Cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics
Encyclopedia
The 1900 Summer Olympics
were held as part of the 1900 World's Fair
, during which several cycling events were contested. Two of those cycling events are nowadays considered Olympic events by the International Olympic Committee
. These two competitions were held between 9 September and 16 September 1900. The cycling part of the World's fair included 250 competitors, 160 of them French; in the two Olympic events, 72 competitors, all men, from six nations competed.
As noted below, thirteen more events were contested, but their status is uncertain. The IOC medal database only shows these two events as official competitions.
. Most events were open for all cyclist. Only the events restricted to amateurs are nowadays seen as Olympic events. Other events were:
The points race, won by Enrico Brusoni, is considered by Sports-Reference as a third Olympic cycling event in 1900.
1900 Summer Olympics
The 1900 Summer Olympics, today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1900 in Paris, France. No opening or closing ceremonies were held; competitions began on May 14 and ended on October 28. The Games were held as part of...
were held as part of the 1900 World's Fair
Exposition Universelle (1900)
The Exposition Universelle of 1900 was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from April 15 to November 12, 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate development into the next...
, during which several cycling events were contested. Two of those cycling events are nowadays considered Olympic events by the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
. These two competitions were held between 9 September and 16 September 1900. The cycling part of the World's fair included 250 competitors, 160 of them French; in the two Olympic events, 72 competitors, all men, from six nations competed.
Medal summary
| Men's sprint |
|||
| Men's 25 kilometres |
As noted below, thirteen more events were contested, but their status is uncertain. The IOC medal database only shows these two events as official competitions.
11 September
- In the first two rounds of the 2000 metre sprint, the United StatesUnited States at the 1900 Summer OlympicsThe United States competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.-Medalists:* Additionally, Foxhall Parker Keene and Frank Mackey were part of the mixed team that won the gold medal in polo....
and ItalyItaly at the 1900 Summer Olympics-Gold:* Antonio Conte - Fencing, Masters Sabre* Giovanni Giorgio Trissino - Equestrian, High Jump-Silver:* Italo Santelli - Fencing, Masters Sabre* Giovanni Giorgio Trissino - Equestrian, Long Jump-Athletics:...
made their cycling debuts, as did the Olympic-debut nations BelgiumBelgium at the 1900 Summer OlympicsBelgium competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.It was the first appearance of the European nation. Belgium was represented in France by 78 athletes, all of them male, who competed in 11 disciplines...
and BohemiaBohemia at the 1900 Summer OlympicsBohemia competed in the Summer Olympic Games for the first time at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France as an independent team, though it was part of Austria-Hungary at the time...
. GermanyGermany at the 1900 Summer OlympicsGermany competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.-Medalists:Germany finished in seventh position in the final medal rankings, with four gold medals and eight medals overall.-Athletics:...
, which had won a silver medal four years earlier, and FranceFrance at the 1900 Summer OlympicsFrance was the host of the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. France was one of many nations that had competed in the 1896 Summer Olympics in Greece and had returned to compete at the 1900 Games....
, with 4 golds, a silver, and a bronze, were the returning nations. - Bohemia's lone cyclist was eliminated in the first round. The Belgian cyclist was eliminated in the second round of the day, the quarterfinals. Germany's trio fared no better, with all having dropped out by the end of the day. Antonio Restelli was the only one of Italy's 7 to move on. He was joined by the sole American John Henry LakeJohn Henry LakeJohn Henry Lake was an American racing cyclist who competed in the late 19th century and early 20th century....
and by 7 Frenchmen.
13 September
- The semifinals and the final of the sprint were held on the 13th.
- The semifinal round pared the 9 remaining cyclists down to 3, with the winners of each of the semifinals guaranteed a medal in the three-man final. Restelli took second place to Fernand SanzFernand SanzFernando Sanz y Martínez de Arizala was a French racing cyclist who competed in the late 19th century and early 20th century. He participated in Cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and won the silver medal in the men's sprint. Georges Taillandier won gold. Sanz was born in Madrid, Spain...
, dropping Italy from contention. Lake won his semifinal, joining Sanz and Georges TaillandierGeorges TaillandierAlbert Taillandier was a French racing cyclist who competed in the late 19th century and early 20th century. He participated in Cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and won the gold medal in the men's sprint.-References:*...
in the final. - Taillandier and Sanz reaffirmed French dominance of the sport, taking the top two spots in the final. Lake took the United States' first medal in cycling, the only one to be won by anyone other than a French cyclist in 1900.
15 September
- The 25 kilometres was held on the 15th. Louis Bastien, Louis HildebrandLouis HildebrandLloyd Hildebrand was a French racing cyclist who competed in the late 19th century and early 20th century. He participated in Cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and won the silver medal in the men's 25 kilometre race.-References:*...
, and Lake were the primary contenders, with Bastien the favorite. Lake was unable to keep pace with the French cyclists, however, and dropped out of the race. Bastien won, followed by Hildebrand and Daumain. Future Tour de France winner Louis Trousselier was among the rest of the pack.
Participating nations
A total of 72 cyclists from 6 nations competed at the two Olympic cycling events during the Paris Games:Medal table
| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Unofficial events
In 1900, there was no official distinction between Olympic events and non-Olympic events held during the Exposition Universelle (1900)Exposition Universelle (1900)
The Exposition Universelle of 1900 was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from April 15 to November 12, 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate development into the next...
. Most events were open for all cyclist. Only the events restricted to amateurs are nowadays seen as Olympic events. Other events were:
- Points race (Winner: Enrico Brusoni, Italy)
- 50 kilometres
- Tandems
- Inter-rêgionale
- 100 miles (winner: Taylor, France)
- Sprint for professionals (winner: Meyers, Belgium)
- 100 kilometers (winner: Chase, England)
- Course des Nations (winner: American team)
- Handicap
- Amateurs handicap
- Amateur points race
- Individual pursuit
- Bol d'OrBol d'Or cycle raceThe Bol d'Or was a bicycle track race that ran in France between 1894 and 1950. It was a paced, 24 hour endurance event. It has been won by several notable cyclists including Constant Huret , the Australian Hubert Opperman and three time hour record breaker Oscar Egg...
(Winner: Mathieu CordangMathieu CordangMathieu Cordang was a Dutch professional cyclist. Cordang's specialties were track racing and endurance racing.- Biography :...
, Netherlands)
The points race, won by Enrico Brusoni, is considered by Sports-Reference as a third Olympic cycling event in 1900.