The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, United Kingdom. After a hiatus of 12 years caused by World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin. The 1940 Games had been scheduled for Tokyo, and then Helsinki; the 1944 Games had been provisionally planned for London.

Election as host city

In June 1939, the IOC gave the 1944 Games to London, ahead of Budapest, Lausanne, Helsinki and Athens. War stopped the plans and London again stood for 1948. The official report of the London Olympics that makes it plain that there was no case of London being pressed to run the Games against its will ^[1]. It says:

The Games of 1944 had been allocated to London and so it was that in October, 1945, the chairman of the British Olympic Council, Lord Burghley, went to Stockholm and saw the president of the International Olympic Committee to discuss the question of London being chosen for this great event. As a result, an investigating committee was set up by the British Olympic Council to work out in some detail the possibility of holding the Games. After several meetings they recommended to the council that the Lord Mayor of London should be invited to apply for the allocation of the Games in 1948.

In early March 1946 the IOC, through a postal vote, gave the summer Games to London and the winter competition to St Moritz. London was selected ahead of Baltimore, Lausanne, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.^[2]

Organization

Lord Burghley had been Olympic captain in 1932 and 1936 and after the war he became president of the Amateur Athletics Association and of the IAAF, its international equivalent. He was named chairman of the organising and executive committees.

Olympic pictograms were introduced for the first time. There were twenty of them — one for each Olympic sport and three separate pictograms for the arts competition, the opening ceremony and the closing ceremony. They were called "Olympic symbols" and intended for the use on tickets. The background of each pictogram resembled escutcheon. ^[3][4] Olympic pictograms would appear again 16 years later and be featured at each Summer Olympics thereafter.

Opening ceremony

The Games opened on 29 July, a brilliantly sunny day. Army bands began playing at 2pm for the 85,000 spectators in Wembley Stadium. The international and national organisers arrived at 2.35pm and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, with Queen Mary and other members of the Royal Family, at 2.45pm. Fifteen minutes later the competitors entered the stadium in a procession that took 50 minutes. The last team was that of the United Kingdom. When it had passed the saluting base, Lord Burghley began his welcome:

Your Majesty: The hour has struck. A visionary dream has today become a glorious reality. At the end of the worldwide struggle in 1945, many institutions and associations were found to have withered and only the strongest had survived. How, many wondered, had the great Olympic Movement prospered?

After welcoming the athletes to two weeks of "keen but friendly rivalry", he said London represented a "warm flame of hope for a better understanding in the world which has burned so low." ^[5]

At 4pm, the time shown on Big Ben on the London Games symbol, the King declared the Games open, 2,500 pigeons were set free and the Olympic Flag raised to its 35ft flagpole at the end of the stadium. The Royal Horse Artillery sounded a 21-gun salute and the last runner in the Torch Relay ran a lap of the track - created with cinders from the domestic coal fires of Leicester - and climbed the steps to the Olympic Bowl. After saluting the crowd, he turned and lit the flame. After more speeches, Donald Finlay of the British team (given his RAF rank of wing-commander) took the Olympic Oath on behalf of all competitors. The National Anthem was sung and the massed athletes turned and marched out of the stadium, led by Greece, tailed by Britain.

The 580-page official report concluded:

Thus were launched the Olympic Games of London, under the most happy auspices. The smooth-running Ceremony, which profoundly moved not only all who saw it but also the millions who were listening-in on the radio throughout the world, and the glorious weather in which it took place, combined to give birth to a spirit which was to permeate the whole of the following two weeks of thrilling and intensive sport.

Sport by sport overview

Athletics

33 athletics events were contested; 24 for men and 9 for women. Of these, four were making their Olympic debut - the men's 10km walk, and the women's 200 meters, long jump and shot put. 751 athletes from 53 countries participated in the athletics, including Fanny Blankers-Koen of Holland, who captured four gold medals, and Micheline Ostermeyer of France who won two. Duncan White won the first medal of any kind for Sri Lanka, when he finished second in the 400 meter hurdles, and Arthur Wint became the first Jamaican to win an Olympic medal, capturing gold in the men's 400 meters and silver in the men's 800 meters.

Basketball

Basketball made its second appearance as a sanctioned sport, returning to indoor competition after inclement weather disrupted the final at the 1936 Berlin games. 23 nations entered the competition, with the United States defeating France 65-21 in the final to claim the gold medal. Brazil defeated Mexico 52-47 to claim bronze.

Boxing

Eight different classifications were contested, with South Africa, Argentina and Hungary each winning two gold medals.

Canoeing

Nine events were contested, eight for men and one for women. This marked the first time that a women's canoeing event had been contested in the Olympics. Sweden won four gold medals (two by Gert Fredriksson) and Czechoslovakia three.

Cycling

Six events were contested - two road cycling events and four track cycling events. No women's cycling events were contested. France won three gold medals and Italy two, while Great Britain captured five medals overall, but none were gold.

