1900 Summer Olympics

The 1900 Summer Olympics, also known as the Games of the II Olympiad and Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France, from 14 May to 28 October 1900. Unlike other Olympics, there were no opening or closing ceremonies. These games were part of the 1900 Exposition Universelle, a big world's fair.

The idea to hold the Olympics in Paris in 1900 was suggested by Pierre de Coubertin during the Olympic Congress in 1894 at the Sorbonne building. However, the first Olympics were moved to 1896 in Athens, making Paris the host for the second Games.

Over 1,200 competitors from many countries took part in 19 different sports. For the first time, women were allowed to compete, and a sailor named Hélène de Pourtalès became the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal. Some events, like angling and motor racing, were only held once in Olympic history. France had the most athletes and won the most medals, followed by the United States and Great Britain.

Organization

The 1900 Games were held as part of the 1900 Exposition Universelle. The Baron de Coubertin wanted to make the Olympics more well-known, but the director of the Exposition thought having sports events there was a bad idea.

A group was formed to organize the Games, and many sports were planned, including track and field athletics, swimming, wrestling, gymnastics, fencing, French and British boxing, and other activities like yacht racing and cycling.

Unfortunately, the organization was messy. Some people in charge changed, and many athletes who had planned to compete left. The games were not well-run, and some people didn’t even realize they were part of the Olympics. Even years later, records of the results were incomplete.

Highlights

These Olympic Games were the first organized under the leadership of Pierre de Coubertin.

Alvin Kraenzlein from the United States won four gold medals in the 60 metres, 110 metre hurdles, 200 metre hurdles, and the long jump events. This record for most gold medals in track and field still stands today.

Hélène de Pourtalès, who was born in America, became the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal as part of the Swiss team in the 1-2 ton sailing event. Shortly after, Charlotte Cooper from the UK became the first woman to win an individual Olympic event by winning the women's singles tennis competition. She also later won the mixed doubles tournament.

In the coxed pairs and eights rowing events, some crews used children instead of adult coxswains. The ages of these boys were not recorded, but they were likely some of the youngest ever to compete in the Olympics.

Sports

In the 1900 Summer Olympics, many different sports were played. There were 95 events where athletes could win medals. Some sports from the earlier Olympics in 1896, like weightlifting and wrestling, were not included this time. But 12 new sports were added, such as cricket, golf, and rugby.

Here’s a look at the sports that were part of the games:

• Aquatics
  • Swimming (7 events)
  • Water polo (1 event)
• Archery (7 events)
• Athletics (23 events)
• Basque pelota (1 event)
• Cricket (1 event)
• Croquet (3 events)
• Cycling (3 events)
• Equestrian
  • Driving (2 events)
  • Jumping (3 events)
• Fencing (7 events)
• Football (1 event)
• Golf (2 events)
• Gymnastics (1 event)
• Polo (1 event)
• Rowing (5 events)
• Rugby union (1 event)
• Sailing (13 events)
• Shooting (8 events)
• Tennis (4 events)
• Tug of war (1 event)

Venues

The 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris used 14 different places to host 20 sports. Some of these places were well-known areas like the Vélodrome de Vincennes, Tuileries Garden, and Bois de Boulogne. Others included Puteaux, Neuilly-sur-Seine, and the Seine river for rowing, water polo, and swimming. The map shows these venues spread across Paris and nearby areas like Satory, Compiègne, and Le Havre.

Sport-by-sport overview

The 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris had different levels of competition in various sports. Track and field events were very strong, thanks to top American college athletes, even though the track was not in great condition. Tennis, swimming, and fencing also had high-quality competitions. Polo, though a sport for wealthy people, also had strong players.

Some sports did not have as many strong competitors or deep fields. Only athletics, swimming, and fencing had athletes from more than ten countries.

Archery

Main article: Archery at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The archery events at the 1900 Olympics were confusing. The IOC lists six archery events as official, but some believe up to eight others should also count. About 150 archers competed in the official events, but around 5,000 took part in archery during the 1900 World's Fair. Belgian Hubert Van Innis won two gold medals and a silver, and he would win more medals twenty years later in Antwerp.

