Your NHS: The NHS Story: Week ending August 2

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This section gives you an archive of the stories which made it into the national press during 1948.

The light-heavyweight boxer Freddie Mills wins the world championship at White City Stadium in London. His opponent was Gus Lesnevich who had beaten him two years previously.

In the US Bob Howard becomes the first black TV presenter. He presents his own show, 'The Bob Howard Show', a 15 minute weekday evening musical slot on the CBS network.

The King opens the fourteenth Olympic Games at Wembley Stadium in London. Due to post-war austerity no new stadiums were built to cater for the games and instead existing traditional venues were used; the rowing competitions were held at Henley, shooting at Bisley and yachting at Cowes. Germany, the Soviet Union and Japan did not attend.

The Olympics are televised from July 29th to August 14th amounting to more than 50 hours of programmes - the most ambitious series of programmes BBC TV has ever undertaken.

The Games, the wettest Olympics ever held, featured the first bantarnweight weight-lifting contest. Britain won three gold medals. two in rowing and one in yachting. Tom Richards a 38 year old nurse at Tooting Bec Hospital, London finished second in the 26 mile marathon bringing the crowd to their feet.

The Americans won 38 gold medals and dominated the athletics events. A 17 year old American, Bob Mathias, won the decathlon, despite continuous rain throughout his gruelling 12 hour day. When asked after winning what he planned to do next, he reputedly replied "start shaving!"

Another exceptional athlete was the 30 year old Dutchwoman Fanny Blaners-Koen, nicknamed "the flying Dutchwoman" who arrived in London as the world record-holder in the high jump and the long jump. She competed in neither of these and instead won four track events: the 100 metres, the 200 metres, the 80 metres hurdles and the 4 x 100 sprint relay.