| Men's 100 metres at the Games of the I Olympiad | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Artist's rendering of the start of the 100 metres final | |||||||||||||||||
| Venue | Panathenaic Stadium | ||||||||||||||||
| Dates | 6 April 1896 (first round) 10 April 1896 (final) | ||||||||||||||||
| Competitors | 15 from 8 nations | ||||||||||||||||
| Winning time | 12.0 | ||||||||||||||||
| Medalists | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
1900 → | |||||||||||||||||
| Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Track events | |
| 100 m | men |
| 400 m | men |
| 800 m | men |
| 1500 m | men |
| 110 m hurdles | men |
| Road events | |
| Marathon | men |
| Field events | |
| Long jump | men |
| Triple jump | men |
| High jump | men |
| Pole vault | men |
| Shot put | men |
| Discus throw | men |
The first heat of the men's100 metres race was the first event run at the modern Olympics, on 6 April 1896. The event consisted of 3 heats and a final, held on 10 April. The 100 metres was the shortest race on theAthletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. 15 athletes from 8 nations competed. The event was won byThomas Burke of the United States.Fritz Hofmann of Germany took second, with HungarianAlajos Szokolyi and AmericanFrancis Lane (who had won the first heat) tying for third. These competitors are recognized as gold, silver, and bronze medalists by theInternational Olympic Committee, though that award system had not yet been implemented in 1896.[1][2]
Fritz Hofmann was probably the most prominent sprinter to enter the event; he had won the 1893 Championship of the Continent.Thomas Burke was the American champion in the 400 metres but had not distinguished himself yet in the 100 metres. Absent were top sprinters AmericanBernie Wefers and EnglishmanCharles Bradley.[1]
21 athletes were entered in the first round, divided into three heats of seven runners, but six of them later withdrew. The top two athletes in each heat advanced to the final.
This was the standing world record (in seconds) prior to the 1896 Summer Olympics.
| World Record | 10.8[a] |  Luther Cary | Paris (FRA) | July 4, 1891 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cecil Lee | Brussels (BEL) | September 25, 1892 | ||
 Étienne De Re | Brussels (BEL) | August 4, 1893 | ||
| L. Atcherley | Frankfurt (GER) | April 13, 1895 | ||
| Harry Beaton | Rotterdam (NED) | August 28, 1895 |
The following new Olympic record was set during this competition:
| Date | Event | Athlete | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 April 1896 | Round 1 |  Thomas Burke (USA) | 11.8 s | OR |
In the first heat, Francis Lane set the inaugural Olympic Record of 12.2 seconds, tied in Heat 2 by Thomas Curtis. Thomas Burke then ran 11.8 seconds, which stood as the Olympic Record until the 1900 Olympics.
The precise times of the events are not recorded. For the first round, the heats began shortly after the arrival of KingGeorge I of Greece at 3 p.m. and the brief opening ceremony.[3] The final was the first competition of the afternoon session on Friday.[4]
| Date | Round | |
|---|---|---|
| Gregorian | Julian | |
| Monday, 6 April 1896 | Monday, 25 March 1896 | Round 1 |
| Friday, 10 April 1896 | Friday, 29 March 1896 | Final |
The first round of heats took place on 6 April. The first heat of the 100 metres was the first competition held in the Games.Francis Lane won the first heat, thus becoming the first winner of a modern Olympic race. All heats were won by athletes from the United States.
The Official Report states that there were a total of 21 competitors, divided into three groups; there should therefore have been 7 athletes in each heat. The Official Report names only the top two runners, Lane and Szokolyi.[5] Butler writes that the first heat had "two Hungarians, a Chilian, a Frenchman, a German, an Englishman and an American."[6] Mallon & Widlund list Lane, Szokolyi, Gmelin, Grisel, and Doerry. Megede placesAndré Tournois as the French competitor, rather than Grisel (who Megede does not list at all), omits Doerry (who Megede puts in heat 2), and includes Leonidasz Manno andLuis Subercaseaux.[7] Olympedia follows Mallon & Widlund, also including Manno, Tournois, and Subercaseaux in a list of non-starters not attached to particular heats (this list includes 12 athletes, bringing Olympedia's total entrants to 27 rather than 21).[1]
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Francis Lane | United States | 12.2 | Q,OR |
| 2 | Alajos Szokolyi |  Hungary | 12.75 | Q |
| 3 | Charles Gmelin |  Great Britain | 12.9 | |
| 4 | Adolphe Grisel |  France | Unknown | |
| 5 | Kurt Doerry |  Germany | Unknown | |
| — | Leonidasz Manno | Hungary | DNS | |
| Luis Subercaseaux |  Chile | DNS |
The Official Report states that there were a total of 21 competitors, divided into three groups; there should therefore have been 7 athletes in each heat. The Official Report names only the top two runners, Curtis and Chalkokondylis.[5] Butler writes of the second heat that Curtis beat "a Greek, an Englishman, two Frenchmen, a Dane, and a Hungarian."[6] Mallon & Widlund list Curtis, Chalkokondylis, Elliot, Schmidt, and Marshall. Megede placesAlexandre Tuffère as the French competitor, including him at 3rd place above Elliott; Megede also hasKurt Doerry in this heat instead of the first one (indicating he started but did not finish the heat) and omits Marshall entirely.[7] Olympedia follows Mallon & Widlund, also including Tuffère in a list of non-starters not attached to particular heats. Other non-starters listed by Olympedia that could be a second Frenchman or a Hungarian to match Butler's list are André Tournois, Louis Adler, István Zachar, andNándor Dáni.[1]
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Curtis | United States | 12.2,=OR | Q |
| 2 | Alexandros Chalkokondylis |  Greece | 12.75 | Q |
| 3 | Launceston Elliot | Great Britain | 12.9 | |
| 4 | Eugen Schmidt |  Denmark | Unknown | |
| 5 | George Marshall | Great Britain | Unknown | |
| — | Alexandre Tuffère | France | DNS | |
| Unknown | Unknown (France or Hungary) | DNS |
Both Burke and Hofmann were more well known for middle-distance events rather than sprinting. Burke's time of 11.8s became the standing Olympic record. It is not clear which athlete received which place between the fourth and fifth finishers.