Athletics

Main article: Athletics at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The track and field events happened at the Croix-Catelan stadium in Bois de Boulogne. The races were on uneven grass with trees, and there was no proper track. Some extra events for professional athletes and handicap races were held, but they are not considered official Olympic events.

The sprints

In the short races (400 metres or less), the United States won 13 out of 21 possible medals. Athletes from Columbia University, Princeton University, and the University of Pennsylvania all won gold. Two students from the University of Pennsylvania, Alvin Kraenzlein and Walter Tewksbury, were standouts. Kraenzlein won four gold medals, a record that still stands, and Tewksbury won five medals, including two golds. The 400-metre hurdles had special hurdles made from telegraph poles and a water jump.

Middle- and long-distance races

The United States did well in the short races, but the United Kingdom dominated the longer races, except for George Orton from Canada, who won Canada’s first Olympic gold in the steeplechase.

The Marathon

The marathon was unusual. The course was hard to follow, and runners often got lost or had to turn back. Some parts had cars, bicycles, pedestrians, and animals. Arthur Newton of the United States said he wasn’t passed by any other runner. Another American, Richard Grant, said a cyclist almost hit him. A French athlete, Michel Théato, won, but later research showed he was actually born in Luxembourg and kept Luxembourgian citizenship.

Field events

Rudolf Bauer from Hungary was the only non-American to win a gold medal in throwing events. American athletes like Ray Ewry and Irving Baxter did very well. Ewry won three standing jump events, and Baxter won the high jump and pole vault. Meyer Prinstein became the first Jewish person to win an Olympic gold medal in the triple jump.

Basque pelota

Main article: Basque pelota at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The game of Basque pelota was only held once at the Olympics. The Spanish team of Amezola and Villota won the gold medals. There were also unofficial games with different rules.

Cricket

Main article: Cricket at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Only two teams played cricket because others withdrew. A team from Paris, mostly British people living there, played against a team from southwest England. The English team won, thanks to good bowling by Montagu Toller. If the French had held out a bit longer, the game would have ended in a draw.

Croquet

Main article: Croquet at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Croquet was played at the Olympics for the first and only time. Women played for the first time at the Olympics, but all players were French. Only one spectator watched the event. There was also an unofficial competition.

Cycling

Main article: Cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics

France won six of the nine cycling medals. Some unofficial races for both amateurs and professionals were also held.

Equestrian

Main article: Equestrian at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Equestrian events were held for the first time at the Olympics. There were jumping events and two others. Gian Giorgio Trissino from Italy won a gold and a silver medal.

Fencing

Main article: Fencing at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Fencing had athletes from nineteen nations. French fencers did well, but Cuba and Italy also won titles. In some early rounds, fencers were judged on style instead of just who won, so some fencers were eliminated without losing a match.

Football

Main article: Football at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The first Olympic football champions were a team of amateur players from London called Upton Park F.C.. They beat a French team in front of about 500 spectators.

Golf

Main article: Golf at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Margaret Ives Abbott, a student from Chicago, won a nine-hole golf tournament in Paris. She later found out it was part of the Olympics, making her the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal.

Gymnastics

Main article: Gymnastics at the 1900 Summer Olympics

135 gymnasts competed in events that included track and field, weightlifting, and gymnastics.

Polo

Main article: Polo at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Eight polo tournaments were held, but only one counted for official medals. The winning team was made up of players from England, Ireland, and America. Mexico won its first Olympic medal in polo, a bronze.

Rowing

Main article: Rowing at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Rowing events were on the River Seine. Some races had problems with the rules, leading to two finals being held. Some rowers used very young coxswains, possibly under ten years old.

