| Men's 110 metres hurdles at the Games of the IV Olympiad |
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| Venue | White City Stadium | |||||||||
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| Dates | July 23 (quarterfinals) July 24 (semifinals) July 25 (final) |
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| Competitors | 25 from 10 nations | |||||||||
| Medalists | ||||||||||
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| «1904 | 1912» | |||||||||
| Athletics at the 1908 Summer Olympics |
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|---|---|---|
| Track events | ||
| 100 m | men | |
| 200 m | men | |
| 400 m | men | |
| 800 m | men | |
| 1500 m | men | |
| 5 miles | men | |
| 110 m hurdles | men | |
| 400 m hurdles | men | |
| 3200 m steeplechase | men | |
| Medley relay | men | |
| 3 mile team race | men | |
| Road events | ||
| Marathon | men | |
| 3500 m walk | men | |
| 10 mile walk | men | |
| Field events | ||
| Long jump | men | |
| Triple jump | men | |
| High jump | men | |
| Pole vault | men | |
| Standing long jump | men | |
| Standing high jump | men | |
| Shot put | men | |
| Discus throw | men | |
| Hammer throw | men | |
| Javelin throw | men | |
| Greek discus | men | |
| Freestyle javelin | men | |
The men's 110 metres hurdles was the shorter of two hurdling events at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. It was dominated by the American runners. The competition was held from Thursday, July 23, 1908 to Saturday, July 25, 1908.
25 hurdlers from ten nations competed.
Ten sets of hurdles were set on the course. The hurdles were 3 feet, 6 inches (1.07m) tall and were placed ten yards (9.144m) apart beginning fifteen yards (13.716m) from the starting line.
Contents |
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1908 Summer Olympics.
| World Record | 15.0(*) | Thaddeus Shideler | St. Louis (USA) | June 11, 1904 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olympic Record | 15.4 | Alvin Kraenzlein | Paris (FRA) | July 14, 1900 |
(*) unofficial 120 yards (= 109.73 m)
At first Forrest Smithson equalized the standing Olympic record when he ran 15.4 seconds in the semifinal. In the final he set the first official world record in this event with 15.0 seconds.
The first round heats were held on July 23, 1908, making the short hurdles one of the last events to begin. The Americans won every race in which they competed. The British team also had a strong showing, winning any time that there was no American in the race.
Heat 1
Healey won by four yards after leading from the start.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alfred Healey | Great Britain | 15.8 seconds |
| 2 | Henry Murray | Australasia | (16.3 seconds) |
| 3 | Doug Stupart | South Africa | Unknown |
Heat 2
Garrels won by seven yards.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Garrels | United States | 16.2 seconds |
| 2 | Arthur Halligan | Great Britain | (17.1 seconds) |
Heat 3
Groenings led by five yards at the finish.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oswald Groenings | Great Britain | 16.4 seconds |
| 2 | Georgios Skoutarides | Greece | (17.0 seconds) |
Heat 4
Kiely had no competition in the first round.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Laurence Kiely | Great Britain | Walkover |
Heat 5
Rand and Powell were even for most of the race. Powell hit the ninth hurdle, slowing him just enough for Rand to take the lead and win.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Rand | United States | 15.8 seconds |
| 2 | Kenneth Powell | Great Britain | (16.2 seconds) |
| 3 | Frank Savage | Canada | Unknown |
Heat 6
Lemming fell during the race, allowing Walters to win while easing up.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Walters | Great Britain | 17.8 seconds |
| — | Oscar Lemming | Sweden | DNF |
Heat 7
The seventh heat was another in which there was no competition.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Knyvett | Great Britain | Walkover |
Heat 8
Halbart won without competition.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fernand Halbart | Belgium | Walkover |
Heat 9
Ahearne was the fourth runner to win without a contest.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tim Ahearne | Great Britain | Walkover |
Heat 10
Smithson won by ten yards.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Forrest Smithson | United States | 15.8 seconds |
| 2 | Nándor Kovács | Hungary | (17.2 seconds) |
Heat 11
Blijstad fell, allowing Hussey to win with a jog.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eric Hussey | Great Britain | 16.8 seconds |
| — | Wilhelm Blijstad | Norway | DNF |
Heat 12
Kinahan had an easy win by ten yards.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cecil Kinahan | Great Britain | 16.8 seconds |
| 2 | Oscar Guttormsen | Norway | (18.2 seconds) |
Heat 13
Howe and Leader were even over the hurdles, but Howe edged out Leader in the straight.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leonard Howe | United States | 15.8 seconds |
| 2 | Edward Leader | Great Britain | (16.1 seconds) |
Heat 14
Shaw won without a contest.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arthur Shaw | United States | Walkover |
The semifinal round was held on July 24, 1908. Each of the four heats of the second round were won by American runners.
Semifinal 1
Shaw took the lead at the first set of hurdles, finishing about five metres ahead of Hussey.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arthur Shaw | United States | 15.6 seconds |
| 2 | Eric Hussey | Great Britain | (16.5 seconds) |
| 3 | David Walters | Great Britain | (16.9 seconds) |
| 4 | Oswald Groenings | Great Britain | Unknown |
Semifinal 2
Smithson had no trouble winning this heat, tying the Olympic record as he did so.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Forrest Smithson | United States | 15.4 seconds =OR |
| 2 | William Knyvett | Great Britain | (15.6 seconds) |
| 3 | Leonard Howe | United States | (15.8 seconds) |
Semifinal 3
Healey led for most of the race, with Rand close behind, but Healey was unable to clear the ninth hurdle cleanly, allowing Rand to pass him and win by a foot.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Rand | United States | 15.8 seconds |
| 2 | Alfred Healey | Great Britain | (15.9 seconds) |
| 3 | Laurence Kiely | Great Britain | Unknown |
| 4 | Tim Ahearne | Great Britain | Unknown |
Semifinal 4
Halbert pulled up lame, and Garrels won by 15 yards.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Garrels | United States | 15.8 seconds |
| 2 | Cecil Kinahan | Great Britain | (17.5 seconds) |
| — | Fernand Halbert | Belgium | DNF |
Smithson pulled away from his countrymen at every set of hurdles to win by five meters and set a new world record.
| Place | Name | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Forrest Smithson | United States | 15.0 seconds WR |
| 2 | John Garrels | United States | (15.7 seconds) |
| 3 | Arthur Shaw | United States | (15.8 seconds) |
| 4 | William Rand | United States | (16.0 seconds) |
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