 Werner March[note 1] (GER)
Reich Sport Field 		 Hermann Stiegholzer & Herbert Kastinger (AUT)
Sporting Center in Vienna
1948 London  Adolf Hoch (AUT)
Skisprungschanze auf dem Kobenzl 		 Alfred Rinesch (AUT)
Watersports Centre in Carinthia 		 Nils Olsson (SWE)
Baths and Sporting Hall for Gothenburg

Town planning

Photograph of Charles Downing Lay
Charles Downing Lay, 1936 silver medalist in designs for municipal planning
Olympic medalists in town planning
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Alfred Hensel (GER)
Stadium at Nuremberg 		 Jacques Lambert (FRA)
Stadium at Versailles 		 Max Laeuger (GER)
Municipal park at Hamburg
1932 Los Angeles  John Hughes (GBR)
Design for a Sports and Recreation Center with Stadium, for the City of Liverpool 		 Jens Klemmensen (DEN)
Design for a Stadium and Public Park 		 André Verbeke (BEL)
Design for a "Maraton Park"
1936 Berlin[15]  Werner March & Walter March (GER)
Reich Sport Field 		 Charles Downing Lay (USA)
Marine Park, Brooklyn 		 Theo Nussbaum (GER)
Municipal Planning and Sporting Centre in Cologne
1948 London  Yrjö Lindegren (FIN)
The Centre of Athletics in Varkaus, Finland. 		 Werner Schindler & Edy Knupfer (SUI)
Swiss Federal Sports and Gymnastics Training Centre 		 Ilmari Niemeläinen (FIN)
The Athletic Centre in Kemi, Finland.

Literature

Mixed literature

Photograph of Oliver Saint John Gogarty
Oliver St. John Gogarty, 1924 bronze medalist in literature
Photograph of Kazimierz Wierzyński
Kazimierz Wierzyński, 1928 gold medalist in lyric and speculative works
Olympic medalists in mixed literature
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1912 Stockholm  Georges Hohrod & Martin Eschbath (GER)
Ode to sport 		none awarded none awarded
1920 Antwerp  Raniero Nicolai (ITA)
Canzoni Olimpioniche 		 Theodore Andrea Cook (GBR)
Olympic Games of Antwerp 		 Maurice Bladel (BEL)
La Louange des Dieux
1924 Paris  Géo-Charles (FRA)
Jeux Olympiques 		 Margaret Stuart (GBR)
Sword Songs 		 Charles Gonnet (FRA)
Vers le Dieu d’Olympie
 Josef Petersen (DEN)
Euryale 		 Oliver St. John Gogarty (IRL)
Ode pour les Jeux de Tailteann
1932 Los Angeles  Paul Bauer (GER)
Am Kangehenzonga 		 Josef Petersen (DEN)
The Argonauts 		none awarded

Dramatic works

Olympic medalists in dramatic works
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam none awarded  Lauro De Bosis (ITA)
Icaro 		none awarded

Epic works

Olympic medalists in epic works
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Ferenc Mező (HUN)
L’histoire des Jeux Olympiques 		 Ernst Weiss (GER)
Boetius von Orlamünde 		 Carel Scharten & Margo Scharten-Antink (NED)
De Nar uit de Maremmen
1936 Berlin  Urho Karhumäki (FIN)
Avoveteen 		 Wilhelm Ehmer (GER)
For the Top of the World 		 Jan Parandowski (POL)
Dysk Olimijski
1948 London  Giani Stuparich (ITA)
La Grotta 		 Josef Petersen (DEN)
The Olympic Champion 		 Éva Földes (HUN)
The Well of Youth

Lyric and speculative works

Olympic medalists in lyric and speculative works
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Kazimierz Wierzyński (POL)
Laur Olimpijski 		 Rudolf G. Binding (GER)
Reitvorschrift fur eine Geliebte 		 Johannes Weltzer (DEN)
Symphonia Heroïca
1936 Berlin[16]  Felix Dhünen-Sondinger (GER)
The Runner 		 Bruno Fattori (ITA)
Profili Azzuri 		 Hans Stoiber (AUT)
The Discus
1948 London[17]  Aale Tynni (FIN)
Laurel of Hellas 		 Ernst van Heerden (RSA)
Six Poems 		 Gilbert Prouteau (FRA)
Rythme du Stade

Music

Mixed music

Photograph of Josef Suk
Josef Suk, 1932 silver medalist in music
Olympic medalists in mixed music
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1912 Stockholm  Riccardo Barthelemy (ITA)
Triumphal March 		none awarded none awarded
1920 Antwerp  Georges Monier (BEL)
Olympique 		 Oreste Riva (ITA)
Epinicion 		none awarded
1932 Los Angeles none awarded  Josef Suk (TCH)
Into a New Life 		none awarded

