About the Games
- At the IOC session held in 1906 in Paris, a decision was made to follow the ancient tradition and hold an art competition at the Olympic Games. The idea was implemented at the V Olympiad Games. Works of architecture, painting, sculpture, music, and literature dedicated to the Olympic movement were presented at the competition.
- American athlete Jim Thorpe, who won the grueling pentathlon and decathlon competitions, was disqualified after the end of the V Olympiad. The official reason for the disqualification was that Thorpe played professional baseball; the unofficial reason was that Thorpe was Native American. In 1973 Thorpe was reinstated as an amateur athlete and his gold medals were returned to his family.
- The bout between Russian wrestler Martin Klein and Finn Alfred Asikainen lasted nearly 12 hours. Martin Klein defeated the Finn but was unable to compete in the final due to complete exhaustion. At that time wrestlers competed until a clean hold was achieved — no points were awarded.
