First Day of 1912 Olympic Events
The 1912 Summer Olympics began yesterday with formal ceremonies and announcements by King Gustav V of Sweden.
On July 8, 1912 the 800 meter track competition took place. The world’s record had been 1:52.8 seconds. It was broken by the all 3 medalists with Ted Meredith of the U.S. winning in 1:51.9.
Ted Meredith crossing the finish line in the 800 meter event in Stockholm
July 8, 1912
Another event that day was the men’s Tug Of War. Originally teams from Sweden, Great Britain, Austria, Bohemia and Luxembourg were to compete but all dropped out except Sweden and Great Britain. Sweden was represented by the Stockholm Police while the defending champions were Great Britain’s team was the defending champion City of London Police. A single bout best-of-three competition took place with the Swedish team emerging victorious.
The winning 1912 Summer Olympics Tug Of War team from Sweden
100 Years Ago Today 