Day 4: M DT, M 110mH, M 200m, M PV

The Paris Olympic champion, Bud Houser, took a sabbatical in 1927 and focused on working on people's teeth with his practice. He returned to the discus ring in great shape in the Olympic year. The 27-year-old guy threw a new Olympic record of 47.32 (155-3) on his third attempt and won narrowly. The discus throne remained firmly in California.

Kivi Continues Niittymaa's Work

Finland's discus throne, on the other hand, changed hands. The Paris silver medalist Vilho Niittymaa couldn't throw the platter over 40 meters during the 1928 season, so his trip to Amsterdam didn't materialize. His work was continued by Antero Kivi, who hurled the discus 47.23 (154-11) on his fifth attempt and brought home the silver. Armas Taipale's official Finnish record was only 18 centimetres away.

Kivi was the most consistent man in the competition, as five of his throws went over 45 metres. Houser had only one throw longer than Kivi's, but it was enough.

The German favourites had a poor competition. Ernst Paulus and cartoonist Hans Hoffmeister, who had thrown impressive distances in their home country before the games, were eliminated already in the qualifying round. Paulus's last spot in the final was taken by a two-centimetre margin by Eino Kenttä from Tampere, Finland, who finished sixth in the final results. Even worse than the Germans was the fate of the future world record holder, Eric Krenz from the United States, who had thrown over 47 metres in the spring but was left off the team during the American trials.

Results and reports

• Olympedia

• Wikipedia

The Americans also suffered losses in their flagship event, the 110-metre hurdles. Six of the previous Olympic high hurdle victories had gone to the new continent. In Amsterdam, South African chain-smoker Sid Atkinson and the American boys Karl Anderson, John Collier, and Leighton Dye fought a fierce millimetre battle for the win, which ended in a victory for the South African export company director. It remains the country's only Olympic victory in the high hurdles to date.

The Americans dominated the early part of the final, but from the seventh barrier onwards, Atkinson began to overtake his opponents. Anderson and Atkinson cleared the final obstacle simultaneously, but Atkinson narrowly squeezed ahead on the final flat.

Atkinson, who had shown only mild interest in athletics during the years between the Olympics, also got a sweet revenge for his defeat four years earlier. Back then, while fighting for the win, he had clipped the last hurdle with his hoof, which had caused him to slip to silver.

The winning time in Amsterdam was 14.8. In the semis, silver medallist and Atkinson's countryman George Weightman-Smith clocked 14.6, which equalled the world record for the 110-metre hurdles. It was just shy of the 120-yard hurdles (109.73m) world record of 14.4, which was set by Earl Thomson, who developed the event's technique, back in 1920.

Audiovisuals

• Film (IOC). Lane order: Weightman-Smith, Collier, Atkinson, Anderson, Gaby, Dye

Results and reports

• Olympedia

• Wikipedia

Canada's Percy Williams won the 100 metres and also the 200 metres. He became the only double gold medalist in individual events at the games.

In the 200m final, the fleet-footed Canadian resorted to a clever tactic: he paced himself on the bend and let Germany's Helmut Körnig rush to the lead. Williams saved his energy for the last 40 metres, where he fought past the German for the win. In the Canadian's wake, Britain's Walter Rangeley also sprinted the final quarter at full throttle and took the silver.

“That boy doesn’t run, he flies,” commented America's Charley Paddock on Williams's run to the AP. “He’s a thoroughbred and a great competitor. I didn’t have a thing left. I lost eight yards in a night. It must be age, my old kick isn’t there.”

The judges could not separate Körnig and America's Jackson Scholz, so a run-off was ordered for the bronze medal. The defending Olympic champion saw the photo finish and stated that Körnig was clearly ahead. There was no need for a run-off.

American Setback

The Amsterdam Games did not go well for the Americans. They didn't win a single medal in the 200m either. Charley Borah, who won the American trials, was eliminated already in the heats. The one who flew him out was the Canadian Williams himself. Also, the colourful career of the Antwerp 100m winner, Charley Paddock, began to decline, as he was eliminated in the semi-finals. The press speculated that the American athletes' food on the ocean liner where they were staying was too delicious. For example, the ship's ice cream stock had been emptied by the halfway point of the athletics competitions.

Results and reports

• Olympedia

• Wikipedia

The pole vault competition was at least a celebration for the Americans. According to some theories, they succeeded because they had copied the jumping technique of the Norwegian Charles Hoff, who was declared a professional: a powerful run-up, an explosive take-off, and an effective bend over the bar.

Former world record holder Sabin Carr did not care about the rain-soaked run-up track, and on his third attempt, he cleared 4.20 (13-9½) and took the victory. The other two Americans, William Droegemuller and Charles McGinnis, grabbed the next medals after the four-hour-long competition. Paris champion Lee Barnes, who had set a new world record in the spring, surprisingly finished fifth.

Audiovisuals

• Film (IOC)

Results and reports

• Olympedia

• Wikipedia