| Event: | Men's 50 yard freestyle |
| Games: | 1904 Summer |
| Venue: | Forest Park |
| Date: | September 6 |
| Competitors: | 9 |
| Nations: | 2 |
| Gold: | Zoltán Halmay |
| Goldnoc: | HUN |
| Silver: | Scott Leary |
| Silvernoc: | USA |
| Bronze: | Charles Daniels |
| Bronzenoc: | USA |
| Next: | 1988 (50 m) |
The men's 50 yard freestyle was a swimming event held as part of the Swimming at the 1904 Summer Olympics programme.[1] It was the first time the short-distance event was held at the Olympics, and the only time the distance of 50 yards was used. Subsequent editions of the programme would use a distance of 50 metres, though the short sprint would not reappear until the 1988 Summer Olympics.
Nine swimmers from two nations competed.
The competition consisted of two rounds: semifinals and a final. There were two semifinals, with the top 3 swimmers in each semifinal advancing to the final round.
The top three finishers in each heat advanced to the final. The results of the non-advancing swimmers are unclear, but David Hammond, Edwin Swatek and Bill Orthwein are named by de Wael as possible competitors.
| Rank | Swimmer | Nation | Time | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29.6 | ||||
| 2 | Unknown | ||||
| 3 | Unknown | ||||
| 4 | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | ||
| 5 | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Rank | Swimmer | Nation | Time | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28.2 | ||||
| 2 | Unknown | ||||
| 3 | Unknown | ||||
| 4 | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
The final had to be run twice because the first race was too close to determine a winner.[1]
| Rank | Swimmer | Nation | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First race | Second race | ||||
| 28.2 | 28.0 | ||||
| 28.2 | 28.6 | ||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||
| 4 | Unknown | Unknown | |||
| 5 | Unknown | Unknown | |||
| 6 | Unknown | Unknown | |||