Swimming at the 1896 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metre freestyle
The men's 100 metre freestyle was a swimming event in the 1896 Summer Olympics.[1] 6 swimmers were in the race. The 2 swimmers from Austria-Hungary finished first and second. The time and place of the other swimmers was not recorded.
| Men's 100 metre freestyle at the Games of the I Olympiad | |||||
| Venue | Bay of Zea | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | April 11 | ||||
| Competitors | 6 from 4 nations | ||||
| Winning time | 1:22.2 OR | ||||
| Medalists | |||||
| |||||
| 1904 (100 yd)» | |||||
The race was very close. Alfréd Hajós of Hungary beat Otto Herschmann of Austria by half a metre. The other swimmers were very far behind. In the awards ceremony, the Hungarian flag was shown. However, the band played the Austrian anthem (Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser) until Hajós started to sing the Hungarian anthem (Himnusz).[2]
Background
changeThis was 100 metre freestyle race. This event has been at every Summer Olympics except for 1900 and 1904. In 1900, the shortest freestyle race was 200 metres. In 1904, the race was in yards rather than metres.[2]
Competition
changeThe competition had a single race. All swimmers swam at the same time. The swimmers would be taken into the Bay by a ship. From the boat, they would race towards the shore. There were Buoys that marked the starting line. Pumpkins marked the course. A red flag showed where the finish line of the race was.[2][3][4]
Schedule
changeThe 100 metres freestyle was the first swimming events.[3]
| Date | Time | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gregorian | Julian | ||
| Saturday, 11 April 1896 | Saturday, 30 March 1896 | 11:00 | Final |
Results
change| Rank | Swimmer | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Alfréd Hajós |  Hungary
|
1:22.2 |
|
Otto Herschmann |  Austria
|
1:22.8 |
| 3–6 | Georgios Anninos |  Greece
|
Unknown |
| Efstathios Chorafas | Greece
|
Unknown | |
| Alexandros Chrysafos | Greece
|
Unknown | |
| Gardner Williams |  United States
|
Unknown |
Records
changeThese were the world records and olympic records before the 1896 Summer Olympics.
| World record | Unknown* | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Olympic record | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
* unofficial
The record was created after the competition:
| Date | Event | Athlete | Nation | Distance (m) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 11 | Final | Alfréd Hajós | Hungary |
1:22.2 | OR |
References
change- ↑ "Olympedia – Swimming at the 1896 Summer Olympics". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 2023-12-17.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "100 metres Freestyle, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Official Report, part 2, p. 96.
- ↑ "Athens 1896 Swimming 100m Freestyle Men Result". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
- Lampros, S.P.; Polites, N.G.; De Coubertin, Pierre; Philemon, P.J. & Anninos, C. (1897). The Olympic Games: BC 776 – AD 1896. Athens: Charles Beck. (Digitally available at [1])
- Mallon, Bill & Widlund, Ture (1998). The 1896 Olympic Games. Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary. Jefferson: McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0379-9. (Excerpt available at [2])
- Smith, Michael Llewellyn (2004). Olympics in Athens 1896. The Invention of the Modern Olympic Games. London: Profile Books. ISBN 1-86197-342-X.