This Day in Track & Field, July 13, Jim Thorpe Wins 1912 Olympic decathlon , held over 3 days! John Pennel sets PV WR (1963), Dave Bedford breaks WR at 10,000m (1973)! by Walt Murphy News and Results Services

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This Day in Track & Field–July 13

1912—This day in Stockholm marked the beginning of the first Olympic Decathlon conducted with the same 10 events that are currently used. The one wrinkle in Stockholm is that the event was held over 3 days! (day 1-100, LJ, SP; Day 2-HJ, 400, DT, 110h; Day 3-PV, JT, 1500). Jim Thorpe, who had won the 5-event Pentathlon six days earlier, went on to win his 2nd gold medal in this event and was told by the King of Sweden, “Sir, you are the greatest athlete in the world”. To which Thorpe reportedly replied, “Thanks, King”. Thus began the tradition of bestowing the “greatest” title to the winner of the Olympic Decathlon.

            After incidents at the 1908 Games and in the semi-finals here, lanes were used  for  the first time in the Men’s 400-meters final. American Charles Reidpath set an Olympic Record of 48.2 to win the gold medal in a close battle with Germany’s  Hanns Braun (48.3) and U.S. teammate Edward Lindberg (48.4). Ted Meredith finished 4th in 49.2.  Mel Sheppard had one of the fastest times in the semi-finals, but was edged  for the lone qualifying spot in his race by  Meredith, who had beaten him for the gold medal in the 800 earlier in the Games.

            The event is no longer contested, but the “team 3000” race was won by a U.S. lineup of Tel Barna (8:44.6), Norman Taber (8:45.2), and George Bonhag (8:46.6).

Results

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1912_Summer_Olympics

http://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016499.html

Obituary(1953): http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0528.html

100 Years of the Decathlon: http://www.runmichigan.com/view.php?id=16234

1924–A U.S. lineup of Frank Hussey, Louis Clarke, Loren Murchison, and Alfred LeConey ran 41.0 in the semi-final and final at the Olympics in the Paris suburb of Colombes…