France at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Sporting event delegation

France at the
1896 Summer Olympics

IOC code| FRA
NOC| French National Olympic and Sports Committee
Website| www.franceolympique.com (in French)
in Athens, Greece
April 6, 1896 – April 15, 1896
Competitors| 11 in 6 sports and 18 events
Medals
Ranked 4th|

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Total

Summer Olympics appearances (overview)

* 1896
* 1900
* 1904
* 1908
* 1912
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
* 2004
* 2008
* 2012
* 2016
* 2020
* 2024

Other related appearances
1906 Intercalated Games

France competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 6 to 15 April 1896. French athletes had appeared in every Summer Olympic Games of the modern era, alongside Australia, Great Britain, and Greece. France won the fourth-most gold medals with 5 and the fourth-most total medals with 11. Cycling was the sport in which the French competitors had the most success, as they completely dominated the field. The French team had 27 entries in 18 events, winning 11 medals.

## Medalists

[edit]

Further information: 1896 Summer Olympics medal table and List of 1896 Summer Olympics medal winners

The following competitors won medals at the games. In the discipline sections below, the medalists' names are bolded.

Medal  | Name  | Sport  | Event  | Date

|
|
|
|

Gold | Paul Masson | Cycling | Men's 10 km | April 11
Gold | Paul Masson | Cycling | Men's time trial | April 11
Gold | Paul Masson | Cycling | Men's sprint | April 11
Gold | Léon Flameng | Cycling | Men's 100 km | April 8
Gold | Eugène-Henri Gravelotte | Fencing | Men's foil | April 7
Silver | Alexandre Tuffère | Athletics | Men's triple jump | April 6
Silver | Léon Flameng | Cycling | Men's 10 km | April 11
Silver | Henri Callot | Fencing | Men's foil | April 7
Silver | Joanni Perronet | Fencing | Men's masters foil | April 7
Bronze | Albin Lermusiaux | Athletics | Men's 1500 m | April 7
Bronze | Léon Flameng | Cycling | Men's sprint | April 11
Medals by sport

Sport  |  |  |  | Total
Cycling | 4  | 1  | 1  | 6
Fencing | 1  | 2  | 0  | 3
Athletics | 0  | 1  | 1  | 2
Total  | 5  | 4  | 2  | 11

### Multiple medalists

[edit]

The following competitors won multiple medals at the 1896 Olympic Games.

Name  | Medal  | Sport  | Event

|
|
|

Paul Masson |  Gold
Gold
Gold | Cycling | Men's track time trial
Men's sprint
Men's 10 kilometres
Léon Flameng |  Gold
Silver
Bronze | Cycling | Men's 100 kilometres
Men's 10 kilometres
Men's sprint

## Competitors

[edit]

The following is the list of number of competitors in the Games.

| Sport  | Men  | Women  | Total

|
|
|

Athletics | 5 | 0 | 5
Cycling | 2 | 0 | 2
Fencing | 3 | 0 | 3
Gymnastics | 1 | 0 | 1
Shooting | 1 | 0 | 1
Tennis | 1 | 0 | 1
Total | 11[1] | 0 | 11

| Medals by day

Day  | Date  |  |  |  | Total
1  | 6 April  | 0  | 1  | 0  | 1
2  | 7 April  | 1  | 2  | 1  | 4
3  | 8 April  | 1  | 0  | 0  | 1
4  | 9 April  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 0
5  | 10 April  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 0
6  | 11 April  | 3  | 1  | 1  | 5
7  | 12 April  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 0
8  | 13 April  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 0
Total  | 5  | 4  | 2  | 11

## Athletics

[edit]

Main article: Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics

The five French athletes won 2 medals between them. Tuffère appears to have entered the 100 metres but not started; some sources have André Tournois in the first heat of the 100 metres instead of Grisel.[2][3][4][5] Grisel entered the triple jump, but did not start.

Track & road events

Athlete  | Event  | Heat  | Final

|
|
|

Time  | Rank  | Time  | Rank
Adolphe Grisel | 100 m | Unknown  | 4  | Did not advance
Alexandre Tuffèri | DNS | Did not advance
Adolphe Grisel | 400 m | Unknown  | 3-4  | Did not advance
Georges de la Nézière | DNS | Did not advance
Frantz Reichel | 1:02.3  | 3  | Did not advance
Albin Lermusiaux | 800 m | 2:16.6  | 1 Q | DNS
Georges de la Nézière | Unknown  | 3  | Did not advance
Frantz Reichel | DNS | Did not advance
Albin Lermusiaux | 1500 m | —  | 4:36.0  |
Georges de la Nézière | —  | DNS
Frantz Reichel | 110 m hurdles | Unknown  | 3  | Did not advance
Albin Lermusiaux | 1500 m | —  | DNF

Field events

Athlete  | Event  | Final

|
|

Distance  | Position
Adolphe Grisel | Men's long jump | 5.83  | 5
Alexandre Tuffèri | 5.98  | 4
Adolphe Grisel | Men's triple jump | DNS
Alexandre Tuffèri | 12.70  |
Louis Adler  | Men's shot put | DNS
Adolphe Grisel | DNS
Louis Adler  | Men's discus throw | DNS
Adolphe Grisel | Unknown  | 5-9

## Cycling

[edit]

Main article: Cycling at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Leon Flameng and Paul Masson

France dominated the cycling events, taking 4 of the 6 gold medals. Three were won by Paul Masson who won every event he entered, with Léon Flameng adding the fourth as well as a silver and a bronze. One of the two won each event that a Frenchman contested; the two gold medals won by other countries were in competitions that Masson and Flameng did not enter.

