The Union of South Africa competed at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. 21 competitors, all men, took part in 21 events in 6 sports.^[1]

Seven athletes represented South Africa. It was the nation's third appearance in both the sport and the Olympics. McArthur and Gitsham finished first and second, respectively, in the marathon to give South Africa its only athletics medals in 1912 as well as an Olympic record in the event with McArthur's mark. Richardson's Olympic record in the 10000 metres, set in the semifinals, was broken in the final; Richardson did not finish that race.

Ranks given are within that athlete's heat for running events.

More information Athlete, Events ...

Athlete	Events	Heat		Semifinal		Final
		Result	Rank	Result	Rank	Result	Rank
Christian Gitsham	Marathon	N/A				2:37:52.0
Ken McArthur	Marathon	N/A				2:36:54.8 OR
George Patching	100 m	?	2 Q	19.9	1 Q	11.0	4
	200 m	22.3	1 Q	did not finish		did not advance
	400 m	51.1	1 Q	50.5	3	did not advance
Reuben Povey	100 m	?	2 Q	?	2	did not advance
	200 m	?	2 Q	?	5	did not advance
Leonard Richardson	10000 m	N/A		32:30.3 OR	1	did not finish
	Marathon	N/A				did not start
	Ind. cross country	N/A				47:33.5	8
Arthur St. Norman	Marathon	N/A				did not finish
	10 km walk	N/A		50:17.9	2 Q	Disqualified
John Victor	800 m	?	3	did not advance
	1500 m	N/A		4:12.7	3	did not advance

Close

A single cyclist represented South Africa. It was the second appearance of the nation in cycling. Rudolph Lewis won the gold medal, South Africa's first cycling medal.

Road cycling

More information Cyclist, Events ...

Cyclist	Events	Final
		Result	Rank
Rudolph Lewis	Ind. time trial	10:42:39.0

Close

A single fencer represented South Africa. It was the second appearance of the nation in fencing. Walter Gate, who had also been South Africa's only fencer in 1908, competed in all three weapons and was defeated in the first round of each competition.

Eight shooters represented South Africa. It was the nation's first appearance in shooting. The South African team took fourth place in the team rifle competition; this was the closest the nation got to winning a medal in shooting. The best individual performance was Harvey's tenth place finish in the military rifle.

Three tennis players represented South Africa at the 1912 Games. It was the nation's second appearance in tennis.

Kitson and Winslow dominated the men's outdoor competitions. They met in the final of the singles tournament, with Winslow taking the championship and Kitson winning silver. The two also paired up for the doubles tournament, defeating all their opponents to add a third medal. Tapscott, competing in the singles only, advanced to the round of 16 before losing to an eventual semifinalist.

Men

More information Athlete, Event ...

Athlete	Event	Round of 128	Round of 64	Round of 32	Round of 16	Quarterfinals	Semifinals	Final
		Opposition Score	Opposition Score	Opposition Score	Opposition Score	Opposition Score	Opposition Score	Opposition Score	Rank
Harold Kitson	Outdoor singles	Bye	Leffler (SWE) W 6-2, 6-1, 6-0	Möller (SWE) W 6-2, 6-2, 6-3	Schomburgk (GER) W 6-2, 6-2, 6-3	von Salm (AUT) W 6-2, 6-2, 6-4	Žemla (BOH) W 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2	Winslow (RSA) L 7-5, 4-6, 10-8, 8-6
Lionel Tapscott	Outdoor singles	Kodl (BOH) W 6-4, 6-1, 6-2	Pipes (AUT) W 3-6, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5	Blanchy (FRA) W 1-6, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4	Žemla (BOH) L 6-1, 6-4, 2-6, 4-6, 2-6	did not advance			9
Charles Winslow	Outdoor singles	Bye	Frigast (DEN) W 7-5, 6-2, 6-3	Thayssen (DEN) W 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4	Ingerslev (DEN) W 6-4, 8-6, 6-4	Heyden (GER) W 6-2, 6-4, 8-10, 4-6, 6-3	Kreuzer (GER) W 9-7, 7-5, 6-2	Kitson (RSA) W 7-5, 4-6, 10-8, 8-6
Harold Kitson Charles Winslow	Outdoor doubles	N/A		Arenholt & Ingerslev (DEN) W 6-4, 6-1, 6-4	Kehrling & Zsigmondy (HUN) W 6-3, 6-3, 7-9, 6-2	Nylén & Wennergren (SWE) W 6-3, 7-5, 6-1	Just & Žemla (BOH) W 4-6, 6-1, 7-5, 6-4	Pipes & Zborzil (AUT) W 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2

Close