This is our fourth installment of Olympic Wednesday as we move back across the Atlantic Ocean to the English isle. Over 2,000 athletes from 23 countries came to Londontown, competing in 110 events across 24 disciplines as the Games continued to get more popular. This Olympiad originally was scheduled for Rome, but a volcanic eruption and some fiscal issues led to it being relocated to England. Drama ensued, always.

Editor’s Note: A pattern now well established, the host nation won the medal count with 56 golds, 51 silvers, and 39 bronzes (146), while the United States came in second place with 47 medals overall (23g, 12S, 12B). The third-place nation (Sweden) collected 8 golds, 6 silvers, and 11 bronzes (25). Only 3 other nations reached double digits in total medal count: France (19), Canada (16), and Germany (13). In the end, these Summer Games did help solidify the Olympic tradition for awhile, though.

Most Outstanding Male Athlete: Mel Sheppard, United States & Henry Taylor, Great Britain (tie)

We have no reason to choose one person over the other here, so we go with a shared result: American runner Mel Sheppard and English swimmer Henry Taylor both won 3 gold medals (2 individual, 1 relay each). We could argue that Sheppard had more to conquer as a traveling competitor, but we won’t. Medals are medals: these two were the most outstanding male competitors in the overall Games, and that’s that.

For the record, Sheppard won his in the 800m, 1500m, and 1500m relay events, while Taylor triumphed in the 400m, 1500m, and 4x200m relay events. Strangely, Sheppard was entered in the 400m event but did not participate despite clearly being good enough at that distance to be on the 1500m relay team. That was his chance to separate himself from the rest of the competitors at the Games overall, but it didn’t happen.

Most Outstanding Female Athlete: Four-way tie (see below)

Only 4 women’s events were held in London, sadly, in a “Victorian” setback for women’s access to the Games, and so we are awarding a 4-way tie for this award. We highlight the 4 female gold-medal winners, all from the host nation: Sybil Newall (archery), Madge Syers (figure skating), Dorothy Lambert Chambers (tennis), and Gladys Eastlake-Smith (indoor tennis). Not much else to say here, though.

Most Outstanding Male Team: Great Britain Boxing

The English dominated all 5 men’s boxing events, winning 14 of the 15 medals overall in the process. Only a silver earned by Snowy Baker (Australasia, a combined team from Commonwealth Australia and New Zealand) in the middleweight class prevented the full sweep. The golds were won by Harry Thomas (bantam), Dick Gunn (feather), Fred Grace (light), John Douglas (middle), and Albert Oldman (heavy).

Most Outstanding Female Team: Great Britain Tennis

In addition to the gold medals won by Chamber and Smith, the English women also won both silvers (Dora Boothby and Alice Greene) and a bronze (Ruth Winch) in the outdoor event. Taking 5 of the 6 available medals in women’s tennis events clinches this nod for the group as a whole.