Rugby union at the 1900 Summer Olympics
Rugby union at the 1900 Summer Olympics was held in Paris at the Vélodrome de Vincennes from 14 to 28 October. Forty-seven players from three nations competed: France (represented by Union des Sociétés Françaises), Germany (FC 1880 Frankfurt), and Great Britain (Moseley Wanderers). It was the Olympics’ first rugby competition.
Two games were played, both won by France. France took gold; Germany and Great Britain were silver, with no bronze awarded. For many years the IOC treated France as a mixed team because of Haitian-born Constantin Henriquez and American-born André Roosevelt on the French side, but in 2024 the medals were reassigned to France.
France vs. Germany (27–17)
In the first half Germany led 14–5. In the second half France surged back, with Émile Sarrade scoring two more tries (giving him three for the day), André Roosevelt scoring two tries, and Frantz Reichel and Abel Albert each adding one. Two more conversions were added, and France finished 27–17. Germany had tries from Heinrich Reitz and August Schmierer, plus two conversions and a drop goal. About 10,000 spectators watched.
France vs. Great Britain (27–8)
France led 21–0 at halftime. In the second half Britain outscored France 8–6, but France still won 27–8. Émile Sarrade scored two more tries, bringing his tournament total to five. For France, Joseph Olivier, Jean Collas, and Jean-Guy Gauthier added tries; André Rischmann kicked two penalties. Britain’s Joseph Wallis scored a try, with J. Henry Birtles adding a conversion and a penalty. Léon Binoche added a French try.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 19:01 (CET).