The 1928 Summer Olympics (Dutch: Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but was obliged to give way to war-torn Antwerp in Belgium for the 1920 Games and Pierre de Coubertin's Paris for the 1924 Games.

The only other candidate city for the 1928 Olympics was Los Angeles, which would eventually be selected to host the Olympics four years later. In preparation for the 1932 Summer Olympics, the United States Olympic Committee reviewed the costs and revenue of the 1928 Games. The committee reported a total cost of US$1.183 million with receipts of US$1.165 million, giving a negligible loss of US$18,000, which was a considerable improvement over the 1924 Games.[2]

Host city selection [ edit ]

Dutch nobleman, Frederik van Tuyll van Serooskerken, first proposed Amsterdam as host city for the Summer Olympic Games in 1912, even before the Netherlands Olympic Committee was established.

The Olympic Games were cancelled in 1916 due to World War I. In 1919, the Netherlands Olympic Committee abandoned the proposal of Amsterdam in favor of their support for the nomination of Antwerp as host city for the 1920 Summer Olympics. In 1921, Paris was selected for the 1924 Summer Olympics on the condition that the 1928 Summer Olympics would be organized in Amsterdam. This decision, supported by the Netherlands Olympic Committee, was announced by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on 2 June 1921.

The IOC's decision was disputed by the Americans, but their request to allocate the 1928 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles was without success in 1922 and again in 1923.[3] Los Angeles was eventually selected as host city for the 1932 Summer Olympics.[4]:p.915

Highlights [ edit ]

The international parking sign (white P on blue background) was first designed for the 1928 Games

Sports [ edit ]

During the 1928 Summer Olympics, there were 14 sports, 20 disciplines and 109 events in the tournament. In parentheses is the number of events per discipline.[4]:pp.973–985

Eight Dutch stamps from 1928, showing different sports of the Amsterdam Olympics

Women's athletics and team gymnastics debuted at these Olympics,[10] in spite of criticism. Halina Konopacka of Poland became the first female Olympic track and field champion. Reports that the 800 meter run ended with several of the competitors being completely exhausted were widely (and erroneously) circulated. As a result, the IOC decided that women were too frail for long distance running, and women's Olympic running events were limited to 200 meters until the 1960s.[11]

Tennis disappeared from the program, only to reappear in 1968 as a demonstration sport.

Demonstration sports [ edit ]

These Games also included art competitions in five categories: architecture, painting, sculpture, literature, and poetry. However, the IOC no longer considers these to be official medal events, so the medals awarded are not included in today's Olympic medal counts.[12]

Venues [ edit ]

The Olympisch Stadion in 1928

Fourteen sports venues were used for the 1928 Summer Olympics. The Swim Stadium was demolished in 1929 with it being a temporary venue.[4]:p.193 The Het Kasteel football stadium was renovated in 1998–99. The Monnikenhuize stadium was demolished in 1950. The Schermzaal sports hall has also been demolished. The Olympic Stadium was renovated between 1996 and 2000, and is still in use. The Old Stadion was demolished in 1929 and replaced with housing in the Amsterdam area.

Participating nations [ edit ]

Participants

Number of athletes

A total of 46 nations were represented at the Amsterdam Games. Malta, Panama, and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) competed at the Olympic Games for the first time. Germany returned after having been banned in 1920 and 1924.[16]

Number of athletes by National Olympic Committees [ edit ]

Medal count [ edit ]

These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1928 Games.

Rank Nation Gold Silver Bronze Total 1 United States 22 18 16 56 2 Germany 10 7 14 31 3 Finland 8 8 9 25 4 Sweden 7 6 12 25 5 Italy 7 5 7 19 6 Switzerland 7 4 4 15 7 France 6 10 5 21 8 Netherlands* 6 9 4 19 9 Hungary 4 5 0 9 10 Canada 4 4 7 15 Totals (10 nations) 81 76 78 235

Poster [ edit ]

Official poster

The official poster for the Games was designed by Jos Rovers, and 10,000 copies were made.

The poster displays a running man in a white shirt, with in the background the Olympic Stadium and the Olympic flag.

The IOC never succeeded in obtaining the copyright of the image. Therefore, out of practical considerations, the IOC used a different poster, with the German text Olympische Spiele, and an athlete partly covered in the Dutch national flag, holding a peace leaf in his hand. The poster was made for a German book about the Amsterdam Olympics.[17]

Last surviving competitor [ edit ]

The last living competitor of the 1928 Summer Olympics was Clara Marangoni, a member of the silver-medal winning Italian gymnastic team who had been 12 years old during the Olympics.

She died 18 January 2018, at the age of 102. She was also the oldest living Olympic medalist at the time of her death.[18]

See also [ edit ]