The men's 3500 metre walk race was held for the only time at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. The competition was held on Tuesday, July 14, 1908. It was held in two rounds. There were three heats in the first round, with the top three in each heat advancing to the final. 25 racewalkers from eight nations competed.[1] NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes.[2]
Records
This was the first racewalking event at the Modern Olympics (discounting the 1906 Intercalated Games which is no longer considered an official Olympic event). The world record for the comparable distance of 2.25 miles was 15:51 1⁄5 (15:19.4 pace for 3500m).
As in the other two heats, the winner led from the beginning. Unlike in the others, however, this race became close as Harrison made a late attempt to pass Goulding. Goulding finished strongly to fend off Harrison, winning by 10 seconds.
Webb, Goulding, and Harrison were the early leaders. Harrison was disqualified shortly after Larner passed him. By the end of the first mile, the top four spots had solidified into the final positions. Larner had passed the field, bumping Webb to second place, while Kerr had managed to overtake Goulding.
Official Report of the Games of the IV Olympiad (1908).
De Wael, Herman. Herman's Full Olympians: "Athletics 1908". Accessed 31 March 2006. Available electronically at [1]Archived 2006-09-27 at the Wayback Machine.
