• In Summer Olympic 1908, the athletics events included for the first time a relay, called "the Olympic relay". The athletes ran 200m, 200m, 400m and 800m.

• In the Summer Olympic 1908, the competitors paraded behind their country's flag in sportswear for the first time

• When Dorando Pietri (ITA-athletics) entered the stadium at the end of the marathon, it was immediately apparent that something was wrong. Dazed, he headed in the wrong direction and then collapsed. The officials helped him to reach the finish line in first position. He was disqualified for receiving outside aid, but his plucky effort made him famous.

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