Compositions for orchestra

Olympic medalists in compositions for orchestra
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam none awarded none awarded  Rudolph Simonsen (DEN)
Symphony No. 2 "Hellas"
1936 Berlin  Werner Egk (GER)
Olympic Festive Music 		 Lino Liviabella (ITA)
The Victor 		 Jaroslav Křička (TCH)
Mountain Suite
1948 London[18]  Zbigniew Turski (POL)
Olympic Symphony 		 Kalervo Tuukkanen (FIN)
Karhunpyynti 		 Erling Brene (DEN)
Viguer

Solo and chorus compositions

Photograph of Kurt Thomas
Kurt Thomas, 1936 silver medalist in solo and chorus compositions
Olympic medalists in solo and chorus compositions
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1936 Berlin  Paul Höffer (GER)
Olympic Vow 		 Kurt Thomas (GER)
Olympic Cantata, 1936 		 Harald Genzmer (GER)
The Runner

Instrumental and chamber

Olympic medalists in the instrumental and chamber event
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1948 London none awarded  Jean Weinzweig (CAN)
Divertimenti for Solo Flute and Strings 		 Sergio Lauricella (ITA)
Toccata per Pianoforte

Vocal

Olympic medalists in the vocal event
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1948 London none awarded none awarded  Gabriele Bianchi (ITA)
Inno Olimpionico

Painting

Mixed painting

Photograph of Jack Butler Yeats
Jack Butler Yeats, 1924 silver medalist in painting
Olympic medalists in mixed painting
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1912 Stockholm  Carlo Pellegrini (ITA)
Winter Sports 		none awarded none awarded
1920 Antwerp none awarded  Henriette Brossin de Mère-de Polanska (FRA)
L'Elan 		 Alfred Ost (BEL)
Joueur de Football
1924 Paris  Jean Jacoby (LUX)
Etude de Sport 		 Jack Butler Yeats (IRL)
Natation 		 Johan van Hell (NED)
Patineurs

Drawings and water colors

Drawing of two men playing rugby
Rugby by Jean Jacoby, the winning entry in the 1928 drawings category
Olympic medalists in drawing and water colors
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam[19]  Jean Jacoby (LUX)
Rugby 		 Alex Virot (FRA)
Gestes de Football 		 Władysław Skoczylas (POL)
Posters
1932 Los Angeles  Lee Blair (USA)
Rodeo 		 Percy Crosby (USA)
Jackknife 		 Gerhard Westermann (NED)
Horseman
1936 Berlin none awarded  Romano Dazzi (ITA)
Four Sketches for Frescoes 		 Sujaku Suzuki (JPN)
Classical Horse Racing in Japan

Engravings and etchings

Olympic medalists in engravings and etchings
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1948 London  Albert Decaris (FRA)
Swimming Pool 		 John Copley (GBR)
Polo Players 		 Walter Battiss (RSA)
Seaside Sport

Graphic works

Photograph of William Nicholson
William Nicholson, 1928 gold medalist in graphic works
Olympic medalists in graphic works
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  William Nicholson (GBR)
Un Almanach de douze Sports 		 Carl Moos (SUI)
Posters 		 Max Feldbauer (GER)
Mailcoach
1932 Los Angeles[20]  Joseph Golinkin (USA)
Leg Scissors 		 Janina Konarska (POL)
Stadium 		 Joachim Karsch (GER)
Stabwechsel
1936 Berlin[21]  Alex Diggelmann (SUI)
Arosa I Placard 		 Alfred Hierl (GER)
International Automobile Race on the Avis 		 Stanisław Ostoja-Chrostowski (POL)
Yachting Club Certificate
1948 London[22] none awarded  Alex Diggelmann (SUI)
World Championship for Cycling Poster 		 Alex Diggelmann (SUI)
World Championship for Ice Hockey Poster

Paintings

Photograph of David Wallin
David Wallin, 1932 gold medalist in painting
Olympic medalists in paintings
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Isaac Israëls (NED)
Cavalier Rouge 		 Laura Knight (GBR)
Boxeurs 		 Walther Klemm (GER)
Patinage
1932 Los Angeles  David Wallin (SWE)
At the Seaside of Arild 		 Ruth Miller (USA)
Struggle 		none awarded
1936 Berlin none awarded  Rudolf Eisenmenger (AUT)
Runner at the Finishing Line 		 Ryuji Fujita (JPN)
Ice Hockey
1948 London  Alfred Thomson (GBR)
London Amateur Championships 		 Giovanni Stradone (ITA)
Le Pistard 		 Letitia Marion Hamilton (IRL)
Meath Hunt Point-to-Point Races

