Swimming at the 1904 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 yard freestyle

The men's 100 yard freestyle was a swimming event held during the 1904 Summer Olympics. It was special because it was the second time this race was held at the Olympics, but the only time it was raced using yards instead of meters. Nine swimmers from two different countries took part in this exciting competition. The winner was Zoltán Halmay from Hungary, marking Hungary's second win in a row for the 100 yard/metre freestyle race.

Background

This was the second time the men's 100 freestyle swimming event was held at the Olympics. In 1904, the race was special because it was done in yards instead of metres. Two countries, Hungary and the United States, took part, and neither country was doing this event for the first time. None of the swimmers who competed in 1896 returned for this race.

Competition format

The men's 100 yard freestyle at the 1904 Summer Olympics had two rounds: heats and a final. Swimmers were split into two groups, and the top three from each group moved on to the final, no matter their exact times.

The races took place in an artificial lake in the park, between a pier and some floating rafts. There was a small current in the water, but it didn’t seem to bother the swimmers much.

Records

Before this race, there were no official world records, and the Olympic record was kept in meters instead of yards.

Zoltán Halmay[/w/0] set a new Olympic record in the first semifinal and then swam even faster in the final to break his own record.

Schedule

Results

Semifinals

In the semifinals, the top three swimmers from each heat moved on to the final. We don't know all the swimmers who didn't move on, but some of them might have been Raymond Thorne, Edwin Swatek, and Bill Orthwein.

Semifinal 1

Semifinal 2

Final