Diving

Four diving events were contested, two for men, and two for women. All four gold medals, and 10 out of 12 awarded in total, were won by the United States. Both women's events were won by Victoria Manalo Draves.

Equestrian

Six gold medals were awarded in equestrian, individual and team dressage, individual and team eventing and individual and team show jumping. Harry Llewellyn and Foxhunter, who would claim a gold medal in Helsinki, won bronze in the team jumping event.

Fencing

Seven events were contested, six for men and one for women. Ilona Elek, who had won the women's foil competition in Berlin was one of only two women to successfully defend an Olympic title in London, and is still the only woman to win two gold medals in the individual foil competition.

Football

Eighteen teams entered the football competition at these Olympics, including first-time Olympic participants Korea, who progressed to the quarter-finals before falling to Sweden. The gold medal was claimed by Sweden, who defeated Yugoslavia 3-1 in the final. Denmark defeated Great Britain 5-3 to win the bronze medal.It was first olympics for Indian football team.

Gymnastics

Nine events were contested, eight for men, and one for women. In the men's pommel horse, a tie was declared between three competitors, all Finns, and no medals other than gold were awarded in this event. Finland won six gold medals overall, and Switzerland three.

Hockey

Thirteen nations participated in the field hockey competition. The tournament was ultimately won by India, who defeated Great Britain to claim the country's first gold medal as an independent nation.

Modern pentathlon

Only one modern pentathlon event was contested, won by William Grut of Sweden.

Rowing

Seven rowing events were contested, all open to men only. Great Britain and the United States each claimed two gold medals. The events were held on the same course as the Henley Royal Regatta.

Sailing

Five events were contested, with the United States winning four total medals.

Shooting

Four events were contested, all open to both men and women, although all medals were won by men. In the 50 meter rifle, prone position, only two points separated the top three competitors.

Swimming

Eleven events were contested, six for men and five for women. The United States won eight gold medals, including all six men's events, and 15 medals in total.

Water polo

Eighteen nations fielded a team in these games, which were ultimately won by Italy, who were undefeated throughout. The tournament was conducted in a mult-tier bracket, with the best four teams from the group stages participating in a final round-robin bracket. Silver was claimed by Hungary, and bronze by the Netherlands.

Weightlifting

Six events were contested, all for men only. These games marked the addition of the bantamweight class to the Olympic programme, the first change to the programme since 1920. The United States won four gold medals, and eight overall; the remaining two gold medals were claimed by Egypt.

Wrestling

Sixteen wrestling events were held, eight Greco-Roman and eight freestyle. All were open to men only. Six gold medals were won by Turkey and five by Sweden. Between them, these teams claimed 24 total medals.

Political defection

London was the first Olympics to have a political defection. Marie Provaznikova won a gold medal with the Czechoslovakian gymnastics team and then refused to return home, citing "lack of freedom" there after the country's inclusion in the Soviet bloc.

Venues

Poster promoting the 1948 Olympics

• Wembley Empire Exhibition Grounds
  • Empire Stadium - opening and closing ceremonies, athletics, football finals, hockey finals
  • Empire Pool - swimming, boxing
  • Palace of Engineering - fencing

• Other venues
  • Empress Hall, Earl's Court - boxing preliminaries, wrestling, weightlifting, gymnastics
  • Harringay Arena, Harringay - basketball & wrestling
  • Royal Regatta Course, Henley-on-Thames - canoeing, rowing
  • Herne Hill Velodrome, Herne Hill - track cycling
  • Windsor Great Park - cycling road race
  • Central Stadium, Military Headquarters, Aldershot - equestrian
  • Tweseldown Racecourse - equestrian
  • Arsenal Stadium, Highbury - football preliminaries
  • Selhurst Park - football preliminaries
  • Craven Cottage, Fulham - football preliminaries
  • Ilford - football preliminaries
  • Griffin Park, Brentford - football preliminaries
  • Champion Hill, Dulwich - football preliminaries
  • Green Pond Road Stadium, Walthamstow - football preliminaries
  • White Hart Lane, Tottenham - football preliminaries
  • Lyons' Sports Club, Sudbury - hockey preliminaries
  • Guinness Sports Club, Park Royal - hockey preliminaries
  • Polytechnic Sports Ground, Chiswick - hockey preliminaries
  • National Rifle Association Ranges, Bisley - shooting
  • Finchley Pool, Finchley - water polo preliminaries
  • English Channel, Torbay - yachting
  • Goldstone Ground, Brighton - football preliminaries

Participating nations

participants

Medal table

These are the ten nations that won most medals. The host nation was 12th, with three gold and 23 total medals.

Notes

External links

• IOC Site on 1948 Summer Olympics
• ''The London Olympics'' by Russell James
• Exploring 20th century London - 1948 Olympics Objects and photographs from the collections of the Museum of London, London Transport Museum, Jewish Museum and Museum of Croydon.

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