Rugby union

Main article: Rugby union at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Three teams played rugby. A French team beat teams from Germany and England. The English team, Moseley Wanderers, had just played a full match in England before traveling to Paris for the Olympic match. The proposed game between the British and German teams was canceled, so both were given silver medals. Constantin Henriquez from France and Haiti became the first black person to win an Olympic gold medal.

Sailing

Main article: Sailing at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The sailing events were different from other Olympics. Some classes had two races, and boats had time handicaps based on their weight. Cash prizes were given to winners. France and Great Britain were the top countries in sailing.

Shooting

Main article: Shooting at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Konrad Stäheli from Switzerland won three shooting titles and helped Switzerland lead the shooting medals table. There was debate about whether the live pigeon shooting event counted as official. Up to thirty unofficial shooting events were also held.

Swimming

Main article: Swimming at the 1900 Summer Olympics

Swimming races were in the muddy Seine River. The races were fast because swimmers used the current. John Arthur Jarvis from Great Britain, Frederick Lane from Australia, and Ernst Hoppenberg from Germany each won two titles. There were unusual events like swimming under boats and staying underwater for over a minute.

Tennis

Main article: Tennis at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The men's tennis tournament was very strong, with past and future Wimbledon champions reaching the semi-finals. Laurence Doherty reached the final because his brother Reggie stepped aside. On July 11, Charlotte Cooper became the first woman to win an individual Olympic gold medal by winning the singles tennis event. She also won the mixed doubles.

Tug of war

Main article: Tug of war at the 1900 Summer Olympics

A team made up of three athletes each from Sweden and Denmark beat the French team. One member of the French team was a citizen of Colombia. The United States team did not compete because three members were hurt during another event.

Water polo

Main article: Water polo at the 1900 Summer Olympics

The British team, Osborne Swimming Club, easily won the water polo tournament, scoring 29 goals and letting in only 3. One player, Victor Lindberg, was from New Zealand, and another player from the bronze-winning team, Thomas William Burgess, also competed for Great Britain in swimming events.

Olympic status of sports and events

The 1900 Games were held together with the 1900 World's Fair rather than having a special Olympic committee. Many events happened, but not all met the rules for being official Olympic events.

Back then, it wasn’t always clear which events were official Olympic ones and which were just for fun. Historians now say that events that were for amateurs, had players from many countries, were open to everyone, and had no special help for some players count as Olympic. For the 1900 Games, only croquet was officially called an Olympic event, even though a few others almost made it. Some sports, like ballooning and motor racing, were also part of the World's Fair but didn’t count as Olympic events.

Other fun activities during the fair included angling, ballooning, baseball, boules, cannon shooting, and many more. Some planned events didn’t happen because not enough people signed up.

Participating nations

26 nations sent competitors to the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. At that time, there were no official national teams chosen by groups called National Olympic Committees.

Some athletes from countries not usually counted competed for other nations. For example, two athletes from Canada competed for the United States, and a winner of the marathon race actually came from Luxembourg but competed for France. Other athletes from Colombia, New Zealand, and possibly Brazil also competed for other countries.

New nations that first took part in the Olympics included Argentina, Belgium, Bohemia, Cuba, Haiti, India, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Persia, Peru, Romania, Russia, and Spain.

Some countries that took part in the 1896 Olympics in Athens, like Bulgaria and Chile, did not send athletes to Paris in 1900.

Medal count

The 1900 Olympics was special because it had rectangular medals made by Frédérique Vernon. Some first-place winners got gilt silver medals in sports like shooting and gymnastics. Second-place winners received silver medals in sports such as rowing and tennis. Third-place winners got bronze medals in a few sports. But in many sports, winners got cups or other trophies instead of medals. Later, the International Olympic Committee decided to call first-place winners gold medalists, second-place winners silver medalists, and third-place winners bronze medalists to match today’s rules.

Because this was one of the earliest Olympics, it’s hard to know exactly how many medals each country won. Teams often had athletes from many different countries, and the idea of national teams chosen by National Olympic Committees didn’t exist yet.

These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1900 Games.

Key   Host nation (France)

Podium sweeps