# United States at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Fourteen competitors from the United States competed in three sports at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The Americans were the most successful athletes in terms of gold medals, beating host nation Greece, 11 to 10, despite fielding only 14 competitors compared to an estimated 169 Greek entrants. However, the Greeks' 46 total medals dwarfed the Americans' 20.
The United States team had 27 entries in 16 events, with 20 of the 27 resulting in top-three finishes.
Most of the American competitors were students at Harvard University or Princeton University or members of the Boston Athletic Association. The team trained at The Pennington School, in Pennington, New Jersey, while preparing for the first modern Olympic Games.

## Medalists

Of the 14 Americans at the Athens Games, 12 won medals. Charles Waldstein, a shooter, and Gardner Williams, a swimmer, were the two who did not win any medals. The following competitors won medals at the games. In the discipline sections below, the medalists' names are bolded.
| Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
| Gold | James Connolly | Athletics | Men's triple jump | April 6 |
| Gold | Robert Garrett | Athletics | Men's discus throw | April 6 |
| Gold | Robert Garrett | Athletics | Men's shot put | April 7 |
| Gold | Ellery Clark | Athletics | Men's long jump | April 7 |
| Gold | Thomas Burke | Athletics | Men's 400 metres | April 7 |
| Gold | Thomas Burke | Athletics | Men's 100 metres | April 10 |
| Gold | Thomas Curtis | Athletics | Men's 110 metre hurdles | April 10 |
| Gold | Ellery Clark | Athletics | Men's high jump | April 10 |
| Gold | William Hoyt | Athletics | Men's pole vault | April 10 |
| Gold | John Paine | Shooting | Men's 25 metre military pistol | April 10 |
| Gold | Sumner Paine | Shooting | Men's 30 metre free pistol | April 11 |
| Silver | Herbert Jamison | Athletics | Men's 400 metres | April 7 |
| Silver | Arthur Blake | Athletics | Men's 1500 metres | April 7 |
| Silver | Robert Garrett | Athletics | Men's long jump | April 7 |
| Silver | James Connolly | Athletics | Men's high jump | April 10 |
| Silver | Robert Garrett | Athletics | Men's high jump | April 10 |
| Silver | Albert Tyler | Athletics | Men's pole vault | April 10 |
| Silver | Sumner Paine | Shooting | Men's 25 metre military pistol | April 10 |
| Bronze | James Connolly | Athletics | Men's long jump | April 7 |
| Bronze | Francis Lane | Athletics | Men's 100 metres | April 10 |
Medals by sport :
| Sport | | | | Total |
| Athletics | 9 | 6 | 2 | 17 |
| Shooting | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Total | 11 | 7 | 2 | 20 |

### Multiple medalists

The following competitors won multiple medals at the 1896 Olympic Games.
| Name | Medal | Sport | Event |
| Robert Garrett | Gold Gold Silver Silver | Athletics | Men's shot put Men's discus throw Men's high jump Men's long jump |
| Thomas Burke | Gold Gold | Athletics | Men's 100 m Men's 400 m |
| Ellery Clark | Gold Gold | Athletics | Men's high jump Men's long jump |
| James Connolly | Gold Silver Bronze | Athletics | Men's triple jump Men's high jump Men's long jump |
| Sumner Paine | Gold Silver | Shooting | Men's 30 metre pistol Men's 25 metre military pistol |

## Competitors

| Sport | Men | Women | Total |
| Athletics | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Shooting | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Swimming | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 14 | 0 | 14 |
Medals by day :
| Day | Date | | | | Total |
| 1 | April 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2 | April 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | April 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | April 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | April 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 10 |
| 6 | April 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | April 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | April 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 11 | 7 | 2 | 20 |

## Athletics

The United States squad of 11, which featured only one national champion, won nine gold medals in the twelve athletics events, with contributions from six different athletes. Six silver medals and two bronze medals also went to the Americans in athletics.
Track & road events
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Thomas Burke | 100 m | 11.8 OR | 1 Q | 12.0 | |
| Thomas Curtis | 100 m | 12.2 | 1 Q | DNS | DNS |
| Ralph Derr | 100 m | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Francis Lane | 100 m | 12.2 | 1 Q | 12.6 | |
| Charles Vanoni | 100 m | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Thomas Burke | 400 m | 58.4 | 1 Q | 54.2 OR | |
| Herbert Jamison | 400 m | 56.8 | 1 Q | 55.2 | |
| Thomas Burke | 800 m | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Arthur Blake | 1500 m | — | — | 4:33.6 | |
| James Brendan Connolly | 110 m hurdles | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Thomas Curtis | 110 m hurdles | 18.0 | 1 Q | 17.6 OR | |
| William Hoyt | 110 m hurdles | Unknown | 2 | DNS | DNS |
| Fred Lord | 110 m hurdles | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Charles Vanoni | 110 m hurdles | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Arthur Blake | Marathon | — | — | DNF | DNF |
Field events
| Athlete | Event | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Distance | Position |
| Ellery Harding Clark | Men's high jump | 1.81 OR | |
| James Brendan Connolly | Men's high jump | 1.65 | |
| John Stanley Edwards | Men's high jump | DNS | DNS |
| Robert Garrett | Men's high jump | 1.65 | |
| William Hoyt | Men's pole vault | 3.30 OR | |
| Albert Tyler | Men's pole vault | 3.20 | |
| Charles Vanoni | Men's pole vault | DNS | DNS |
| Ellery Harding Clark | Men's long jump | 6.35 OR | |
| James Brendan Connolly | Men's long jump | 6.11 | |
| Thomas Curtis | Men's long jump | DNS | DNS |
| Ralph Derr | Men's long jump | DNS | DNS |
| Robert Garrett | Men's long jump | 6.18 | |
| James Brendan Connolly | Men's triple jump | 13.71 OR | |
| Ellery Harding Clark | Men's shot put | Unknown | 5-7 |
| Robert Garrett | Men's shot put | 11.22 OR | |
| Charles Vanoni | Men's shot put | DNS | DNS |
| Robert Garrett | Men's discus throw | 29.15 WR | |
| Charles Vanoni | Men's discus throw | DNS | DNS |

## Cycling
### Road

| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
| A. Johnson | Men's road race | DNS | DNS |
| B. MacDonald | Men's road race | DNS | DNS |

## Fencing

| Athlete | Event | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | MW | ML | Rank | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Fred Hellen | Men's foil | DNS | DNS | DNS | DNS | DNS |
| Albertson Van Zo Post | Men's sabre | DNS | DNS | DNS | DNS | DNS |

## Shooting

The Paine brothers contested only two events, taking the top two spots in the event in which they both competed, the military pistol. Sumner was the only one of the two to enter the free pistol, which he won. Waldstein was the third member of the American shooting contingent, competing in the military rifle event.
| Athlete | Event | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Score | Rank |
| Charles Waldstein | Men's 200 m military rifle | Unknown | 14-41 |
| John Paine | Men's 25 m military pistol | 442 | |
| Sumner Paine | Men's 25 m military pistol | 380 | |
| Sumner Paine | Men's 30 m pistol | 442 | |

## Swimming

Williams competed in two swimming events, with his results currently being unknown (lost in the years since).
| Athlete | Event | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
| Gardner Williams | 100 m freestyle | Unknown | 3-10 |
| Gardner Williams | 1200 m freestyle | Unknown | 3-8 |