Athletics at the 1920 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metres

The men's 100 metres event was part of the athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on August 15 and 16, 1920. The event was won by Charley Paddock of the United States. Great Britain won its first medal in the event, a bronze by Harry Edward.

Men's 100 metres
at the Games of the VII Olympiad
VenueOlympisch Stadion
DatesAugust 15 (round 1 & quarterfinals)
August 16 (semifinals & final)
Competitors60 from 22 nations
Winning time10.8
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Charley Paddock  United States
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Morris Kirksey  United States
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Harry Edward  Great Britain
← 1912
1924 →

Sixty sprinters from 22 nations competed, while Estonia's sole athlete in the event, Reinhold Saulmann, was entered but did not start the 100 m.[1] No nation had more than 4 runners, suggesting the limit had been reduced from the 12 maximum in force in 1908 and 1912.

Background

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This was the sixth time the event was held, having appeared at every Olympics since the first in 1896. None of the 1912 medalists returned in 1920. Notable entrants included Charley Paddock of the United States, the 1919 Inter-Allied Championship winner and Olympic favorite; fellow American Loren Murchison, who had defeated Paddock in the U.S. Olympic trials; and Harry Edward of Great Britain, the 1920 AAA Championships winner.[2]

Egypt, Luxembourg, Monaco, New Zealand, Spain, and Switzerland were represented in the event for the first time. The new nation of Czechoslovakia also appeared for the first time, though Bohemia had previously competed separately. For the first time, Hungary did not compete (a result of not being invited after World War I)—making the United States the only nation to have appeared at each of the first six Olympic men's 100 metres events.

Competition format

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The event expanded from three rounds (in 1908 and 1912) to four rounds: heats, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. There were 12 heats, of 4–6 athletes each, with the top 2 in each heat advancing to the quarterfinals. The 24 quarterfinalists were placed into 5 heats of 4 or 5 athletes. Again, the top 2 advanced. There were 2 heats of 5 semifinalists, this time with the top 3 advancing to the 6-man final.[2]

Records

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These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1920 Summer Olympics.[3]

World Record 10.6(*)   Donald Lippincott (USA) Stockholm (SWE) July 6, 1912
Olympic Record 10.6   Donald Lippincott (USA) Stockholm (SWE) July 6, 1912

(*) This was the only officially ratified world record in 1920, but there have been at least four runs in 10.5 seconds at that time. (see the records prior the 1912 Summer Olympics.)

Schedule

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Date Time
Sunday, 15 August 1920 15:15
17:00
Round 1
Quarterfinals
Monday, 16 August 1920 9:30
16:00
Semifinals
Final

Results

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Times were generally only published for the winners of each heat. Some of the times listed below are estimates based on contemporary reports of the races.[4]

Round 1

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Heat 1

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 William Hill   Great Britain 11.0 Q
2 Mario Riccoboni   Italy 11.2 Q
3 Marcel Gustin   Belgium 11.3
4 Jan de Vries   Netherlands
5 Ichiro Kaga   Japan
6 Paul Hammer   Luxembourg

Heat 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 René Mourlon   France 11.2 Q
2 August Sørensen   Denmark 11.3 Q
3 Erik Lindvall   Sweden
4 Ahmed Khairy   Egypt
5 Purma Bannerjee   India
František Skokan   Czechoslovakia DNS

Heat 3

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Loren Murchison   United States 10.8 Q
2 Jacobus Bukes   South Africa 11.0 Q
3 Albert Heijnneman   Netherlands 11.0
4 Vojtěch Plzák   Czechoslovakia

Heat 4

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 William Hunt   Australia 11.0 Q
2 Félix Mendizábal   Spain 11.2 Q
3 Francis Irvine   South Africa
4 Bjarne Guldager   Norway
5 Adolf Rysler   Switzerland
6 Nils Sandström   Sweden

Heat 5

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Vittorio Zucca   Italy 11.4 Q
2 Cor Wezepoel   Netherlands 11.5 Q
3 Leonard Dixon   South Africa
4 August Waibel   Switzerland
5 Alex Servais   Luxembourg

Heat 6

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Morris Kirksey   United States 11.0 Q
2 Josef Imbach   Switzerland 11.0 Q
3 René Lorain   France 11.1
4 Johan Johnsen   Norway 11.2
5 Jaime Camps   Spain
6 Giovanni Orlandi   Italy

Heat 7

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Paul Brochart   Belgium 11.4 Q
2 René Tirard   France 11.7 Q
3 Diego Ordóñez   Spain
4 Eduard Hašek   Czechoslovakia
5 Jean Colbach   Luxembourg

