United States at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States joined the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. This happened four years after the United States hosted the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California.

The American team had 359 athletes, with 313 men and 46 women. They took part in 127 events across 21 sports.

The United States team did very well, even though they were not in their home country. They came second in the medal count, just behind Germany, the host nation. This showed that many talented athletes from the United States did great things at the Olympics.

Medalists

Athletics

Men's events

• Archie Williams won gold in the 400 m race.
• Jesse Owens won four gold medals in the 100 m, 200 m, long jump, and 4 × 100 m relay.
• John Woodruff won gold in the 800 m race.
• Mack Robinson won silver in the 200 m race.
• Ralph Metcalfe won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay and silver in the 100 m race.
• James LuValle won bronze in the 400 m race.
• Glenn Cunningham won silver in the 1500 m race.
• Forrest Towns won gold in the 110 m hurdles.
• Fritz Pollard won bronze in the 110 m hurdles.
• Glenn Hardin won gold in the 400 m hurdles.
• Foy Draper won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.
• Frank Wykoff won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.
• Eddie O'Brien won silver in the 4 × 400 m relay.
• Harold Cagle won silver in the 4 × 400 m relay.
• Robert Young won silver in the 4 × 400 m relay.
• Alfred Fitch won silver in the 4 × 400 m relay.
• Cornelius Johnson won gold in the high jump.
• Dave Albritton won silver in the high jump.
• Delos Thurber won bronze in the high jump.
• Earle Meadows won gold in the pole vault.
• Ken Carpenter won gold in the discus.
• Gordon Dunn won silver in the discus.
• Glenn Morris won gold in the decathlon.
• Bob Clark won silver in the decathlon.
• Jack Parker won bronze in the decathlon.

Basketball

The men's basketball team won gold. The players were:

• Sam Balter
• Ralph Bishop
• Joe Fortenberry
• Tex Gibbons
• Francis Johnson
• Carl Knowles
• Frank Lubin
• Art Mollner
• Donald Piper
• Jack Ragland
• Willard Schmidt
• Carl Shy
• Duane Swanson
• Bill Wheatley

Boxing

• Jack Wilson won silver in the bantamweight.
• Louis Laurie won bronze in the flyweight.

Canoeing

• Ernest Riedel won bronze in K1 10000 meters.

Football (soccer)

Results

• U.S. 0–1 Italy

Roster

• Charles Altemose
• Frank Bartkus
• Edward Begley
• Julius Chmielewski
• James Crockett
• William Fiedler
• Andrew Gajda
• Frank Greinert
• Fred Lutkefedder
• George Nemchik
• Peter Pietras
• Francis Ryan
• Fred Zbikowski
• Fritz Stoll
• Rob Denton

Rowing

The men's eight-man team won gold. The rowers were:

• Herbert Morris
• Charles Day
• Gordon Adam
• John White
• James McMillin
• George Hunt
• Joe Rantz
• Don Hume
• Robert Moch

Women competitors

Athletics

• Helen Stephens won two gold medals in the 100 m race and the 4 × 100 m relay.
• Harriet Bland won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.
• Betty Robinson won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.
• Annette Rogers won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.

Swimming

Main article: Swimming at the 1936 Summer Olympics

• Famous swimmer Eleanor Holm could not compete because of a team decision. She had been a top athlete and had won gold in past Olympics. Her teammates tried to change the decision, but it was not successful.

Athletics

Main article: Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Three great runners from the United States joined the athletics events at the 1936 Summer Olympics. Louis Zamperini ran the 5000-meter race. Don Lash ran in both the 5000-meter and 10,000-meter races. Ellison Brown was the marathon runner for the U.S. team.

Basketball

Main article: Basketball at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States joined the basketball events at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. It was a big moment for the sport, with teams from many countries competing together.

Boxing

Main article: Boxing at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States sent athletes to compete in boxing at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Boxing was one of the sports where competitors from many countries showed their skills. The event had several weight classes, and athletes fought to win medals in their categories.

Canoeing

Main article: Canoeing at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States joined in canoeing events at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Canoeing is a sport where people race in small boats. Athletes from many countries competed to see who could go the fastest.

