1904 Summer Olympics

The Games of the III Olympiad were held in 1904 in St. Louis, USA. The organizers repeated all of the mistakes of 1900. The Olympic competitions, spread out over four and a half months, were lost in the chaos of a World's Fair. Of the 94 events generally considered to have been part of the Olympic program, only 42 included athletes who were not from the United States.

Games of the III Olympiad

Nations participating 13

Athletes participating 689 (681 men, 8 women)

Events 94 in 17 sports

Opening ceremonies July 1, 1904

Closing ceremonies November 23, 1904

Officially opened by David Francis
president of Louisiana Purchase Exposition

Athlete's Oath not applicable

Judge's Oath not applicable

Olympic Torch not applicable

Table of contents

1 Highlights
2 Medals awarded
3 Medal count
4 References

4.1 See also
4.2 External links

Highlights

First games at which gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded for first, second and third place.
European tension caused by the Russo-Japanese War and the difficulty of getting to St. Louis kept many of the world's top athletes away.
In a number of sports, the U.S. national championship was combined with the Olympic championship, because there were no competitors from other nations.
Boxing, dumbbells, freestyle wrestling, and decathlon made their debuts.
Marathon runners Len Tau and Jan Mashiani, Tswana tribesmen who were in St. Louis as part of the Boer War exhibit at the World's Fair, became the first Africans to compete in the Olympics.
One of the most remarkable athletes was the American gymnast George Eyser, who won six medals even though his left leg was made of wood.
Chicago runner Jim Lightbody won the steeplechase and the 800 m and then set a world record in the 1500 m.
Harry Hillman won 200 m and 400 m hurdles and also 400 m dash.
Sprinter Archie Hahn was champion in the 60 m, 100 m and 200 m. In this last race, he set a new Olympic record in 21.6, a record broken only 28 years later.
In the discus, the American Martin Sheridan won the decider and claimed the goldmedal. After he had thrown exactly the same distance as his compatriot, Ralph Rose (39.28 m), the judges gave them both an extra throw to decide the winner.
Ray Ewry again won all three standing jumps.
The marathon, which was run over dusty roads in brutally hot weather, was the most bizarre event of the Games. Thomas Hicks of the United States won, but only after his handlers fed him painkillers during the race. And an impostor nearly stole the victory when Fred Lorz, who dropped out after nine miles, was seen trotting back to the finish line to retrieve his clothes. Amused that officials thought he had won the race, Lorz played along until he was found out shortly after the medal ceremony. Banned for life by the AAU, Lorz was reinstated a year later and won the 1905 Boston Marathon.
The top foreign athlete was Emil Rausch of Germany, who won three swimming events.
Zoltan Halmay of Hungary and Charles Daniels of the United States each won two swimming gold medals.

Medals awarded

Medal count

Pos Country Gold Silver Bronze Total

1 United States 78 83 77 238

2 Germany 4 4 5 13

3 Cuba 4 2 3 9

4 Canada 4 1 0 5

5 Hungary 2 1 1 4

6 Mixed Team (ZZX) 1 1 0 2

7 Great Britain 1 1 0 2

8 Greece 1 0 1 2

9 Switzerland 1 0 1 2

10 Austria 0 0 1 1

96 93 89 278

References

External links

IOC Site on 1904 Summer Olympics

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