Sculpturing

Mixed sculpturing

Photograph of Walter Winans
Walter W. Winans was one of two individuals to win medals in sport and art competitions.
Painting of Frederick William MacMonnies
Frederick William MacMonnies, 1932 silver medalist in medals and reliefs
Photograph of Mahonri Young
Mahonri Young, 1932 gold medalist in statues
Olympic medalists in mixed sculpturing
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1912 Stockholm  Walter W. Winans (USA)
An American trotter 		 Georges Dubois (FRA)
Model of the entrance to a modern Stadium 		none awarded
1920 Antwerp  Albéric Collin (BEL)
La Force 		 Simon Goossens (BEL)
Les Patineurs 		 Alphons De Cuyper (BEL)
Lanceur de Poids et Coureur
1924 Paris  Konstantinos Dimitriadis (GRE)
Discobole Finlandais 		 Frantz Heldenstein (LUX)
Vers l'olympiade 		 Jean René Gauguin (DEN)
Le Boxeur
 Claude-Léon Mascaux (FRA)
Cadre de Medailles

Medals

Olympic medalists in medals
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1936 Berlin none awarded  Luciano Mercante (ITA)
Medals 		 Josue Dupon (BEL)
Equestrian Medals

Medals and plaques

Olympic medalists in medals and plaques
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1948 London none awarded  Oskar Thiede (AUT)
Eight Sports Plaques 		 Edwin Grienauer (AUT)
Prize Rowing Trophy

Reliefs and medallions

Olympic medalists in reliefs and medallions
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Edwin Grienauer (AUT)
Médailles 		 Chris van der Hoef (NED)
Médaille pour les Jeux Olympiques 		 Edwin Scharff (GER)
Plaquette
1932 Los Angeles[23]  Józef Klukowski (POL)
Sport Sculpture II 		 Frederick William MacMonnies (USA)
Lindbergh Medal 		 R. Tait McKenzie (CAN)
Shield of the Athletes

Reliefs

Olympic medalists in reliefs
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1936 Berlin  Emil Sutor (GER)
Hurdlers 		 Józef Klukowski (POL)
Ball 		none awarded
1948 London none awarded none awarded  Rosamund Fletcher (GBR)
The End of the Covert

Statues

Olympic medalists in statues
Games Gold Silver Bronze
1928 Amsterdam  Paul Landowski (FRA)
Boxer 		 Milo Martin (SUI)
Athlète au repos 		 Renée Sintenis (GER)
Footballeur
1932 Los Angeles  Mahonri Young (USA)
The Knockdown 		 Miltiades Manno (HUN)
Wrestling 		 Jakub Obrovský (TCH)
Odysseus
1936 Berlin  Farpi Vignoli (ITA)
Sulky Driver 		 Arno Breker (GER)
Decathlon Athlete 		 Stig Blomberg (SWE)
Wrestling Youths
1948 London  Gustaf Nordahl (SWE)
Homage to Ling 		 Chintamoni Kar (GBR)
The Stag 		 Hubert Yencesse (FRA)
Nageuse

Statistics

Multiple medalists

Multiple medalists in Olympic art competitions
Athlete Nation Olympics Gold Silver Bronze Total
Alex Diggelmann  Switzerland (SUI) 1936–1948 1 1 1 3
Josef Petersen  Denmark (DEN) 1924, 1932, 1948 0 3 0 3
Jean Jacoby  Luxembourg (LUX) 1924–1936 2 0 0 2
Józef Klukowski  Poland (POL) 1932–1936 1 1 0 2
Werner March  Germany (GER) 1928–1936 1 1 0 2
Edwin Grienauer  Austria (AUT) 1928, 1948 1 0 1 2
Jacques Lambert  France (FRA) 1928 0 1 1 2

