Only one event was completed on the sixth day of competition, but its winner ran himself straight into the film Chariots of Fire decades later.
Stade de Colombes, Paris, July 11, 1924
The sixth athletics day in Paris culminated in the 400-metre final. Since the 100-metre event took place on Sunday, Scotland's fastest man, Eric Liddell, conscientiously skipped it and focused on the one-lap, which, in Paris, was raced on a 500-metre track. He took the victory in the outside lane with a time of 47.6. Liddell ran with his head back, knees driving high during his short strides, and his arms flailing wildly. "His style doesn't even adhere to the elementary principles of sports science," commented track and field writer Martti Jukola in Finland.
Liddell had prepared for the race under the guidance of Tom McKerchar, a professional coach at the University of Edinburgh. After the race, the winner thanked his coach:
"I owe much to him. He advised me to do no more than necessary to qualify so I didn't worry if I won a heat or semi-final provided I was in the first three. McKerchar took me to the post in wonderful condition. I ran the final all out and made two 220's out of it."
John C. Taylor of the USA stumbled just before the finish line, but he crawled in agony across the finish line. In the Olympics, there is no quitting.
After the games, Liddell renounced worldly competition and set out as a missionary to China, where he died in a prisoner camp during World War II.
The story of Liddell and the hundred-metre winner, Harold Abrahams, was immortalized in the film "Chariots of Fire," whose theme was played at the opening and medal ceremonies of the 2012 London Olympics.
Film (IOC). Lane order: Johnston, Butler, Taylor, Imbach, Fitch, Liddell
Helsingin Sanomat July 12, 1924 (in Finnish)
Uusi Suomi July 12, 1924 (in Finnish)
Turun Sanomat July 12, 1924 (in Finnish)
Aamulehti July 12, 1924 (in Finnish)
Idrottsbladet, July 12, 1924 (in Swedish)
Hufvudstadsbladet, July 12, 1924 (in Swedish)
Helsingin Sanomat, July 19, 1924 (in Finnish)