Overview

Officially named “Games of the IX Olympiad”, the Summer Olympics of 1928 were held in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had placed a bid to host the previous two Olympic Games i.e. the ones in 1920 and 1924. However, it had made way for Antwerp and Paris respectively.

In the 1928 Olympic Games’ bidding process, the only competition Amsterdam faced was from Los Angeles, who hosted the Olympics 4 years later.

There were numerous highlights that took place in the Summer Olympics of 1928. The Olympic Flame was lit for the very first time during the opening ceremony. The Parade of the Nations began with Greece and finished with the country hosting the Olympics, for the first time, giving birth to a tradition which is followed even today. For the first time, athletic events took place on a 400 m long track, which would later go on to become a standard.

The Amsterdam Olympics were the first Olympics which were named “Summer Olympic Games”. It also witnessed Coca-Cola becoming the first ever sponsor of the games.

Selection of Host City and Respective Venues

Amsterdam was first proposed as an Olympic host city by Frederik van Tuyll van Serooskerken, in the year 1912. The Olympic Games of 1916 were cancelled because of the First World War. In the year 1919, the Netherlands Olympic Committee abandoned their bid to host the games in 1920 because of their support of Antwerp. In the year 1921, Paris was preferred over Amsterdam to host the 1924 games on the condition that Amsterdam would host the 1928 ones. The International Olympic Committee along with the Netherlands Olympic Committee announced this decision on the 2nd of June 1921.

The main venue for the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam was the Olympisch Stadion in Amsterdam. Other stadiums and complexes were used for special events such as cycling, football, fencing and field hockey.