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1928 Summer Olympics
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The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium and Pierre de Coubertin's Paris, respectively. The only other candidate city for the 1928 Games was Los Angeles, which would host the Olympics four years later.
The United States Olympic Committee measured the costs and revenue of the 1928 Games in preparation for the 1932 Summer Olympics.
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Encyclopedia
The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium and Pierre de Coubertin's Paris, respectively. The only other candidate city for the 1928 Games was Los Angeles, which would host the Olympics four years later.
The United States Olympic Committee measured the costs and revenue of the 1928 Games in preparation for the 1932 Summer Olympics. The committee reported a total cost of US$1.183 million with receipts of US$1.165 million for a loss of US$18,000 - much less than that of the previous Games.
Highlights
- For the first time, the Olympic Flame was lit during the Olympics. The torch relay, however, would not occur until the 1936 Summer Olympics.
- For the first time, the parade of nations started with Greece, which holds the origins of the Olympics, and ended with the host country, a tradition which continues today.
- The Games were officially opened by Prince Hendrik, consort of Queen Wilhelmina, who had authorised him to deputise for her. This was the first time a head of state had not personally officiated at an Olympic opening ceremony. She refused to return early from her holiday in Norway to open the Games herself, because she was furious at the organizing committee for not consulting with her about the opening date.
- Athletics events were held on a 400 meter track and would become the standard for athletics tracks.
- These games were the first to feature a standard schedule of 16 days, which is still followed. Previously, competition was stretched out over several months.
- Johnny Weissmuller, who later appeared in several Tarzan movies, won two gold medals in swimming.
- Paavo Nurmi of Finland won his ninth and final gold medal, in the 10,000 m race.
- Canada's Percy Williams surprised everyone by winning both the 100 m and 200 m sprint events.
- South American football made a definite breakthrough, as Uruguay retained its title by defeating Argentina.
- India took its first ever gold in the sport of field hockey, beginning a streak of six consecutive gold medals in the sport.
- The first appearance of the sponsor Coca-Cola at the Olympic Games.
- These games were the first to bear the name "Summer Olympic Games".
- Germany returned to the Olympic Games for the first time since 1912, after being banned from the 1920 and 1924 Games. The German team finished second in the 1928 medal count.
Selection of the host city
Frederik van Tuyll van Serooskerken first proposed Amsterdam as host city for the Summer Olympic Games in 1912, even before the Netherlands Olympic Committee was established. In 1916, the Olympic Games were cancelled due to World War I. In 1919, the Netherlands Olympic Committee abandoned the proposal of Amsterdam in favour of their support of the nomination of Antwerp as host city for the 1920 Summer Olympics. In 1921, the city of Paris was selected for the 1924 Summer Olympics on the condition that the 1928 Summer Olympics would be organized in Amsterdam. This decision, supported by the Netherlands Olympic Committee, was announced by the International Olympic Committee on June 2, 1921. The decision was disputed by the Americans, but their request to allocate the 1928 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles was without success in 1922 and again in 1923. Los Angeles was eventually selected as host city for the 1932 Summer Olympics.
Sports
During the Summer Olympics, there were 15 sports and 109 events in the tournament. In parentheses is the number of events per sport.
Women's athletics and gymnastics debuted at these Olympic, in spite of criticism. Halina Konopacka of Poland became the first female Olympic track and field champion. The 800 metre run ended with several of the competitors being completely exhausted, so running events for women longer than 200 metres were not included in the Olympics until the 1960s.
Tennis disappeared from the programme, only to reappear in 1968 as a demonstration sport.
Demonstration sports
These Games also included art competitions, which the IOC no longer considers as official medal events.
Participating nations
A total of 46 nations were represented at the Amsterdam Games. Malta, Panama, and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) competed at the Olympic Games for the first time. Germany returned after having been deliberately not invited in 1920 and 1924.
Medal count
These are the top ten nations that won medals at these Games.
| 1 | | 22 | 18 | 16 | 56 | | 2 | | 10 | 7 | 14 | 31 | | 3 | | 8 | 8 | 9 | 25 | | 4 | | 7 | 6 | 12 | 25 | | 5 | | 7 | 5 | 7 | 19 | | 6 | | 7 | 4 | 4 | 15 | | 7 | | 6 | 10 | 5 | 21 | 8 | (host nation) | 6 | 9 | 4 | 19 | | 9 | | 4 | 5 | 0 | 9 | | 10 | | 4 | 4 | 7 | 15 |
Poster
The official poster for the Games was designed by Jos Rovers, of which 10.000 copies were made. The poster displays a running man in a white shirt, with in the background the Olympic stadium and the Olympic flag (shown above). The IOC never succeeded in getting the copyright of the image. Therefore, out of practical considerations, the IOC has used a different poster, with the German text Olympische Spiele, and an athlete partly covered in the Dutch national flag, holding a peace leaf in his hand. This poster was made for a German book about the Amsterdam Olympics.
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