Anderson is unlikely to be part of Brazil's bid for golden glory at London 2012, having been left out of coach Mano Menezes' provisional 52-man squad.

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As historian of science Stanley Jaki spent his life documenting, the pagan world view was one of endless cycles, of oscillations, of rise and fall, golden ages of glory, bronze ages of decline, iron and stone ages of despair, with no genuine permanent progress.

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He went on to emulate Oreiller's golden hat-trick, at the Grenoble Winter Olympics in 1968, and his pursuit of speed and glory once saw him complete a trial race on one leg, legend has it, having broken the other one en route to the finish line.

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