The 1932 Games delivered double gold for Ireland.
Sri Lankan-born Tipperary man Bob Tisdall took gold in the 400m hurdles at the first Los Angeles Games.
Pat O’Callaghan also won gold in the hammer, to add to his gold in the same discipline in the 1928 Games.
Tisdall’s time was a world record time of 51.7 seconds; however, it wasn’t recognised under the rules at the time because he had knocked a hurdle en route to victory. He qualified for Ireland’s Olympic team by winning the national 440 yards (402m) hurdles at the Irish Championships.
He won his preliminary Olympic heat in LA, and then equalled the Olympic record of 52.8 seconds in the semi-finals. He then went on to win the final in an event which contained four athletes who held the Olympic 400m hurdles title at some stage of their careers.
There were two Olympic hurdles champions in the field when the race began.
O’Callaghan’s second Olympic gold came after winning his fifth hammer title at the Irish National Championships. O’Callaghan had a very difficult start to the competition.
The surface for the hammer circle was made of cinder, but O’Callaghan had been preparing for a grass or clay surface.
As a result he had turned up with three pairs of spiked shoes, and didn’t have time to source a different pair. His spikes caught in the surface and impeded his third turn. Despite this he made the finals with a throw of 171’3½” feet.
After his first throw, O’Callaghan obtained a hacksaw and file from the groundskeeper and shortened the spikes.
O’Callaghan’s first throw in the final was shorter than his qualification effort, but his second throw was 176’11” – a distance which was good enough to win gold and retain his title.
O’Callaghan was the only track and field competitor from the Amsterdam Games to retain a title. In the space of an hour on 1 August 1932, athletes representing Ireland had won two gold medals.
Written by: Tadhg Peavoy
Edited by: Tom Hunt
