Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics - Men's 100 metres
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The men's 100 metres race was the first event run at the modern Olympics, on 6 April 1896. It was the shortest race on the Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. 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, which took place on 10 April.
15 athletes from 8 nations competed.
Medallists
| Gold | Silver | Bronze |
 Tom Burke United States |
Fritz Hoffmann |  Alojz Sokol Hungary Francis Lane United States |
Two runners tied for third place in the final and both are considered to be bronze medallists by the International Olympic Committee.
Results
Heats
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.
Heat 1
| Place | Athlete | Nation | Time
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Francis Lane | United States
| 12.2 seconds
|
| 2 | Alojz Sokol | Hungary
| 12.6 seconds
|
| 3 | Charles Gmelin |
Great Britain | Unknown
|
| 4 | Alphonse Grisel |
France | Unknown
|
| 5 | Kurt Dörry |
Germany | Unknown |
Francis Lane of the United States won this heat, in a time of 12.2 seconds, with Alojz Sokol of Hungary coming in second at 12.75 seconds. Lane thus became the first winner of a modern Olympic race.
Heat 2
| Place | Athlete | Nation | Time
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Curtis | United States
| 12.2 seconds
|
| 2 | Alexandros Khalkokondilis |
Greece | 12.8 seconds
|
| 3 | Launceston Elliot |
Great Britain | Unknown
|
| 4 | Eugen Schmidt |
Denmark | Unknown
|
| 5 | George Marshall |
Great Britain | Unknown |
Another American, Thomas Curtis, won this heat, again at 12.2 seconds. A Greek runner, Alexandros Khalkokondilis, placed second.
Heat 3
| Place | Athlete | Nation | Time
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Burke | United States
| 11.8 seconds
|
| 2 | Fritz Hoffmann |
Germany | 12.6 seconds
|
| 3 | Friedrich Traun |
Germany | Unknown
|
| 4-5 | Georgios Gennimatas |
Greece | Unknown
|
| Henrik Sjöberg |  Sweden
| Unknown |
Tom Burke ran this heat in 11.8 seconds, finishing a sweep of the heats for the United States. Fritz Hoffmann of Germany came in second. Burke and Hoffmann were each known more for middle-distance events rather than sprinting.
Henrik Sjöberg of Sweden and Georgios Gennimatas of Greece placed fourth and fifth in this heat, though it is not clear which athlete received which place.
Final
The final heat of the 100 metre race, run on 10 April, involved the six runners who had finished in the top two of their preliminary heats, with the exception of Thomas Curtis who elected not to run. Burke again ran the race in 12.0 seconds to win it. His companion from the third heat, Hoffmann, placed second, with the two runners from the first heat tying for third place.
| Place | Athlete | Nation | Time
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Burke | United States
| 12.0 seconds
|
| 2 | Fritz Hoffmann |
Germany | 12.2 seconds
|
| 3 | Francis Lane | United States
| 12.6 seconds
|
| Alojz Sokol | Hungary
| 12.6 seconds
| |
| 5 | Alexandros Khalkokondilis |
Greece | 12.6 seconds
|
| – | Thomas Curtis | United States
| Did not start |
References
| The 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens Games of the I Olympiad |
| Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics |
| 100 m | 400 m | 800 m | 1500 m | 110 m hurdles | marathon | long jump | triple jump | high jump | pole vault | shot put | discus |
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