Know your Olympics - St. Louis Olympics 1904

Following the success of the Summer Olympics in Athens and Paris, the Olympics now crossed the continent of Europe and entered America. In 1904, the Summer Olympics were held as a part of the St. Louis World Fair. Like the Paris World Fair, these Olympics lasted for months.

However, owing to various circumstances, these Olympics had fewer participants. But there were so many anecdotes, that this edition is still one of the most talked about as of now. From the quality of medals, to the hilarity of the marathon, St. Louis Olympics is one of the most unique Olympics even today.

These were the first Olympics that had medals for all the first three winners. However, before the Stockholm Olympics, these were also the Olympics where the first three winners got medals of the same metal. If someone came first, he got a REAL gold medal, instead of a plated one.

Not many know this, but women's boxing has made its debut in this very edition. Even though it was a demonstration sport, people did take a look at women having a fight. However, it took centuries for someone to bring women's boxing back to the Olympics.

Not many know this, but in St. Louis Olympics, sports like boxing, freestyle wrestling etc. also made their official debut. Tug of war continued to be an official sport, while decathlon made its debut as well in this very edition.

There were some unique achievements as well. One of them was the American gymnast George Eyser. He won six Olympic medals, despite having a wooden left leg. Another unique athlete was German American player, Frank Kugler, who won four medals in freestyle wrestling, weightlifting and tug of war. Till date, he is the only individual to win a medal in three different sports at the same Olympic Games.

Here are some of the more interesting anecdotes that make the edition of the St. Louis Olympics one of the most unique editions ever.

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#1 First Olympics with all three medals - Literally

Medals at St. Louis Olympics [Image for Representational Purposes Only]

In the first two editions of the Summer Olympics, the focus was more on amateurism rather than the celebration of sportsmanship. So much so that people who stood 3rd in Athens received no medals at all. In fact, those who stood 2nd weren't any luckier - they received copper medals as reward!

In Paris, the situation wasn't much better. Most of the winners received cups or trophies. Very few receive cash stipends. In terms of medals, some winners got silver medals, while the runners up received bronze medals.

However, things were different at the St. Louis Olympics. For the first time, there were three different medals for three different positions. If someone wins, he/she will receive gold. Likewise, the runners up would receive a silver medal. The second runners up would get a bronze medal.

However, unlike the modern Olympics, there was a catch. The winners at St. Louis were a bit luckier. The gold medalist literally got an Olympic medal made of solid gold. Until the Stockholm edition of 1912, all the medalists got literal medals. If you won gold, you literally received GOLD!

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#2 The first Olympics that included boxing, wrestling and decathlon

Archie Hahn - One of the discoveries of St. Louis Olympics

With every Olympics, came new sports. Likewise, at the 1904 Olympics came boxing, freestyle wrestling and decathlon. Even a sport as odd as dumbbells made its Olympic debut in this edition. In a temporary pond near Skinker and Wydown Boulevards, 'lifesaving demonstrations' of unsinkable lifeboats for ocean liners were also taking place. Trust the St. Louis Olympics to be this unique.

For the first time in these Olympics, a notable star emerged. When Spyridon Louis emerged as a hero in Athens, Archie Hahn emerged as one of the great heroes at the St. Louis Olympics in 1904.

Archie Hahn was champion in the 60 m, 100 m and 200 m. In his last race, he set a unique Olympic record of 21.6 seconds, a record that stood for 28 long years. The record was finally broken by Eddie Tolan, an African American athlete. He clocked 21.2 seconds at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1932 to claim the gold medal.

#3 George Eyser and Frank Kugler - The two most unique Olympians

George Eyser - A unique Olympian of his own class

These Olympics also indirectly paved the way for the Paralympics. While Archie Hahn shone in track sprinting, there were two other athletes who stole the limelight for different reasons. They were George Eyser and Frank Kugler. Both were Americans, and both created unique records of their own.

George Eyser competed in gymnastics, and his left leg was made entirely of wood. Yet he won three Olympic gold medals in gymnastics. One was in rope climbing, one was in vault and one was in parallel bars. He also won two silver medals and a bronze medal. The silver medals came in combined four events and a pommel horse. On the other hand, the bronze medal came in horizontal bar.

Long before Jesse Owens created history in athletics. Long before Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps, it was George Eyser who made a name for himself. With a wooden leg, it was certainly no joke to win six Olympic medals in one go.

On the other hand, Frank Kugler was another legend of his own class. He won a silver medal in heavyweight wrestling. He won a bronze medal in two hand lift weightlifting. He also won a bronze medal in all-round dumbbell weightlifting. If that was enough, Frank joined the American team to clinch a bronze in the tug of war as well.

Yes, you read that right. Four sports, four different medals. Nobody has ever emulated this record since then. In a way, the St. Louis Olympics was certainly one hell of an edition to remember.

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#4 Women's Boxing debuts in St. Louis

Women's Boxing was once a demonstration sport at St. Louis [Image for Representational Purposes]

When did women's boxing make its official debut? Did it make its debut at the London Olympics in 2012? You are partially correct, since the official debut occurred in St. Louis in 1904. Yes, women's boxing once made its appearance at the St. Louis Olympics in 1904.

Women's boxing was introduced as a demonstration sport at the St. Louis Olympics in 1904. This was interestingly the same edition when boxing made its official debut in the male edition. However, for some great reason, not many people took a great liking to women's boxing. The sport was discontinued, and it wasn't even tried as a demonstration sport in further editions.

It took more than a century for women's boxing to officially return to the Olympics. Finally, in 2012, when the Olympics were held in London, women's boxing made its official debut. Interestingly, one of our greatest boxers, MC Mary Kom, added personal glory of her own. She clinched a bronze medal on debut, losing to the ultimate champion, Nicola Adams of Great Britain in the semifinals.

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#5 Marathon in St. Louis - The most hilarious as well as the most worrying

Marathon at St. Louis - The most hilarious as well as the most worrying [Image for Representational Purposes]

The marathon at the Olympics is one of the most talked about incidents at any point of time. However, in this edition, the marathon was not only a hilarious one, but also a worrying one.

The incidents have enough anecdotes for Quentin Tarantino to make it into a well crafted dark comedy. The marathon began well into the afternoon. This was not the stipulated time, as if the organizers deliberately wished to tire the runners out. You can imagine the state of the competition when 32 runners competed and only 14 managed to finish the race.

The original runner, Fred Lorz, claimed to have won the race. However, it was revealed that he took a ride for more than half of the distance. As a result, he was disqualified. An exhausted, rather dehydrated Thomas Hicks barely managed to cross the finish line as the runner-up. However, he was now the ultimate winner.

But now, if we look from a modern perspective, even Thomas ought to have been disqualified. This was because he was administered doses of strychnine and brandy. Yes, you read that right. Thomas, of all things, was administered strychnine and brandy by his trainers. This was admissible then, in order to prevent him from collapsing midway.