Olympic Games

London 1908

the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 1906 required the Games to move from Rome to London.
For the first time, athletes marched into the stadium behind their nations' flags.
There were more than 2,000 competitors in over 100 events.
During the first several modern Olympics, the marathon was always an approximate distance. In 1908, the British royal family requested that the marathon start at the Windsor Castle so that the royal children could witness its start. The distance from the Windsor Castle to the Olympic Stadium was 42,195 meters (or 26 miles and 385 yards). In 1924, this distance became the standardized length of a marathon. (more about the Olympic marathon)
Italian Dorando Pietri needed to be helped across the finish line of the marathon, but was declared the winner before being disqualified in favor of Johnny Hayes of the U.S.