In the wonderful potpourri of stories that make up ‘The Extinguished Flame: Olympians killed in the Great War’ the author (and TV scriptwriter) Nigel McCrery tells the story of Charles Devendeville. At the 1900 Paris Olympics the Seine was used for all swimming events, including freestyle, backstroke and breaststroke (butterfly didn’t yet exist), waterpolo and the 60m underwater swim between the Courbevoie Bridge and the Asnières Bridge.
The underwater swim was a unique and somewhat obscure event in Olympic history. It took place once only on 12 August 1900, in the River Seine in Paris. There were only 14 competitors, all male, from four different countries (France, Denmark, Belgium, and Great Britain).
The underwater swim was an odd one in several ways: it was outdoors, in the River Seine and swum between two fixed points and rather than the winner being the person who crossed the distance the fastest, rather, you got two points for each metre swam (swimmers weren’t expected to complete the entire 60m) and one point for every second spent underwater.
Frenchman Charles Devendeville took the gold by swimming the entire course in 68.4 seconds and scoring 188.4 points (He received 120 for swimming 60m and 68.4 points for his time). He was 18 at the time of selection.
On this basis Tom Cruise, who held his breath for 6 minutes for the filming of Mission Impossible Rogue Nation in 2015 would have taken the gold with a score of 420! (60x6 = 360+60).
Most modern swimming pools are 25m long, so the course is equal to two entire lengths and another 10m off the wall. Olympic pools are 50m in length. As a club swimming coach I work with potential elite athletes who go on to compete at County, Regional and National Events. With the end of the season close a challenge such as the 1900 Paris Olympics Underwater Swim was inevitable. Suitably warmed up, each contestant was given three opportunities to achieve their best score. A 15 year old won with a score of 167 pts having covered 55 metres in 47 seconds.
That is two lengths and a bit of a 25m swimming pool. It wasn’t a river, or the Seine, and being able to push off at each end was an advantage. I also pointed out to the swimmers that they would not have had goggles and their costume would have been a one-piece woollen affair.
Nigel McCrery’s research reveals that one swimmer in the 1900 event stayed underwater for 90 seconds and ought to have won, but because he was seen to swim in a circle having completed the 60m course he was disqualified. He was awarded the Bronze. The underwater swimming event was never held again in the Olympics. It was likely discontinued due to the difficulty of judging and the relative lack of spectator appeal compared to other swimming events. With excellent visibility now possible in a 50m pool perhaps the event should be revised?
On mobilisation Charles Devendeville was posted to 1er Regiment of Infantry. He died of wounds received in action on 19th September 1914 - one of many Olympians who died in the First World War. For these stories turn to Nigel McClery's
Article by Jonathan Vernon, Digital Editor (& Mid-Sussex Marlins Swimming Coach).