Summer Olympiad (1912)

The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, celebrated in Stockholm, Sweden. For the first time, competitors in the Games came from all five continents symbolized in the Olympic rings. Also for the first time since 1896, all athletic events were held within a reasonably short time span of about one month, from late June to late July (though the opening ceremony was still held much earlier). It was the last time that solid gold medals were awarded; modern medals are usually gold plated silver. The main arena was Stockholms Olympiastadion. Organizers rejected a winter sports week for the 1912 Games featuring figure skating because they wanted to promote the Nordic Games, a quadrennial sporting event, instead. The Swedish hosts introduced the use of unofficial electronic timing devices for the track events, as well as the first use of a public address system. The modern pentathlon was added to the Olympic program. Women's events in swimming and diving were also introduced. Sweden would not allow boxing contests to be held in their country. After the Games, the International Olympic Committee decided to limit the power of host nations in deciding the Olympic program. If there was an unofficial theme of the 1912 Games, it was endurance. The course for the cycling road race was 320km (199 miles), the longest race of any kind in Olympic history. In Greco-Roman wrestling, the middleweight semifinal match between Russian Martin Klein and Finland’s Alfred Asikainen lasted eleven hours. Hannes Kohlemainen of Finland won three gold medals in long-distance running. The most popular hero of the 1912 Games was Jim Thorpe of the United States. Thorpe won the five-event pentathlon and shattered the world record in the ten-event decathlon. One member of the Austrian team that finished second in the team sabre fencing event was Otto Herschmann, who was, at that time, president of the Austrian Olympic Committee. Herschmann is the only sitting national Olympic committee president to win an Olympic medal.

Opening date: 05 May 1912

Closing date: 27 July 1912

Ceremonies

Official opening of the Games by: His Majesty The King Gustav V

Lighting the Olympic Flame by: The Olympic flame was first lit during the opening ceremony of the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam.

Olympic Oath by: The first athletes' oath was sworn at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium.

Official Oath by: The first officials' oath was sworn at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.

Participations

28 NOCs (Nations)
2,407 athletes (48 women, 2,359 men)
102 events

Country of the host city: Sweden (SWE)

Sports

• Aquatics
• Athletics
• Cycling
• Equestrian
• Fencing
• Football
• Gymnastics
• Modern Pentathlon
• Rowing
• Sailing
• Shooting
• Tennis
• Tug of War
• Wrestling

Demonstration sport

• Baseball
• Glima

Highlights

• Jim Thorpe (USA-athletics), of Native American and Irish descent, won the pentathlon and decathlon by huge margins. At the awards ceremony, the King of Sweden told Thorpe, "Sir, you are the greatest athlete in the world."

• Hannes Kolehmainen (FIN-athletics) won the 5,000m, the 10,000m and the individual cross-country race, in which he also won a silver medal in the team event. In his 5,000m victory he broke the world record and was the first to run the distance under 15 minutes. He also set a world record for 3,000m in a heat of the team event.

• Francisco Lázaro, a Portuguese runner died from the heat while running the marathon, the first athlete in the history of the modern Olympics to die during competition.

• A Greco-Roman Wrestling bout between Klein and Asikainen lasted 11 hours and forty minutes—the world's longest wrestling match. Finally, Klein took the victory.

• Swedish marksman Oscar Swahn became the oldest Olympic gold medalist (up to that time), at the age of 64, in the deer-shooting event.

• Women's events in swimming and diving were introduced.

• Future World War II General George S. Patton took part in the first modern pentathlon competition. Modern pentathlon was the idea of Pierre de Coubertin.

Facts

• A well-organised edition of the Olympics, the Stockholm Games saw the first use of electronic timing equipment, the photo finish and a public address system.

• 1912 saw the first art competitions at the Olympic Games, a tradition that was to be kept up until 1948. The American Walter Winans became the only person ever to win Olympic medals both in an athletic competition (a silver medal in shooting) and in an art competition (a gold medal in sculpture).

• For the first time, competitors in the Games came from all five continents.