The 1908 London Olympics weren’t supposed to happen. They were supposed to be the 1908 Rome Olympics. But, with the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 1906, the location was changed from Rome to London. London had just two years to pull off the entire thing. Because the 1908 London Olympics are a thing, we know this happened.

In spite of the short notice, the London Games were well organized. The Games ended up lasting from April 27 to October 31. A much different format than today. This was the first time that a stadium was built specifically for the Olympics, and that meant that swimming didn’t take place in open water.

There were a total of 22 countries represented, with 2,008 athletes participating (just 37 women). There were 110 events, including water motorsports and figure skating. The marathon also took place, with John Hayes from the United States taking first, while Joseph Forshaw took third.

Prior to these Olympic Games, the marathon had been less than the standard distance of 26.2 miles that we see today. The marathon took place on July 24. The distance was lengthened in order for the finishers to finish in front of the royal box in the London Stadium. There were 27 official finishers, with the winning time being 2:55:18. The route began at Windsor Castle and finished at Great White City Stadium.

Great White City Stadium was closed in 1984 and then demolished in 1985. As that is my goal, to visit each stadium when I travel to the Olympic sites, this was the first location that no longer existed. It has been replaced by office buildings and really isn’t much to look at, but I did find a wall that commemorated what once stood there before.