A long skater speeds away on the rain-wet ice on lake Orlangen, South of Stockholm on December 15, 2013. Meteorologists forecast temperatures around 5 degrees for southern Sweden. (Photo by Tobias Rostlund/AFP Photo)

P.S. All pictures, as usual, are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture (if available; this principle works anywhere on the site AvaxNews).

Kyle Larson (42) flips as he makes contact with Jeffrey Earnhardt (81) on the back stretch during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday, April 28, 2019, in Talladega, Ala. (Photo by Greg McWilliams/AP Photo)

A runner in fancy dress attempts a record in the TCS London Marathon on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Photo by John Sibley/Action Images via Reuters)

Do you think that history is a science? Well, not exactly. First, and foremost, history is the state's “legend of wars”, it’s official regalia. Of course, public historians are not interested in scientific truth – quite the opposite. In this respect, any attempt to present a state’s history as altruistic and benevolent as possible is welcomed and encouraged – as opposed to any revisionism attempts that may be more accurate. In this matter, Chinese have surpassed us all – they revised in highly creative manner (but rather shamelessly) the technology already invented by Europeans, a process that resulted in oldest state on the planet. Here is an interesting paradox: ask any sinologist about the Middle Kingdom during second century B.C., and he will describe it to you in such a vivid manner as if he has been living there all his life – but as soon as you will ask him to describe Chinese history in the 19-20th centuries… let's say, his eagerness will be greatly diminished. However, we will discuss China in a different article, and in the meantime we will try to understand how exactly historic “legend of wars” is formed and functions – based on a specific and well-known example. A great example is Ferdinand Magellan's first voyage around the world.

Marta Garcia (R) of Spain loses the champgane bottle standing on the podium next to winner Jamie Chadwick of Great Britain after the first race of the W Series at Hockenheimring on May 04, 2019 in Hockenheim, Germany. W Series aims to give female drivers an opportunity in motorsport that hasn’t been available to them before. The first race of the series, which encompasses six rounds on the DTM support programme, is at the Hockenheimring on May 3rd and 4th. (Photo by Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters)

Italy's Louis Phillip Vito III falls as he competes during the men's halfpipe qualification round at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, February 9, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Francisco Seco/AP Photo)

A man is smeared with “Gulal” as he celebrates Holi, the Hindu spring festival of colours, in Hyderabad on March 25, 2024. (Photo by Noah Seelam/AFP Photo)

Sophia Weisberg of Brazil competes on the balance beam during the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, October 21, 2025. (Photo by Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)