One athlete from Luxembourg

Luxembourg

Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics

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...

in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, marking the first Olympic appearance by the nation.

Michel Théato

Michel Théato

Michel Johann Théato was a Luxembourgian athlete, and the winner of the marathon at the 1900 Olympics in Paris....

 won the marathon

Marathon

The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...

 event in athletics

Athletics (track and field)

Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...

. For a long while, it was assumed that Théato was French, and only in the late 20th century it was discovered that he was really from Luxembourg, making him the first Olympic medalist for the nation. 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...

 still credits this gold medal for France

France at the 1900 Summer Olympics

France 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....

, however.

Athletics

Théato competed only in the marathon event of the athletics program, which he won.

Event	Place	Athlete	Final
Marathon	1st	Michel Théato Michel Théato Michel Johann Théato was a Luxembourgian athlete, and the winner of the marathon at the 1900 Olympics in Paris....	2:59:45.0