St Louis, 1904 Olympic Games
The 1904 Olympic Games were held in St Louis. The Olympic competitions, spread out over four and a half months, were mostly lost in the chaos of a World's Fair. The Games was still well short of being a true international competition - there were only representatives from 13 countries.
Eighty-five percent of the competitors were Americans, and eight percent were Canadians. Of the 94 events generally considered to have been part of the Olympic program, only 42 included athletes who were not from the United States.
Chicago had originally won the bid to host the 1904 Olympics, but it was moved following pressure from organizers of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis who did not want another international event in the same time frame.
400m sprint start at the 1904 Olympic GamesTrivia
- The 1904 Olympics were the first at which gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded for first, second and third place.
- Roque, a version of croquet, was contested at one Olympic Games, in 1904. The USA won all three medals that were on offer.
- In the marathon, Fred Lorz rode in a car for eleven miles, and was briefly taken as being the winner before the truth was known.
- One of the most remarkable athletes was the American gymnast George Eyser, who won six medals even though his left leg was made out of wood.
- The 1904 St Louis Olympics were the only Olympics in which distances were measured in yards.
Related Pages
- List of sports at the 1904 Olympic Games
- The complete list of Olympic host cities
- USA have also hosted the Games in Los Angles 1932, Los Angles 1984, Atlanta 1996
- 1904: The Year in Sport
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