The year was 1904, and it was the United States’ first time hosting the Olympic Games.
This should have been an exciting moment, but America’s inaugural games in St. Louis were actually kind of a mess.
St. Louis wasn’t even supposed to be the host city of the games — Chicago was.
The Windy City had won the bid to host the 1904 Summer Olympics, but the games’ time frame overlapped with the Louisiana Purchase Convention (also known as the 1904 World’s Fair) in St. Louis, a more popular and established event. World’s Fair officials were unwilling to allow a “rival” event to take place in another city, forcing Olympic officials to move the games to St. Louis. The games were no longer a standalone event.
1904 World's Fair. Photo via David R. Francis, "The Universal Exposition of 1904"/Wikimedia Commons.
To make matters worse, by July — less than two months before the games began — no invitations to other countries had been extended. But even if the invitations had gone out on time, it was unlikely Europe would make a strong showing due to political tensions back home and the considerable distance to travel. The result was an Olympic delegation that, by default, skewed heavily American, with only 42 of the 651 athletes coming from non-U.S. nations.
The games were also host to politicking, scandals, practical jokes, and bad luck — all of which made for a colorful retrospective, but a lackluster event at the time.
However, amid the chaos and countless obstacles the athletes faced in St. Louis, the event served as a showcase for many Olympic records and firsts.
The fact that the games served as a de facto American platform didn’t curb the competitive fire of the athletes who did show up; many had trained their entire lives for the opportunity.
One such athlete was University of Michigan runner Archie Hahn.
Having won events at the 1903 Intercollegiate Championships, expectations were high for the multitalented track athlete. Hahn didn’t disappoint, winning gold in all three of his events: the 60 meters, the 100 meters, and the 200 meters. In the latter event, Hahn set an Olympic record time of 21.6 seconds. His record stood for 28 years and endured better-attended games in the future.
Another was George Eyser, a gymnast with a wooden prosthetic leg who competed for the American team.
Concordia Turnverein Gymnastic Team, 1908. George Eyser is in the center. Photo by Louis Melsheimer/Missouri Historical Society/Wikimedia Commons.
A German immigrant, Eyser had lost his leg in a train accident as a child, but he stood out as the premiere talent in his local St. Louis gymnastics team. And at the 1904 Games, he won six medals — five of them in a single day — securing his place in American Olympic history.
It would be over a century before the Olympics would see another amputee compete in the games.
While this Olympiad was far from flawless, it secured a place in athletic history not just with the individual athletic achievements it provided, but also the bevy of new sports it hosted.
Prior to the St. Louis Olympics, boxing, freestyle wrestling, and the decathlon had never been medal events. A century later, it’s hard to imagine the Olympics without them.
Other introduced events, such as tug-of-war, don’t feel quite so essential because, well, they didn’t stick around too long. The six-member event debuted in 1904 with the U.S. winning all three medals, but it lasted only through the 1920 Games before its elimination. Nonetheless, many modern fans have been clamoring for its return to the Olympics.
1904 tug-o-war game. Photo by Charles Lucas/Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons.
These new events and the athletes they featured may have been foreign to many at the time, but they quickly won the hearts of fans the world over.
The inaugural U.S. Games ultimately served as a reminder — albeit a rocky one — that the spirits of Olympic competition and unity persevere even under the most bizarre circumstances. An Olympic athlete is trained to be tenacious in the face of adversity, and nowhere have we seen this better than the sparsely attended, poorly planned 1904 St. Louis Summer Olympics.
These games may not hold a spot in the pantheon of legendary Olympiads, but they still highlight the accomplishments and spirit of the athletes who participated. The enduring and unlikely legacies stemming from these games remind even the most jaded fans that the Olympics exist as a platform for the athletes.
The chaotic affair also served as a pioneering event, paving the way for United States’ rich history in the games in both hosting and competing.
This story was produced as part of a campaign called "17 Days" with DICK'S Sporting Goods. These stories aim to shine a light on real occurrences of sports bringing people together.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."