The 1904 Olympic Games

<p> The 1904 Olympic Games in St. Louis were both unusual and controversial. One of the major problems for Olympic scholars has been to determine which of the events at these Games were truly of Olympic caliber. The Games were included as part of the World's Fair and every athletic contest that took place under the Fair's auspices was deemed Olympic. These activities included croquet and water polo high school and college championships in football and basketball as well as the Anthropology Days events in which members of primitive tribes competed against one another.</p><p> The author demonstrates after great deliberation that 16 events of the 21 overall were truly Olympic sports and gives descriptions scores and analyses for each (as well as for the five non-Olympic events). Appendices include literature relating to these games lists of noncompeting foreign entrants and a guide to all competitors.</p>