Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metres
The men's 100 metres was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics programme. 11 athletes from 3 nations participated. The competition was held on September 3, 1904. The event was won by Archie Hahn of the United States, completing his sprint trifecta (having already won the 60 metres and 200 metres) and marking the third straight gold medal in the event by an American. Hahn would later repeat his win in the now-unofficial 1906 Intercalated Games.[1] The United States swept the medals.
| Men's 100 metres at the Games of the III Olympiad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Francis Field | ||||||||||||
| Dates | September 3 | ||||||||||||
| Competitors | 11 from 3 nations | ||||||||||||
| 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 |
Background
This was the third time the event was held. None of the previous runners competed in 1904. American Archie Hahn, had won the 1903 U.S. and Canadian championships; he had also taken the 60 metres and 200 metres titles earlier in the 1904 Olympics. He was heavily favored.[1]
The 1904 competition was one of only two Olympic Games (along with 1900) where the men's 100 metres was not the shortest sprint, with the 60 metres being held in those two years.
Canada was represented in the event for the first time. Hungary was the only other country, aside from the host, to send a runner; this made the United States and Hungary the only two nations to have appeared at each of the first three Olympic men's 100 metres events.
Competition format
With fewer entrants than in 1900, the event was reduced from four rounds to two: heats and a final. The top two runners in each heat advanced to the final.
Records
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1904 Summer Olympics.
| World Record | 10.8(*) |  Luther Cary |
Paris (FRA) | July 4, 1891 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10.8(*) |  Cecil Lee |
Brussels (BEL) | September 25, 1892 | |
| 10.8(*) | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Etienne De Re |
Brussels (BEL) | August 4, 1893 | |
| 10.8(*) | L. Atcherley |
Frankfurt/Main (GER) | April 13, 1895 | |
| 10.8(*) | Harry Beaton |
Rotterdam (NED) | August 28, 1895 | |
| 10.8(*) |  Harald Anderson-Arbin |
Helsingborg (SWE) | August 9, 1896 | |
| 10.8(*) | Isaac Westergren |
Gävle (SWE) | September 11, 1898 | |
| 10.8(*) | Isaac Westergren |
Gävle (SWE) | September 10, 1899 | |
| 10.8(*) | Frank Jarvis |
Paris (FRA) | July 14, 1900 | |
| 10.8(*) | Walter Tewksbury |
Paris (FRA) | July 14, 1900 | |
| 10.8(*) | Carl Ljung |
Stockholm (SWE) | September 23, 1900 | |
| 10.8(*) | Walter Tewksbury |
Philadelphia (USA) | October 6, 1900 | |
| 10.8(*) |  André Passat |
Bordeaux (FRA) | June 14, 1903 | |
| 10.8(*) |  Louis Kuhn |
Bordeaux (FRA) | June 14, 1903 | |
| 10.8(*) |  Harald Grønfeldt |
Aarhus (DEN) | July 5, 1903 | |
| 10.8(*) | Eric Frick |
Jönköping (SWE) | August 9, 1903 | |
| Olympic Record | 10.8 | Frank Jarvis |
Paris (FRA) | July 14, 1900 |
| 10.8 | Walter Tewksbury |
Paris (FRA) | July 14, 1900 |
(*) unofficial
Results
Heats
The top two finishers in each heat advanced to the final.
Heat 1
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Archie Hahn | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} United States | 11.4 | Q |
| 2 | Lawson Robertson | United States | Q | |
| 3 | Béla Mező | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Hungary |
Heat 2
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Hogenson | United States | 11.6 | Q |
| 2 | Frederick Heckwolf | United States | Q | |
| 3 | Robert Kerr | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada | ||
| 4 | Myer Prinstein | United States |
Heat 3
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nathaniel Cartmell | United States | 11.4 | Q |
| 2 | Fay Moulton | United States | Q | |
| 3 | Clyde Blair | United States | ||
| 4 | Frank Castleman | United States |
Final
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Archie Hahn | United States | 11.0 |
 | Nathaniel Cartmell | United States | 11.2 |
 | William Hogenson | United States | 11.2 |
| 4 | Fay Moulton | United States | |
| 5 | Frederick Heckwolf | United States | |
| 6 | Lawson Robertson | United States |
Sources
- "100 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
- Wudarski, Pawel (1999). "Wyniki Igrzysk Olimpijskich" (in Polish). Retrieved 13 December 2006.