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.^[1] NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes.^[2]

Men's 3500 metres walk at the Games of the IV Olympiad
Venue	White City Stadium
Date	July 14
Competitors	25 from 8 nations
Medalists
George Larner  Great Britain Ernest Webb  Great Britain Harry Kerr  Australasia

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 1⁄5 (15:19.4 pace for 3500m).

World record	F. P. Murray (USA)	15:51 1⁄5 (2.25 miles)	New York City	6 November 1883	^[3]
Olympic record	N/A

Results

First round

Heat 1

Larner led the entire race.

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

Heat 2

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

Place	Name	Nation	Time
1	Ernest Webb	Great Britain	15:17.2
2	Charles Vestergaard	Denmark	17:07.0
3	Einar Rothman	Sweden	17:40.2
4	Willem Winkelman	Netherlands	17:57.6
5	István Drubina	Hungary	18:44.6
6	Piet Ruimers	Netherlands	18:44.6
—	Richard Quinn	Great Britain	Disqualified
	John Reid	Great Britain	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	Canada	15:54.0
2	Ralph Harrison	Great Britain	16:04.4
3	Albert Rowland	Australasia	16:08.6
4	Ernest Larner	Great Britain	16:10.0
5	John Butler	Great Britain	16:17.0
6	Richard Wilhelm	Germany	17:33.8
7	Jan Huijgen	Netherlands	17:37.8

Final

 

The start of the 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	Great Britain	14:55.0
2	Ernest Webb	Great Britain	15:07.4
3	Harry Kerr	Australasia	15:43.4
4	George Goulding	Canada	15:49.8
5	Arthur Rowland	Australasia	16:07.0
6	Charles Vestergaard	Denmark	17:21.8
7	Einar Rothman	Sweden	17:50.0
—	William Palmer	Great Britain	Did not finish
	Ralph Harrison	Great Britain	Disqualified

References

1. . sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
2. Official report, p. 32.
3. "Spalding's official athletic almanac" (PDF). lynbrooksports.prepcaltrack.com. 1908. p. 15. Retrieved 28 July 2023.

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 [1] 2006-09-27 at the Wayback Machine.