Route Paris 2024: 100 years ago

The Summer Olympic Games of the 8th Olympiad were held in Paris between May 4 and July 27, 1924 (100 years ago). Now we return to Paris (July 26 to August 11, 2024) for the 33^e Olympic Games. What do you know about the 1924 Games and what did the world look like back then? Were many stamps issued 100 years ago as well?

1924 Olympic Games (figures)

Place: Paris Date: 4 May – 27 July 1924 Officially opened by: Gaston Doumergue, President of France Number of participants: 3.092 (2.956 men and 136 women) Participating countries: 44

Sports practiced: 17 Sports events: 126 Dutch participants: 152 Dutch medals: 10 (4 – 1 – 5) Position in medal standings: 10 For the first time, there was an Olympic village for the participants, although that was actually too beautiful a name for the collection of primitive wooden barracks.

 

Highlights in 1924

In Paris, the Finnish athlete stood Paavo Nurmi at the peak of his abilities. He barely concerned himself with his opponents. He ran at his own pace with a stopwatch in hand. In the French capital, Nurmi won both the 1500 and the 5000 m within an hour. His victory in the scorching heat at the 10.000 cross-country race was masterful. While participants dropped out in droves and one athlete died of sunstroke, Nurmi crossed the finish line as fresh as a daisy. The event was subsequently removed from the Olympic program.

The American swimmer too Johnny Weissmuller caused a sensation. Later, he would reap even greater fame as Tarzan in Hollywood. He triumphed in Paris in the 100 m, 400 m, and 4 x 200 m freestyle, and added a bronze medal as a member of the American water polo team. In the swimming event, the Netherlands unfortunately missed out on gold in the women's 200m breaststroke. 16-year-old Marie Baron was many seconds faster than her competitors but was disqualified because she touched a turn with one hand instead of two.

In the football tournament, Europe was introduced to the brilliant game of Uruguay. Only one team proved a match for the South Americans, and that was the Netherlands. The score remained 1-1 until just before the end, when the French referee secured the victory for Uruguay by awarding a highly controversial penalty. The Netherlands won gold through the equestrian team in the demanding military event, through cyclist Ko Willems in the 50 km track race, and through Laga rowers Beynen and Rösingh in the sparsely populated coxless pair.  

The world of 1924

European politics during these years was marked by arduous negotiations to address the prevailing financial chaos. All sorts of schemes were developed to finance the reparations to which Germany was obliged under the Treaty of Versailles. In the Soviet Union, the communist regime seemed to be maintaining its position. France played a significant role in international politics during this period, and Paris reveled in its role as a leading cultural center, as always.

However, it was not all civility. For the first time, and entirely contrary to Pierre de Coubertin's ideas, the spectators displayed unbridled nationalism, and their officials were not blameless either. The rugby final between France and the United States became a sporting low point; rugby disappeared from the program at subsequent Games.

 

Medal Overview

Gold Silver Bronze

1. United States 22 18 16
2. Germany 10 7 14
3. Finland 8 8 9
4. Sweden 7 6 12
5. France 6 10 5

 

10. Netherlands 4 1 5

Only the sports medals are listed in this list. Prizes for the arts were also awarded in Paris in 1924. In the painting category, the Dutchman received Johan van Hell a bronze medal for the painting Skaters. A modern version of the medieval ice scenes by Hendrick Avercamp.   Source used: NOC NSF.  

<strong> More info: </strong>

2024 Olympic Games: https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024 TeamNL: https://www.teamnl.org/ NOS and Paris 2024: https://nos.nl/parijs2024 Previous Olympic Games blogs: OS 2024: https://www.postzegelblog.nl/tag/route-paris-2024/ OS 2020: https://www.postzegelblog.nl/tag/olympische-spelen-2020/