The , officially known as the '''Games of the II Olympiad''', were held in
1900 in
Paris ,
France . Despite
Greek efforts to keep the Games in their country, the
International Olympic Committee decided to hold them at a different place each Games. The Games competed for visitors with the
1900 World's Fair , which was also held at Paris at the same time. The 1900 Games also marked the first participation by female athletes.
- Alvin Kraenzlein won the 60 metres, the 110 metres, the 220 metre Hurdles , and the long jump events; as of 2005, these four individual gold medals are still a record for a track and field athlete. For his victory in the long jump, he was allegedly punched in the face by his rival Meyer Prinstein , who was prevented from competing in the final by officials of Syracuse University, because it was scheduled for a Sunday.
- Charlotte Cooper was the first woman to become Olympic champion after winning the women's singles Tennis competition.
- Three marathon runners from the United States contested the result saying the French runners who got first and second places took a short cut, and the proof was they were the only contestants not spattered with mud. The IOC only confirmed the results twelve years later.
20 disciplines, comprising 19 sports, were part of the Olympic program in Paris. Weightlifting and wrestling had been dropped since the
1896 Summer Olympics , but 13 new ones were added. Swimming and water polo are considered to be two disciplines within the single sport called ''aquatics'' in the Olympic context.
Gold, silver, and bronze medals were retroactively awarded by the
International Olympic Committee to reflect later practice of awarding such medals to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place competitors, respectively. Early Olympic Games, such as the 1900 Summer Olympics, had no set schedule of awards.
(''Host nation highlighted.'')
The following nations sent competitors to the 1900 Olympic Games.
