Military genius from the ranks of Olympic stars

After the end of the Second World War, American newspapers highly praised the command ability of the second World War general Patton, and respected him as the "military god". But it was not his bloody battle that Patton was proud of. "It is the pride and honour of my life to compete in my fifth Olympic Games," he declared.

In 1912, the 5th Olympic Games was held in Stockholm, Sweden. Patton, then a captain of the army, took part in the modern pentathlon at his own expense, and won the seventh place in swimming, the fourth place in fencing, the sixth place in equestrian, the third place in cross-country running and the fifth place in total. He is an Olympic sports star in every sense.

General George Patton is the World War II wisdom and courage of the United States Army, has led the seventh, the third Army, in the battlefield, invincible, for the allied victory over the German and Italian allied forces, made a great contribution. He has a hot temper, is direct, hatred, regards coward as the enemy. Unbecoming of his aristocratic status, he had a penchant for coarse language, especially to his subordinates. He was a pure soldier, unwilling to accept to his death that the military was an extension of politics, constantly antagonizing his superiors and politicians, who admired and exploited his military talents as much as they hated him. His book "Son of a Bitch War" has been widely read.

Patton, known as the "God of violence" and "General of Blood and Courage", has created many first places in the history of the United States in his military career. He has the reputation of "the first swordsman of the United States Army", Patton cavalry, love horsemanship, even a uniform can also show strong Western cowboy style. He was also known as the "First warrior of the United States", commanding the golden iron horse galloping in the desert of North Africa, with outstanding achievements and invincible battles. Patton had another first, a breakthrough in American military history, when he created America's first tank army.

When Berlin, Germany, renounced the bid to host the 1912 Olympics in 1909, Swedish General Victor Gustav Balke seized the opportunity to bring the Games to Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, with himself as chairman of the organizing committee. In 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games, by shooting, swimming, fencing, equestrian and cross-country running five events composed of the modern pentathlon, the founder of the modern Olympic Games Pierre de Coubertin strongly advocated for the first time into the Olympic competition. It is a comprehensive military training program, can cultivate soldiers brave and tenacious quality, so the participants are mostly soldiers. After hearing the news from others, Barton, then a captain, decided to pay his own way to Sweden to compete. Patton, who sees himself as a modern-day samurai, sees it as a great opportunity to challenge his stamina and stamina. Forty-three warriors took part in the high profile race, including Patton's three regular U.S. military officers. At the end of the race, the first four places were taken by Swedes. Captain Lillehecker, a Swedish soldier, won the championship.

He had to be pulled out of the pool with a boat hook at the end of the 300-meter race because he had no energy left. During the 4,000-meter race, Barton crashed into a wall 50 meters from the finish line and collapsed from exhaustion after struggling across the finish line. Still, he finished third in the event. Button finished fifth overall, leaving an indelible impression on many.

Barton finished 21st in the modern pentathlon with 169 points, including two misses. He argued with the referee about the number of rounds. Patton's pistol was overcaliber, which caused the hole in the target to be too wide. After two misses in a row, Patton explained to the referee that the second round had gone through the hole in the bullseye, but the referee insisted that Patton had missed. Patton was quite gracious about it. "Everyone in the competition showed true military spirit," he said. "We all see each other as good friends and comrades, not competitors. That friendship will never be replaced by a desire to win."

If the judges had misjudged the number of shots, Barton would have finished ahead in his fifth Olympics.

It was his unyielding performance in the Olympic Games that impressed another American general, Pershing. In his eyes, a standard officer should first of all be a standard fighter. And George Patton, who competed in the military pentathlon at the Olympics, certainly has what it takes. Patton took an important step in his military development when he enlisted him in the attack on Mexico.

Patton was an avid sportsman, interested in many sports, but especially adventurous ones. According to my research, as early as when he was A student at West Point, he set the school record in hurdles, broke the school record in track and field events, and was also the best fencer and special marksman in rifle and pistol, reaching the standard of A-level athletes. Later a powerful general, he won 400 MEDALS and 200 trophies at equestrian events across the United States.

Long periods of physical exercise kept Patton strong and served him well in his military career. In the battle to cross the Rhine in World War II, Patton advanced more than 200 kilometers in five days with an armored cluster. One of his sergeants and the ordnance chief fell ill from fatigue, but Patton, nearly sixty, was still in good spirits.

Eisenhower praised Patton, saying he had a "singular and brutal drive." The German General Blulet (who was von Rondstedt's chief of staff) wrote: "We have a very high opinion of General Patton as the most aggressive 'Panzer general' of the Allied forces, a man of incredible creativity and action. He is similar to our own 'armored general' Guderian. Perhaps because he came closest to our idea of a classical military commander, his command of battle impressed us all the more. He even furthered Napoleon's basic teaching that speed is the best way to fight." General Hermann Balke (who commanded the German Army Group G and later fought the Third Army at the Siegfried Line) summed it up bluntly: "General Patton was the outstanding tactical genius of the Second World War. I still consider it a great privilege and an unforgettable experience to have played against him."