Athletics at the 1908 Summer Olympics – Men's 3500 metres walk

The men's 3500 metre walk race was held for the only time at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. The competition was held on Tuesday, July 14, 1908. It was held in two rounds. There were three heats in the first round, with the top three in each heat advancing to the final. 25 racewalkers from eight nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes.Official report, p. 32.

Records This was the first racewalking event at the Modern Olympics (discounting the 1906 Intercalated Games which is no longer considered an official Olympic event). The world record for the comparable distance of 2.25 miles was 15:51 (15:19.4 pace for 3500m).

Results

First round

Heat 1

Larner led the entire race.

Place Name Nation Time 1 George Larner 15:32.0 2 Harry Kerr 16:02.2 3 William Palmer 16:33.0 4 Paul Gunia 16:38.0 5 Sydney Sarel 17:06.0 6 Arne Højme 17:23.4 7 Jo Goetzee 17:37.8 — Bill Brown Disqualified — Alfred Yeoumans Disqualified — Piet Soudyn Disqualified

Heat 2

Webb had little competition, leading from the start and winning by nearly 2 minutes.

Place Name Nation Time 1 Ernest Webb 15:17.2 2 Charles Vestergaard 17:07.0 3 Einar Rothman 17:40.2 4 Willem Winkelman 17:57.6 5 István Drubina 18:44.6 6 Piet Ruimers 18:44.6 — Richard Quinn Disqualified James Reid Disqualified

Heat 3

As in the other two heats, the winner led from the beginning. Unlike in the others, however, this race became close as Harrison made a late attempt to pass Goulding. Goulding finished strongly to fend off Harrison, winning by 10 seconds.

Place Name Nation Time 1 George Goulding 15:54.0 2 Ralph Harrison 16:04.4 3 Albert Rowland 16:08.6 4 Ernest Larner 16:10.0 5 Jack Butler 16:17.0 6 Richard Wilhelm 17:33.8 7 Jan Huijgen 17:37.8

Final

Webb, Goulding, and Harrison were the early leaders. Harrison was disqualified shortly after Larner passed him. By the end of the first mile, the top four spots had solidified into the final positions. Larner had passed the field, bumping Webb to second place, while Kerr had managed to overtake Goulding.

Place Name Nation Time 1 George Larner 14:55.0 2 Ernest Webb 15:07.4 3 Harry Kerr 15:43.4 4 George Goulding 15:49.8 5 Arthur Rowland 16:07.0 6 Charles Vestergaard 17:21.8 7 Einar Rothman 17:50.0 — William Palmer Did not finish Ralph Harrison Disqualified

References

Sources Official Report of the Games of the IV Olympiad (1908). De Wael, Herman. Herman's Full Olympians: "Athletics 1908". Accessed 31 March 2006. Available electronically at .