Medals per year

Medals won by country by year
Nation 1912 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1948 Total
 Austria (AUT) – – – 1 – 4 4 9
 Belgium (BEL) – 6 – – 1 1 – 8
 Canada (CAN) – – – – 1 – 1 2
 Denmark (DEN) – – 2 3 2 – 2 9
 Finland (FIN) – – – – – 1 4 5
 France (FRA) 1 1 3 2 3 – 3 13
 Great Britain (GBR) – 1 1 2 1 – 4 9
 Germany (GER) 1 – – 8 3 12 – 24
 Greece (GRE) – – 1 – – – – 1
 Hungary (HUN) – – 1 1 1 – 1 4
 Ireland (IRL) – – 2 – – – 1 3
 Italy (ITA) 2 2 – 1 – 5 4 14
 Japan (JPN) – – – – – 2 – 2
 Luxembourg (LUX) – – 2 1 – – – 3
 Monaco (MON) – – 1 – – – – 1
 Netherlands (NED) – – 1 4 1 – – 6
 Norway (NOR) – 1 – – – – – 1
 Poland (POL) – – – 2 2 3 1 8
 South Africa (RSA) – – – – – – 2 2
 Switzerland (SUI) 1 – – 2 – 1 3 7
 Sweden (SWE) – – – – 1 1 2 4
 Czechoslovakia (TCH) – – – – 2 1 – 3
 United States (USA) 1 – – – 7 1 – 9

References

General

Specific

  1. ^ Stanton, Richard (2000). The Forgotten Olympic Art Competitions (1st ed.). Victoria: Trafford Publishing. p. 3. ISBN 1552126064.
  2. ^ Stanton, p. 18.
  3. ^ Stanton, p. 69.
  4. ^ Stanton, p. 95.
  5. ^ Stanton, p. 146.
  6. ^ Stanton, p. 158.
  7. ^ Stanton, p. 210.
  8. ^ Stanton, p. 211.
  9. ^ Stanton, p. 213.
  10. ^ "The Official Report of the Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad London 1948" (PDF). London: The Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad. 1951: 536. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2012-03-06. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. ^ Gjerde, Arild; Jeroen Heijmans; Bill Mallon; Hilary Evans (2011). "Art Competitions". Olympics. Sports Reference.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-14. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
  12. ^ Gjerde, Arild; Jeroen Heijmans; Bill Mallon; Hilary Evans (2011). "Pierre, Baron de Coubertin Biography and Olympic Results". Olympics. Sports Reference.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-04. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
  13. ^ Gjerde, Arild; Jeroen Heijmans; Bill Mallon; Hilary Evans (2011). "Walter Winans Biography and Olympic Results". Olympics. Sports Reference.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-18. Retrieved 2012-03-08.
  14. ^ Gjerde, Arild; Jeroen Heijmans; Bill Mallon; Hilary Evans (2011). "Alfréd Hajós Biography and Olympic Results". Olympics. Sports Reference.com. Archived from the original on 2012-11-01. Retrieved 2012-03-08.
  15. ^ In 1936, this event was listed as "Designs for Municipal Planning". "The XIth Olympic Games Berlin, 1936: Official Report Volume II" (PDF). Berlin: Organisationskomitee Fur Die XI. Olympiade Berlin 1936 E.V. 1937: 1119. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  16. ^ In 1936, this event was listed as "Lyric Works". "The XIth Olympic Games Berlin, 1936: Official Report Volume II" (PDF). Berlin: Organisationskomitee Fur Die XI. Olympiade Berlin 1936 E.V. 1937: 1122. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  17. ^ In 1948, this event was listed as "Lyrics". "The Official Report of the Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad London 1948" (PDF). London: The Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad. 1951: 536. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-09-12. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  18. ^ In 1948, this event was listed as "Choral and Orchestra". "The Official Report of the Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad London 1948" (PDF). London: The Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad. 1951: 537. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-09-12. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  19. ^ In 1928, this event was listed as "Drawings". "Official Report of the Olympic Games of 1928 Celebrated at Amsterdam" (PDF). Amsterdam: Netherlands Olympic Committee. 1928: 898. Retrieved 2017-05-28. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  20. ^ In 1932, this event was listed as "Prints"."The Games of the Xth Olympiad Los Angeles 1932" (PDF). Los Angeles: Xth Olympiade Committee of the Games of Los Angeles. 1933: 758. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  21. ^ In 1936, this event was listed as "Commercial Graphic Art". "The XIth Olympic Games Berlin, 1936: Official Report Volume II" (PDF). Berlin: Organisationskomitee Fur Die XI. Olympiade Berlin 1936 E.V. 1937: 1122. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  22. ^ In 1948, this event was listed as "Applied Art and Crafts". "The Official Report of the Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad London 1948" (PDF). London: The Organising Committee for the XIV Olympiad. 1951: 535–537. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-09-12. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  23. ^ In 1932, this event was listed as "Medals and Reliefs". "The Games of the Xth Olympiad Los Angeles 1932" (PDF). Los Angeles: Xth Olympiade Committee of the Games of Los Angeles. 1933: 758. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2017-05-14. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

Notes

  1. ^ Data provided by Bill Mallon to Sports Reference.com lists Walter March as a co-medalist.

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