### Track

[edit]

Athlete  | Event  | Time / Distance  | Rank

|
|
|

Paul Masson | Men's time trial | 24.0  |
Léon Flameng | Men's sprint | Unknown  |
Paul Masson | 4:58.2  |
Léon Flameng | 10 km | 17:54.8  |
Paul Masson | 17:54.2  |
Léon Flameng | 100 km | 3:08:19.2  |
Paul Masson | DNS

## Fencing

[edit]

Main article: Fencing at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Group of French and Greek fencers at 1896 Summer Olympics The final sword match 1896 Summer Olympics

The French fencers were held in high regard prior to the Games; Gravelotte and Callot validated those expectations in the amateur foil competition. Each went undefeated in their pool, advancing to face each other in the final. Gravelotte won the first-to-3 bout. Surprisingly, however, Perronet lost to the Greek Leonidas Pyrgos in the only match of the masters competition.

Athlete  | Event  | Round 1  | Final

|
|
|

MW | ML | Rank  | Opposition
Score  | Rank
Henri Callot | Men's foil | 3  | 0  | 1 Q |  Gravelotte (FRA)
L 1–3  |
Eugène-Henri Gravelotte | 3  | 0  | 1 Q |  Callot (FRA)
W 3–1  |
Henri de Laborde | 1  | 2  | 3  | Did not advance  | 5
Joanni Perronet | Men's masters foil | —  |  Pyrgos (GRE)
L 1–3  |

## Gymnastics

[edit]

Main article: Gymnastics at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Grisel competed in the parallel bars in the gymnastics program. The competitions had no formal scoring, the judges merely selecting the winner and runner-up. Grisel was neither in this competition.

### Artistic

[edit]

Athlete  | Event  | Result  | Rank

|
|
|

Adolphe Grisel | Parallel bars | Unknown  | 3–18

## Shooting

[edit]

Main article: Shooting at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Lermusiaux entered the military rifle event in the shooting program. His score and placing are unknown.

Athlete  | Event  | Hits  | Score  | Rank

|
|
|
|

Albin Lermusiaux | 200 m military rifle | Unknown  | Unknown  | 14–41

## Tennis

[edit]

Main article: Tennis at the 1896 Summer Olympics

Only the first initial and last name of the French tennis player in 1896 is known. He was defeated in the first round of the singles tournament.

Athlete  | Event  | First round  | Quarterfinals  | Semifinals  | Final

|
|
|
|
|

Opposition
Score  | Opposition
Score  | Opposition
Score  | Opposition
Score  | Rank
J. Defert  | Singles |  Kasdaglis (GRE)
L | Did not advance  | =8

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Adolphe Grisel competed in athletics and gymnastics while Albin Lermusiaux competed in athletics and shooting
2. ^ Butler, Maynard. The Olympic Games. In Mallon & Widlund, pp. 37–41.
3. ^ Ekkehard zur Megede : The history of Olympic athletics. Volume 1: 1896-1936. Verlag Bartels & Wernitz KG, Berlin, 2nd edition 1970.
4. ^ "100 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
5. ^ "JEUX OLYMPIQUES" (PDF). athle.com. Retrieved 4 March 2017.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to France at the 1896 Summer Olympics.

* Lampros, S.P.; Polites, N.G.; De Coubertin, Pierre; Philemon, P.J.; Anninos, C. (1897). The Olympic Games: BC 776 - AD 1896. Athens: Charles Beck. (Digitally available at [1])
* Mallon, Bill; Widlund, Ture (1998). The 1896 Olympic Games. Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary. Jefferson: McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0379-9. (Excerpt available at [2])
* Smith, Michael Llewellyn (2004). Olympics in Athens 1896. The Invention of the Modern Olympic Games. London: Profile Books. ISBN 1-86197-342-X.

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France at the Olympics

| Summer Olympic Games|

* 1896
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* 1904
* 1908
* 1912
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
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* 2012
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* 2020
* 2024

|

Winter Olympic Games|

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Intercalated Games|

1906

France hosted the 1900, 1924, and 2024 Summer Olympics, as well as the 1924, 1968, and 1992 Winter Olympics.

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National Olympic Committees at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece

* Australia
* Austria
* Bulgaria
* Chile
* Denmark
* France
* Germany
* Great Britain
* Greece
* Hungary
* Italy
* Sweden
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* United States
* Mixed teams

*[DNS]: Did not start
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*[MW]: Matches won
*[ML]: Matches lost
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