Cycling

Main article: Cycling at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Six cyclists from the United States joined the 1936 Summer Olympics. They rode in many races, like the road race, sprint, time trial, tandem, and team pursuit.

Diving

Main article: Diving at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Men

Women

Equestrian

Main article: Equestrian at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States joined the equestrian events at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. In these events, athletes rode horses to complete different tasks. The American team competed with many other countries, showing their skills.

Fencing

Main article: Fencing at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Twenty-two fencers from the United States joined the fencing events at the 1936 Summer Olympics. They took part in many different categories, like men's foil, men's team foil, men's épée, men's team épée, men's sabre, men's team sabre, and women's foil.

Football (soccer)

Main article: Football at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States played football (soccer) at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. This was one of the sports where American athletes competed.

Gymnastics

Main article: Gymnastics at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Sixteen gymnasts from the United States competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics. There were eight men and eight women.

The men's team included Frank Cumiskey, Kenny Griffin, Frank Haubold, Al Jochim, Fred Meyer, Chet Phillips, Artie Pitt, and George Wheeler.

The women's team had Jennie Caputo, Connie Caruccio-Lenz, Margaret Duff, Irma Haubold, Marie Kibler, Ada Lunardoni, Adelaide Meyer, and Mary Wright.

Handball

Main article: Handball at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States played handball at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Many countries took part in this sport.

Hockey

Main article: Field hockey at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States played field hockey at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. This was one of the sports where American athletes competed during the Games.

Modern pentathlon

Main article: Modern pentathlon at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Three athletes from the United States joined the modern pentathlon event in 1936. They were:

• Charles Leonard
• Alfred Starbird
• Frederick Weber

Rowing

Main article: Rowing at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States sent 26 rowers to the 1936 Summer Olympics. They competed in all seven rowing events.

Men's single sculls

• Dan Barrow

Men's double sculls

• John Houser
• Bill Dugan

Men's coxless pair

• Harry Sharkey
• George Dahm

Men's coxed pair

• Tom Curran
• Joe Dougherty
• George Loveless (cox)

Men's coxless four

• James Thomson
• Eugene Fruehauf
• George Hague
• Alfred Sapecky

Men's coxed four

• William Haskins
• Roger W. Cutler Jr.
• Paul Austin
• Robert B. Cutler
• Edward Bennett (cox)

Men's eight

• Herbert Morris
• Charles Day
• Gordon Adam
• John White
• James McMillin
• George Hunt
• Joe Rantz
• Don Hume
• Robert Moch (cox)

Sailing

Main article: Sailing at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Two American athletes, William G. Waterhouse and Woody Metcalf, competed in a sailing event. They used a Star Class boat in the 2-person Keelboat race.

Shooting

Main article: Shooting at the 1936 Summer Olympics

Six shooters represented the United States in 1936.

25 m rapid fire pistol

• Ingals Fisher
• Morris Doob
• Dean Hudnutt

50 m pistol

• Elliott Jones
• William Riedell
• Ralph Marshall

Swimming

Main article: Swimming at the 1936 Summer Olympics

In the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, the United States joined swimming events. Many good swimmers from the U.S. raced in both men’s and women’s groups. Some swimmers got to the semifinals but did not win medals.

*Swimmers who participated in the semifinals only and did not receive medals.

*Swimmers who participated in the semifinals only and did not receive medals.

Water polo

Main article: Water polo at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States joined the water polo events at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. In this sport, teams tried to throw a ball into the other team’s goal. The American team played against other countries, showing their skills in this fun water sport.

Weightlifting

Main article: Weightlifting at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The United States sent athletes to compete in weightlifting at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. This event tested strength and skill in lifting heavy weights. Many countries took part, and U.S. athletes joined in to try for medals.

Wrestling

Main article: Wrestling at the 1936 Summer Olympics

In the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, wrestling was one of the sports. Athletes from many countries, including the United States, took part. They competed in different styles of wrestling, hoping to win medals.

Art competitions

Main article: Art competitions at the 1936 Summer Olympics

The 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, had special events for artists. These art competitions let artists share work about sports and the Olympics. Artists could show paintings, sculptures, and designs for buildings. This was a way to celebrate creativity with sports at the Olympics.