Swimming at the 1908 Summer Olympics
Encyclopedia
At the 1908 Summer Olympics
in London
, six swimming
events were contested. 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). Only men participated in the swimming events. The competitions were held from Monday, July 13, 1908 to Saturday, July 25, 1908.
All six of the 1908 events became staples of the Olympic swimming programme, and have been contested at every edition of the Games since. The 50 m, 200 m, and 800 m freestyle events were dropped from the previous edition (though the 50 m and 200 m would later return), the relay was lengthened from 4×50 yards to 4×200 m, and the 400 m breaststroke was shortened to 200 metres.
Canada and Finland made their first appearances in swimming, while Austria, Hungary, and the United States continued their streaks of appearing each time. Fourteen nations competed in all, with 100 swimmers entering the events.
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, six swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
events were contested. 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). Only men participated in the swimming events. The competitions were held from Monday, July 13, 1908 to Saturday, July 25, 1908.
All six of the 1908 events became staples of the Olympic swimming programme, and have been contested at every edition of the Games since. The 50 m, 200 m, and 800 m freestyle events were dropped from the previous edition (though the 50 m and 200 m would later return), the relay was lengthened from 4×50 yards to 4×200 m, and the 400 m breaststroke was shortened to 200 metres.
Canada and Finland made their first appearances in swimming, while Austria, Hungary, and the United States continued their streaks of appearing each time. Fourteen nations competed in all, with 100 swimmers entering the events.
Medal table
| 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 7 | |
| 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Medal summary
| 100 m freestyle |
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| 400 m freestyle |
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| 1500 m freestyle |
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| 100 m backstroke |
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| 200 m breaststroke |
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| 4×200 m freestyle relay |
John Derbyshire John Derbyshire (swimmer) John Henry "Rob" Derbyshire was an English freestyle swimmer and water polo player from Chorlton, Lancashire, who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics, 1906 Summer Olympics, 1908 Summer Olympics and 1912 Summer Olympics.... Paul Radmilovic William Foster William Foster (swimmer) William Foster was a British freestyle swimmer who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics and in the 1912 Summer Olympics.... Henry Taylor Henry Taylor (swimmer) Henry Taylor was a British freestyle swimmer who competed in the 1906 Summer Olympics, in the 1908 Summer Olympics, in the 1912 Summer Olympics, and in the 1920 Summer Olympics. He served in the Royal Navy during the First World War, and continued to swim competitively until 1926... |
József Munk József Munk József Munk was a Hungarian freestyle swimmer who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics. He was Jewish.... Imre Zachár Imre Zachár Imre Zachár was a Hungarian water polo player and freestyle swimmer who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics and 1912 Summer Olympics.-Swimming career:... Béla Las-Torres Béla Las-Torres Béla von Las-Torres was a Hungarian freestyle swimmer who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics and 1912 Summer Olympics.He was born in Budapest and died in Castelnuovo, Italy.... Zoltán Halmay Zoltán Halmay Zoltán Halmay was a Hungarian Olympic swimmer. He competed in four Olympics , winning the following medals:* 1900: silver , bronze * 1904: gold... |
Harry Hebner Harry Hebner Harry Joseph Hebner was an American backstroke and freestyle swimmer as well as a water polo player, who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics, in the 1912 Summer Olympics and in the 1920 Summer Olympics.... Leo Joseph Goodwin Charles Daniels Charles Daniels (swimmer) Charles Meldrum "Charlie" Daniels is a former American swimmer and eight-time Olympic medalist. Daniels was an innovator of the front crawl swimming style, inventing the "American crawl".-Career:Daniels began his swimming career with the New York Athletic Club in 1903... Leslie Rich Leslie Rich Leslie George Rich was an American freestyle swimmer who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.He was born in Somerville, Massachusetts and died in Dade City, Florida.... |