Heat 8

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Charley Paddock   United States 10.8 Q
2 Harry Edward   Great Britain 10.9 Q
3 Carlos Botín   Spain 11.6
4 Shinichi Yamaoka   Japan 11.6
5 Edmond Médécin   Monaco 11.8

Heat 9

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Émile Ali-Khan   France 11.0 Q
2 Victor d'Arcy   Great Britain 11.1 Q
3 Rolf Stenersen   Norway
4 Dimitrios Karabatis   Greece
5 Sven Malm   Sweden

Heat 10

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Harold Abrahams   Great Britain 11.0 Q
2 Alexander Ponton   Canada 11.1 Q
3 Giorgio Croci   Italy 11.3
4 Harry van Rappard   Netherlands
Reinhold Saulmann   Estonia DNS

Heat 11

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Jack Oosterlaak   South Africa 11.0 Q
2 George Davidson   New Zealand 11.1 Q
3 Agne Holmström   Sweden
4 Fritiof Andersen   Denmark
5 Jean Lefèbvre   Belgium

Heat 12

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Jackson Scholz   United States 10.8 Q
2 Marinus Sørensen   Denmark 11.2 Q
3 Cyril Coaffee   Canada
4 Julien Lehouck   Belgium
5 Asle Bækkedal   Norway

Quarterfinals

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Quarterfinal 1

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Harry Edward   Great Britain 10.8 Q
2 Loren Murchison   United States 10.9 Q
3 René Mourlon   France 11.0
4 William Hunt   Australia 11.0
5 Mario Riccobono   Italy 11.5

Quarterfinal 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 William Hill   Great Britain 11.0 Q
2 Félix Mendizábal   Spain 11.1 Q
3 Willie Bukes   South Africa
4 August Sørensen   Denmark
5 Vittorio Zucca   Italy

Quarterfinal 3

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Charley Paddock   United States 10.8 Q
2 Émile Ali-Khan   France 10.9 Q
3 George Davidson   New Zealand 10.9
4 Harold Abrahams   Great Britain 11.0
5 Cor Wezepoel   Netherlands

Quarterfinal 4

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Jackson Scholz   United States 10.8 Q
2 Jack Oosterlaak   South Africa 11.0 Q
3 Josef Imbach   Switzerland 11.1
4 René Tirard   France 11.2
5 Alexander Ponton   Canada 11.4

Quarterfinal 5

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Morris Kirksey   United States 10.8 Q
2 Paul Brochart   Belgium 10.9 Q
3 Victor d'Arcy   Great Britain
4 Marinus Sørensen   Denmark

Semifinals

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Semifinal 1

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Harry Edward   Great Britain 10.8 Q
2 Jackson Scholz   United States 10.9 Q
3 Morris Kirksey   United States 11.0 Q
4 Jack Oosterlaak   South Africa 11.0
5 Félix Mendizábal   Spain

Semifinal 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Charley Paddock   United States 11.0 Q
2 Émile Ali-Khan   France 11.1 Q
3 Loren Murchison   United States 11.2 Q
4 Paul Brochart   Belgium 11.3
5 William Hill   Great Britain 11.3

Final

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Murchison was affected badly by the start. The starter had told Paddock to adjust his position, causing Murchison to stand, thinking the full start sequence would be repeated. When it was not, Murchison was effectively eliminated as he was unprepared to run and could not catch the group.[2]

Scholz was in the lead at the halfway mark before falling back to the back of the group. Paddock won by half a metre over Kirksey, with Edward a "chest behind" the silver medalist. The finish between Scholz and Ali-Khan for 4th and 5th places was close enough that the judges originally ruled Ali-Khan 4th before determining that Scholz was 4th.[2]

Rank Lane Athlete Nation Time
  3 Charley Paddock   United States 10.8
  1 Morris Kirksey   United States 10.9
  6 Harry Edward   Great Britain 10.9
4 5 Jackson Scholz   United States 10.9
5 4 Émile Ali-Khan   France 11.2
6 2 Loren Murchison   United States 11.2

References

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  1. ^ Athletics at the 1920 Summer Games: Men's 100 metres. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-01-31.
  2. ^ a b c d "100 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  3. ^ "World Record Progression of 100 Metres". World Athletics. Retrieved 2021-05-31.
  4. ^ "Athletics at the 1920 Summer Olympics". Olympedia. Retrieved 3 June 2021.

Further reading

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  • Belgium Olympic Committee (1957). Olympic Games Antwerp 1920: Official Report (in French).
  • Wudarski, Pawel (1999). "Wyniki Igrzysk Olimpijskich" (in Polish). Retrieved 11 August 2007.