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1908 Olympic Games London, Great Britain - Men's 1600 m Medley Relay

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Details: Parent Category: Olympic Games (Athletics); Category: 1908 Olympic Games London, Great Britain - (Athletics); Last Updated: 16 April 2016; Hits: 957

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Host City: London, Great Britain

Format: Four runners covering 1,600 metres in the following order: 200 metres, 200 metres, 400 metres, 800 metres.

Date Started: July 24, 1908

Format: Winner in each heat advanced to the final.

Date Finished: July 25, 1908

(Competitors: 28; Countries: 7; Finalists: 12/3)

Venue(s): White City Stadium, London

Overview by IAAF

The USA were fastest in the heats with 3:27.2, with Great Britain eliminated behind them in 3:31.0e, the second fastest time of the round. Hamilton outclassed the opposition on the first leg, making up more than 5m on Simon in running 22.0. Cartmell increased the lead slightly with a leg of 22.2, and Taylor then went away by a further 7m, handing over to Sheppard with a lead of some 15m after running 49.8 for his portion. Sheppard easily won, with Braun passing Bodor in the finishing straight for the silver medal.

Summary by Sports-reference.com

This was the first Olympic relay race and evidence that the event was still in its infancy is confirmed by the fact that the runners did not carry a baton and transfer was by "touch." The United States was untroubled in both rounds. After winning their heat in 3:27.2, they were comfortable winners of the final in a time more than two seconds slower. The U.S. margin was eight yards at the first exchange, 15 yards at the second exchange, and 20 yards on the final exchange.

With Emilio Lunghi, the silver medalist in the individual 800, running the vital 800 anchor leg, the Italians, who had been drawn in the second heat, were viewed as likely finalists but they withdrew at the last minute to lend their support to their countryman, Dorando Pietri, who was approaching the Stadium in the closing stages of the marathon.

The 400 metre leg for the United States was run by John Taylor, who was African-American. His gold medal in this race makes him the first black man to have won a gold medal. He was considered the top American at 400 metres, having won three IC4A 440 yard titles while at the University of Pennsylvania, and he had also won the Eastern Olympic Trials in 1908. He had trained in veterinary medicine, but practiced only briefly. After returning to the United States, he developed typhoid fever and died only a few months after the Olympics, on 2 December 1908.

			Results
The men's medley relay was run for the first time at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. The event consisted of 1600 metres being run by four athletes per team. Unlike the later 4 x 400 metres relay, however, the athletes had different distances to run. In the medley, the first two runners each ran 200 metres. The third runner ran 400 and the fourth ran 800. The competition was held on July 24, 1908 and July 25, 1908. 28 runners from 7 nations competed.
*1600 m Medley Relay*	Men		Final	25 July
At the end of the first 200 metres, Hamilton had a six-yard lead over Simon, with Hoffmann about a yard behind the Hungarian. Cartmell and Taylor increased the American lead, and Sheppard began the second half of the race with a fifteen-yard lead over Bodor; he pulled away and won by twenty-five yards. Braun and Bodor fought mightily for second place, with the German, who had a five-yard deficit at the beginning of the 800 metres, winning by five inches.
Rank	Mark		Team	Country	NOC	Records	Notes
1	3.29.4		William Hamilton, Nate Cartmell, John Taylor, Mel Sheppard	United States	USA
2	3.32.4		Arthur Hoffmann, Hans Eicke, Otto Trieloff, Hanns Braun	Germany	GER
3	3.32.5		Pál Simon, Frigyes Mezei, József Nagy, Ödön Bodor	Hungary	HUN
*1600 m Medley Relay*	Men		Round One Heat One	24 July
Simon had a ten-yard lead over Laaftman at the end of the first 200 metres; after Lindberg gained on Racz, Stenborg passed Nagy during the 400, giving Björn a three-yard advantage over Bodor to begin the second half of the race. Bodor was up to the task and ran the split in 1:56.6 to pass Björn and win by three yards.
Rank	Mark		Team	Country	NOC	Records	Notes
1	3.32.6	Q	Pál Simon, Frigyes Wiesner József Nagy, Ödön Bodor	Hungary	HUN
2	3.33.0		Sven Låftman, Knut Lindberg Knut Stenborg, Evert Björn	Sweden	SWE		at 3 yds
*1600 m Medley Relay*	Men		Round One Heat Two	24 July
The German team dominated this heat, with each runner increasing the lead; Braun crossed the finish line 90 yards ahead of Evers.
Rank	Mark		Team	Country	NOC	Records	Notes
1	3.43.2	Q	Arthur Hoffmann, Hans Eicke, Otto Trieloff, Hanns Braun	Germany	GER
2	at 90 yards		Evert Koops, Jacobus Hoogveld Victor Henny, Bram Evers	Netherlands	NED
*1600 m Medley Relay*	Men		Round One Heat Three	24 July
Hamilton gave the Americans a slight lead at the end of the first 200 metres, with the Canadians in second and the British team third. Cartmell increased the lead while Pankhurst caught up to Buddo near the end of the second 200. In the 400, Taylor held the American lead while Montague ensured second place for the Britons, but Just had little chance of catching Sheppard, who had won the individual 800 metres, in the second half of the race. Sheppard finished 25 yards in front of the British team.
Rank	Mark		Team	Country	NOC	Records	Notes
1	3.27.2	Q	William Hamilton, Nate Cartmell, John Taylor, Mel Sheppard	United States	USA
2	3.32.0		George Hawkins, Henry Pankhurst, Edwin Montague, Theodore Just	Great Britain	GBR		at 25 yds
3			Frank Lukeman, Donald Buddo Louis Sebert, R. Irving Parkes	Canada	CAN