Paavo Johannes Nurmi was a Finnish middle-distance and long-distance runner. He was called the "Flying Finn" or the "Phantom Finn" because he dominated distance running in the 1920s. Nurmi set 22 official world records at distances between 1,500 metres and 20 kilometres, and won nine gold and three silver medals in his 12 events in the Summer Olympic Games. At his peak, Nurmi was undefeated for 121 races at distances from 800 m upwards. Throughout his 14-year career, he remained unbeaten in cross country events and the 10,000 metres.
Joseph Guillemot was a French middle- and long-distance runner. He won the 5000 metres and was second in the 10,000 metres at the 1920 Summer Olympics.
The men's 5000 metres was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the debut of the event, which along with the 10000 metre event replaced the 5 mile race held at the 1908 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Tuesday, July 9, 1912, and on Wednesday, July 10, 1912. Thirty-one long-distance runners from eleven nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes.
The men's 5000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1932 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Tuesday, August 2, 1932, and on Friday, August 5, 1932.
Finland competed at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. 121 competitors, all men, took part in 69 events in 12 sports.
The men's 10,000 metres was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the debut of the event, which along with the 5000 metres replaced the 5 mile race held at the 1908 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Sunday, July 7, 1912, and on Monday, July 8, 1912. Thirty runners from 13 nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes.
The men's 4 × 400 metres relay was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the debut of the event, which along with the 4 × 100 metre relay marked the first relays of equal legs in the athletics programme. The competition was held on Sunday, July 14, 1912, and on Monday, July 15, 1912. Twenty-eight runners from seven nations competed. NOCs could enter 1 team of 4 athletes, with up to 2 reserves.
The men's 5000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Monday, August 16, 1920, and on Tuesday, August 17, 1920. Thirty-eight runners from 16 nations competed.
The men's 10,000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Sunday, July 6, 1924.
The men's 1500 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Wednesday, July 9, 1924, and on Thursday, July 10, 1924. As for all other races the track was 500 metres in circumference. Forty middle distance runners from 22 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation was 4.
The men's 800 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held from Sunday, July 6, 1924, to Tuesday, July 8, 1924. As with all other races the track was 500 metres in circumference. Fifty middle distance runners from 24 nations competed.
The men's 4 × 100 metres relay event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. It was the third appearance of this event. The competition was held on Saturday, July 12, 1924, and on Sunday, July 13, 1924.
The men's 3000 metres steeplechase event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Monday, July 7, 1924, and on Wednesday, July 9, 1924. As the official film of the Games shows, race was run on the infield of the 500M track, and each barrier was formed of a different kind of fencing, including a deep water jump and a sloped picket fence. Twenty runners from ten nations competed.
The men's 10 kilometres walk event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. It was the only racewalking event at this Games. After 1924, the 10 kilometre walk would not be held again until 1948. The competition was held from Wednesday, July 9, 1924, to Sunday, July 13, 1924. The races were held on the track which was as for all other events of 500 metres in circumference. Twenty-five race walkers from 13 nations competed.
The men's 400 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. This race was depicted in the film Chariots of Fire. The competition was held on Thursday, July 10, 1924, and on Friday, July 11, 1924.
The men's 5000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1928 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Tuesday, July 31, 1928, and on Friday, August 3, 1928. Thirty-eight long-distance runners from 19 nations competed.
The men's 10,000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1928 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Sunday, July 29, 1928. Twenty-four long-distance runners from twelve nations competed.
The men's 800 metre event at the 1928 Olympic Games took place between July 29 & July 31. Forty-nine athletes from 24 nations competed. NOCs were limited to 4 competitors each.
The men's 1500 metre event at the 1928 Olympic Games took place between August 1 & August 2. Forty-four athletes from 19 nations competed. NOCs were limited to 4 competitors each. The event was won by Harri Larva of Finland, the nation's second consecutive victory in the 1500 metres. France won its first medal in the event since 1900, with Jules Ladoumègue's silver matching the nation's best result.
The 10,000 metres at the Summer Olympics is the longest track running event held at the multi-sport event. The men's 10,000 m has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1912. The women's event was added to the programme over seventy years later, at the 1988 Olympics. It is the most prestigious 10,000 m race at elite level. The competition format is a straight final between around 30 athletes, although prior to 2004 a qualifying round was held.
