The 1904 Olympic swimming competition introduced breaststroke and used yards as race distances, the only time in Olympic history distances were measured in yards.
Key Facts
- Events contested
- 9 swimming events
- Participating countries
- 5
- Total participants
- 32
- Competition dates
- September 4–6, 1904
- Venue
- Man-made lake used for coast guard exhibitions
- Breaststroke debut
- First appearance of breaststroke at Olympics
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Organizers of the 1904 St. Louis Olympics restructured the swimming program from previous Games, eliminating the obstacle course and underwater events, replacing long metric distances with shorter yard-based distances, and introducing new stroke categories to reflect evolving competitive swimming norms in the United States.
Nine swimming events were held September 4–6, 1904, at a man-made lake in St. Louis. Distances were measured in yards rather than metres, making this the only Olympic swimming competition to use that system. Events included the debut of the 50-yard sprint, the return of the 100-yard freestyle, and the first Olympic breaststroke competition, along with a new 4×50-yard relay.
The 1904 swimming program established breaststroke as a permanent Olympic discipline and helped standardize competitive swimming formats. The exclusive use of yard-based distances was not repeated, and subsequent Olympics returned to metric measurements, setting the standard for all future international swimming competitions.
Result
at Man-made lake, St. Louis (1904 Summer Olympics)