The character of the athlete and the rules of the game were of utmost importance to Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who constantly emphasized the role of honor and fair play in sport.  No victory, no reward, no glory was worth compromising the integrity of the game—and those who did so were unworthy of its laurels. This is the sixth quote in our series from “Ode to Sport,” the gold-medal winning poem from the Stockholm 1912 cultural competition.  As we noted in our commentaries on January 6, 18, 28 and May 12 and 27, the Baron wrote the poem and submitted it under the dual pseudonym of Georges Hohrod and M. Eschbach to avoid any favoritism.  It won the gold on its merits alone.