History

Coubertin and other members of the IOC had the quixotic idea that awarding the 1916 Olympics to Berlin might help avert war by mobilizing the opinions of those in Germany who favored peace.

Even after war broke out in 1914, plans went ahead for the Berlin Olympics. Almost everyone thought that it would be very short, well over before 1916, possibly even before 1915 arrived.

But the war went on. Coubertin was pressured by some members of the IOC to move the 1916 Olympics to the United States or to a Scandinavian country, since they weren't yet involved in the conflict, but he refused. He wasn't willing to take the games away from Germany unless Germany offered to withdraw.

Finally, in 1915, after it had become apparent that Germany couldn't possibly host the games, the IOC reluctantly announced that the 1916 Olympics had been canceled.

Belgium, which had fought heroically after being victimized by Germany's surprise attack in 1914, was awarded the 1920 Olympics as a tribute. But taking on the games wasn't easy for the organizers in a country that already faced an enormous rebuilding task.

Visiting athletes slept on cots in schoolrooms, but for the most part they accepted the accommodations and many of them even praised the food. The American athletes weren't so happy, though. Their anger was directed, not at the Belgians, but at their own team officials.

Most members of the U. S. national team sailed to Europe on an overcrowded Army transport ship with poor sleeping facilities and even worse food. When they saw the abandoned schoolhouse in which they were to stay during the Olympics, they were ready to revolt.

Triple jumper Dan Ahearn simply found another place to stay and was thrown off the team. That was the last straw. About 200 American athletes signed a petition demanding better accommodations and Ahearn's reinstatement, and they threatened not to compete if their demands weren't met. After a long meeting between athletes and officials, Ahearn was reinstated, but the accommodations remained the same.

The United States didn't do quite as well as usual in track and field, but that undoubtedly had more to do with improved competition than with their sleeping conditions. The Finns won eight gold medals, including two by Paavo Nurmi, the great "flying Finn," in the 10,000-meter track run and 10,000-meter cross country. Finland was also strong in the weight competitions, sweeping the javelin medals and finishing first and second in both the shot-put and discus.

The major surprise of the games was Albert G. Hill, a 36-year-old British railway guard who had spent four years in the army during the war. Several years earlier, Hill had won his only major championship, the 4-mile run in the British national championships. At Antwerp, he won both the 800- and the 1500-meter runs.

The only triple gold medalist of the games was Ethelda Bleibtrey of the U. S., who won both individual swimming events and swam on the champion 400-meter relay team. Tiny, 14-year-old Aileen Riggin of the U. S. became the first gold medalist in women's springboard diving. Duke Kahanamoku won two gold medals in men's swimming and his fellow Hawaiian, Warren Kealoha, claimed another.

In rowing, the single sculls event featured a great final between Jack Beresford of Great Britain and John B. Kelly of the U.S. Kelly, who later became better known as the father of actress-princess Grace Kelly, edged Beresford for the gold medal. Half an hour later, he also won the doubles sculls final with his cousin, Paul V. Costello.

Belgium and Antwerp were hailed for an outstanding job of staging the games, despite all of the difficulties. Even though Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, and Hungary were banned because they had been the aggressors in World War I, the Antwerp games set new records with participation by 29 countries and 2,669 athletes.

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