Swimming at the 1908 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metre freestyle

The men's 100 metre freestyle was one of six swimming events on the swimming at the 1908 Summer Olympics programme.[1] It was the shortest of the three individual freestyle events, as the 50 yard freestyle had been dropped after its one appearance on the 1904 Summer Olympics programme. The 100 metre event was contested for the third time after it had been held at the 1896 and 1906 Olympics. The 1904 Olympics saw a 100-yard event. The competition was held on Friday 17 July 1908 and Monday 20 July 1908. Thirty-four swimmers from twelve nations competed. Each nation was limited to 12 swimmers.[2]

Men's 100 metre freestyle
at the Games of the IV Olympiad
Swimming at the 1908 Games
VenueWhite City Stadium
Dates17 July
20 July
Competitors34 from 12 nations
Winning time1:05.6 WR
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Charles Daniels
 United States
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Zoltán Halmay
 Hungary
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Harald Julin
 Sweden
← 1904
(100 yd)
1912 →

The event was won by Charles Daniels of the United States, the first time Hungary had been beaten in the event (excluding Intercalated Games). Zoltán Halmay of Hungary, the winner in 1900, finished second. Harald Julin's bronze was Sweden's first medal in the event.

These were the first Olympic Games in which a 100-metre pool had been especially constructed (inside the main stadium's track and field oval). Previous Olympic events were swum in open water (1896: The Mediterranean Sea, 1900: The Seine River, 1904: an artificial lake).[citation needed]

Background

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This was the third appearance of the men's 100 metre freestyle (including the 100 yard event in 1904 but excluding the Intercalated Games in 1906). The event has been held at every Summer Olympics except 1900 (when the shortest freestyle was the 200 metres), though the 1904 version was measured in yards rather than metres.[3]

Two of the six finalists from 1904 returned: gold medalist Zoltán Halmay of Hungary and silver medalist Charles Daniels of the United States. Daniels had beaten Halmay at the 1906 Intercalated Games. Halmay held the world record.[citation needed]

Australasia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden each made their debut in the event. Hungary and the United States each made their third appearance, having competed at each edition of the event to date.[citation needed]

Competition format

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With a much larger field than in 1904, the 1908 competition expanded to three rounds: heats, semifinals, and a final. The 1908 Games also restored the wild-card system from 1900, allowing the fastest swimmers who did not win their heat to advance. The nine heats consisted of between 1 and 6 swimmers, with the winner of the heat advancing along with the fastest loser from across the heats (all tied swimmers advanced in the case of equal times). There were two semifinals, intended to be of 5 swimmers each but one of which actually had 6 due to a tie in the heats; the top 2 finishers in each semifinal (regardless of overall time) advanced to the 4-person final.[2]

Each race involved a single length of the 100 metre pool, with no turns. Any stroke could be used.

Records

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These were the standing world and Olympic records (in minutes) prior to the 1908 Summer Olympics.

World Record 1:05.8   Zoltán Halmay Vienna (AUT) 3 December 1905
Olympic Record 1:22.2   Alfréd Hajós Athens (GRE) 11 April 1896 (NS)
1:13.0(*)   Charles Daniels Athens (GRE) 26 April 1906 (NS)
1:02.8(**)   Zoltán Halmay St. Louis (USA) 5 September 1904

(*) Intercalated Games

(**) 100 yards (91.44 m)

In the first heat Zoltán Halmay set a new Olympic record with 1:08.2. In the fifth heat Charles Daniels and in the seventh heat Wilfred Edwards equalized the standing world record of 1:05.8. Finally Charles Daniels set a new world record with 1:05.6 in the final.

Schedule

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Date Time Round
Friday, 17 July 1908 16:15 Heats
Monday, 20 July 1908 11:00
14:30
Semifinals
Final

Results

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Heats

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The fastest swimmer in each heat and the fastest loser advanced. Because there was a tie for fastest loser, both men advanced. Thus, 11 swimmers qualified for the semifinals.

Heat 1

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Zoltán Halmay   Hungary 1:08.2 Q, OR
2 Theodore Tartakover   Australasia Unknown
3–6 Davide Baiardo   Italy Unknown
Bouke Benenga   Netherlands Unknown
Harald Klem   Denmark Unknown
Herman Meyboom   Belgium Unknown

Heat 2

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Otto Scheff   Austria 1:11.8 Q
2 Addin Tyldesley   Great Britain 1:12.0 q
3–5 Gérard Meister   France Unknown
József Munk   Hungary Unknown
Conrad Trubenbach   United States Unknown

Heat 3

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Frank Beaurepaire   Australasia 1:11.6 Q
2 Lambertus Benenga   Netherlands 1:13.2
3–5 Robert Andersson   Sweden Unknown
Henrik Hajós   Hungary Unknown
Poul Holm   Denmark Unknown

Heat 4

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Harald Julin   Sweden 1:12.0 Q
2 John Derbyshire   Great Britain 1:12.6
3–4 Victor Boin   Belgium Unknown
Robert Foster   United States Unknown
Gyula Hornung   Hungary DNS

Heat 5

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Charles Daniels   United States 1:05.8 Q, =WR
2 József Ónody   Hungary 1:13.2
3 George Innocent   Great Britain Unknown
4–5 René André   France Unknown
Hjalmar Saxtorph   Denmark Unknown

Heat 6

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Harry Hebner   United States 1:11.0 Q
2 Paul Radmilovic   Great Britain 1:12.0 q
3–4 Edward Cooke   Australasia Unknown
Fernand Feyaerts   Belgium Unknown
Jenő Hégner-Tóth   Hungary DNS

Heat 7

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Wilfred Edwards   Great Britain 1:05.8 Q, =WR
2 Robert Zimmerman   Canada 1:35.0
Gentilly   France DNS
Géza Kiss   Hungary DNS
Leo Goodwin   United States DNS

Heat 8

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Dockrell had no competition in the eighth heat.

Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 George Dockrell   Great Britain 1:13.2 Q
Snowy Baker   Australasia DNS
Paul Vasseur   France DNS
Alajos Bruckner   Hungary DNS
Ragnar Lagergren   Sweden DNS

Heat 9

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Leslie Rich   United States 1:14.6 Q
2 André Duprez   Belgium 1:18.0
Sándor Ádám   Hungary DNS
Lóránt Apor   Hungary DNS
Axel Persson   Sweden DNS

Semifinals

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The fastest two swimmers from each semifinal advanced to the final.

Semifinal 1

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Zoltán Halmay   Hungary 1:09.4 Q
2 Harald Julin   Sweden 1:10.2 Q
3 Harry Hebner   United States 1:11.8
4 Frank Beaurepaire   Australasia Unknown
5–6 Wilfred Edwards   Great Britain Unknown
Paul Radmilovic   Great Britain Unknown

Semifinal 2

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Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
1 Charles Daniels   United States 1:10.2 Q
2 Leslie Rich   United States 1:10.8 Q
3 George Dockrell   Great Britain 1:11.4
4 Otto Scheff   Austria Unknown
5 Addin Tyldesley   Great Britain Unknown

Final

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Halmay started fast, leading for the first 30 metres until he was caught by Daniels. Daniels took a slight lead at the halfway mark and won by half a yard.[3][4]

Rank Swimmer Nation Time Notes
  Charles Daniels   United States 1:05.6 WR
  Zoltán Halmay   Hungary 1:06.2
  Harald Julin   Sweden 1:08.0
4 Leslie Rich   United States Unknown

Results summary

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Rank Swimmer Nation Heats Semifinals Final Notes
  Charles Daniels   United States 1:05.8 1:10.2 1:05.6 WR
  Zoltán Halmay   Hungary 1:08.2 1:09.4 1:06.2
  Harald Julin   Sweden 1:12.0 1:10.2 1:08.0
4 Leslie Rich   United States 1:14.6 1:10.8 Unknown
5 George Dockrell   Great Britain 1:13.2 1:11.4 Did not advance
6 Harry Hebner   United States 1:11.0 1:11.8 Did not advance
7 Frank Beaurepaire   Australasia 1:11.6 Unknown Did not advance 4th in semifinal heat
Otto Scheff   Austria 1:11.8 Unknown Did not advance 4th in semifinal heat
9 Addin Tyldesley   Great Britain 1:12.0 Unknown Did not advance 5th in semifinal heat
10 Wilfred Edwards   Great Britain 1:05.8 Unknown Did not advance 5th or 6th in semifinal heat
Paul Radmilovic   Great Britain 1:12.0 Unknown Did not advance 5th or 6th in semifinal heat
12 John Derbyshire   Great Britain 1:12.6 Did not advance
13 Lamme Benenga   Netherlands 1:13.2 Did not advance
József Ónody   Hungary 1:13.2 Did not advance
15 André Duprez   Belgium 1:18.0 Did not advance
16 Robert Zimmerman   Canada 1:35.0 Did not advance
17 Theodore Tartakover   Australasia Unknown Did not advance 2nd in heat
18 George Innocent   Great Britain Unknown Did not advance 3rd in heat
19 Victor Boin   Belgium Unknown Did not advance 3rd or 4th in heat
Edward Cooke   Australasia Unknown Did not advance 3rd or 4th in heat
Fernand Feyaerts   Belgium Unknown Did not advance 3rd or 4th in heat
Robert Foster   United States Unknown Did not advance 3rd or 4th in heat
23 Robert Andersson   Sweden Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 5th in heat
Henrik Hajós   Hungary Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 5th in heat
Poul Holm   Denmark Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 5th in heat
Gérard Meister   France Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 5th in heat
József Munk   Hungary Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 5th in heat
Conrad Trubenbach   United States Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 5th in heat
29 Davide Baiardo   Italy Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 6th in heat
Bouke Benenga   Netherlands Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 6th in heat
Harald Klem   Denmark Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 6th in heat
Herman Meyboom   Belgium Unknown Did not advance 3rd to 6th in heat
33 René André   France Unknown Did not advance 4th or 5th in heat
Hjalmar Saxtorph   Denmark Unknown Did not advance 4th or 5th in heat
Sándor Ádám   Hungary DNS Did not advance
Snowy Baker   Australasia DNS Did not advance
Alajos Bruckner   Hungary DNS Did not advance
Gentilly   France DNS Did not advance
Leo Goodwin   United States DNS Did not advance
Jenő Hégner-Tóth   Hungary DNS Did not advance
Gyula Hornung   Hungary DNS Did not advance
Géza Kiss   Hungary DNS Did not advance
Ragnar Lagergren   Sweden DNS Did not advance
Lóránt Apor   Hungary DNS Did not advance
Axel Persson   Sweden DNS Did not advance
Paul Vasseur   France DNS Did not advance

References

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  1. ^ "Swimming at the 1908 London Summer Games: Men's 100 metres Freestyle". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2016.
  2. ^ a b Official Report, p. 571.
  3. ^ a b "100 metres Freestyle, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  4. ^ Official Report, p. 299.

Sources

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  • Cook, Theodore Andrea (1908). The Fourth Olympiad, Being the Official Report. London: British Olympic Association.
  • De Wael, Herman (2001). "Swimming 1908". Herman's Full Olympians. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2006.