| Men's discus throw at the Games of the III Olympiad | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Martin Sheridan throws the discus on the way to finishing with the gold | ||||||||||
| Venue | Francis Field | |||||||||
| Date | September 3, 1904 | |||||||||
| Competitors | 6 from 2 nations | |||||||||
| Winning distance | 39.28OR | |||||||||
| Medalists | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Track events | |
| 60 m | men |
| 100 m | men |
| 200 m | men |
| 400 m | men |
| 800 m | men |
| 1500 m | men |
| 110 m hurdles | men |
| 200 m hurdles | men |
| 400 m hurdles | men |
| 2590 m steeplechase | men |
| 4 mile team race | men |
| Road events | |
| Marathon | men |
| Field events | |
| Long jump | men |
| Triple jump | men |
| High jump | men |
| Pole vault | men |
| Standing long jump | men |
| Standing triple jump | men |
| Standing high jump | men |
| Shot put | men |
| Discus throw | men |
| Hammer throw | men |
| 56 pound weight throw | men |
| Combined events | |
| Triathlon | men |
| All-around | men |
The men'sdiscus throw was atrack and field athletics event held as part of theAthletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics programme. It was the third time the event was held. The competition was held on Saturday, September 3, 1904. Six athletes from two nations competed.[1]
Sheridan and Rose tied for the lead, both throwing 39.28 metres to jointly set a new Olympic record. A throw-off determined the eventual champion. Sheridan won, becoming the second American champion in the men's discus throw afterRobert Garrett in 1896.Nikolaos Georgantas of Greece took bronze, the nation's first medal since 1896.
This was the third appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. The only returning competitor from 1900 was seventh-place finisherJohn Flanagan of the United States.Martin Sheridan (1904 AAU champion) andRalph Rose (the 1904 Olympic shot put champion) of the United States andNikolaos Georgantas of Greece were considered favorites.[2]
No nations made their debut in the men's discus throw. Both of the nations competing in 1904, Greece and the United States, had also previously competed in both 1896 and 1900.
The format of the competition is unclear; it appears that each there was a single round of throwing with each thrower receiving six attempts.[2] There was no provision at the time for breaking ties based on the second-best throw, so the tie for first place was broken with a three-throw throw-off.
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1904 Summer Olympics.
| World record |  Marius Eynard (FRA) | 43.21* | Paris,France | 2 May 1903 |
| Olympic record |  Rudolf Bauer (HUN) | 36.04 | Paris,France | 14 July 1900 |
* unofficial
The top four men all beat the Olympic record. At firstRalph Rose set a new Olympic record with 39.28 metres, laterMartin Sheridan equalized his record.
| Date | Time | Round |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 3 September 1904 | Final |
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Distance | Throw-off | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Martin Sheridan |  United States | 39.28=OR | 38.97 | =OR |
 | Ralph Rose | United States | 39.28OR | 36.74 | OR |
 | Nikolaos Georgantas |  Greece | 37.68 | ||
| 4 | John Flanagan | United States | 36.14 | ||
| 5 | John Biller | United States | Unknown | ||
| 6 | James Mitchel | United States | Unknown |
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