The Official Report states that there were a total of 21 competitors, divided into three groups; there should therefore have been 7 athletes in each heat. The Official Report names only the top two runners, "an American (Burke)" and Hofmann.[5] Butler writes of the final heat that Burke beat "a Swede, two Greeks, and three Germans."[6] Mallon & Widlund list Burke, Hofmann, Traun, Gennimatas, and Sjöberg. Megede omits Traun, places Sjöberg 3rd and Gennimatas 5th, and includesNándor Dáni at 4th.[7] Olympedia follows Mallon & Widlund; non-starters (not attached to particular heats in Olympedia) include Flatow and Mouratis.[1]
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Burke | United States | 11.8 | Q,OR |
| 2 | Fritz Hofmann | Germany | 12.75 | Q |
| 3 | Friedrich Traun | Germany | 13.6 | |
| 4–5 | Georgios Gennimatas | Greece | Unknown | |
| Henrik Sjöberg |  Sweden | Unknown | ||
| — | Alfred Flatow | Germany | DNS | |
| Konstantinos Mouratis | Greece | DNS |
The final of the 100 metre race, run on 10 April, involved the six runners who had finished in the top two of their preliminary heats. Curtis scratched from the final as he had also qualified for thefinal of the 110 metre hurdles, which was the next race on the program (Curtis won that race).
Burke beat his companion from the third heat, Hofmann, by two meters. In a thrilling contest for third place, Lane and Szokolyi dead-heated, both men beating Chalkokondylis by six inches. Lane and Szokolyi are both considered to bebronze medallists by theInternational Olympic Committee.
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Thomas Burke | United States | 12.0 |
 | Fritz Hofmann | Germany | 12.2 |
 | Francis Lane | United States | 12.6 |
| Alajos Szokolyi | Hungary | 12.6 | |
| 5 | Alexandros Chalkokondylis | Greece | 12.6 |
| — | Thomas Curtis | United States | DNS |
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Semifinals | Final | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Burke | United States | 11.8 | 12.0 | OR |
| Fritz Hofmann | Germany | 12.6 | 12.2 | |
| Francis Lane | United States | 12.2 | 12.6 | |
| Alajos Szokolyi | Hungary | 12.8 | 12.6 | ||
| 5 | Alexandros Chalkokondylis | Greece | 12.8 | 12.6 | |
| 6 | Thomas Curtis | United States | 12.2 | DNS | |
| AC | Launceston Elliot | Great Britain | 12.9 | Did not advance | |
| Charles Gmelin | Great Britain | 12.9 | |||
| Friedrich Traun | Germany | 13.5 | |||
| Eugen Schmidt | Denmark | Unknown | 4th in semifinal | ||
| Adolphe Grisel | France | Unknown | 4th in semifinal | ||
| Georgios Gennimatas | Greece | Unknown | 4th–5th in semifinal | ||
| Henrik Sjöberg | Sweden | Unknown | 4th–5th in semifinal | ||
| George Marshall | Great Britain | Unknown | 5th in semifinal | ||
| Kurt Doerry | Germany | Unknown | 5th in semifinal | ||
| — | Louis Adler | France | DNS | ||
| Harald Arbin | Sweden | DNS | |||
| Nándor Dáni | Hungary | DNS | |||
| Ralph Derr | United States | DNS | |||
| Alfred Flatow | Germany | DNS | |||
| Leonidasz Manno | Hungary | DNS | |||
| Konstantinos Mouratis | Greece | DNS | |||
| Luis Subercaseaux | Chile | DNS | |||
| Jean Tournois | France | DNS | |||
| Alexandre Tuffère | France | DNS | |||
| Charles Vanoni | United States | DNS | |||
| István Zachar | Hungary | DNS |
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