With the Paris Olympics capping a glorious summer of sport, we should remember the contribution that Hammers’ players have made to the greatest show on earth. The modern Olympics were revived in 1896, but football was initially overlooked in a Corinthian age that spawned the legend ‘citius, altius, fortius’ (‘faster, higher, stronger’).
Competitors were amateur although the lines would sometimes become blurred. The 1900 games was the first to feature a football tournament, which consisted of only three teams. Great Britain were the winners and represented by the now defunct Upton Park F.C. Nothing to do with our claret and blue lovelies but they did play at West Ham Park.
In 1908 Team GB fielded a more representative side drawn from several clubs but interestingly all were English players. Nobody paid attention to one team entering as Great Britain yet competing as four nations on other occasions.
This arrangement would soon be challenged as it clearly threatened the status quo. The 1908 Olympics was also the first to feature a Hammers player. Harry Stapley joined West Ham from Woodford Town in 1905. A teacher by profession, he only played when the day job allowed.
Although slightly built, the centre forward was an instant hit scoring 41 goals in 75 appearances. But Harry’s greatest claim to fame was the gold medal awarded in a wonderfully manic football tournament.
Eight teams were due to play in a knock-out competition at the now demolished White City Stadium. Bohemia and Hungary withdrew before a ball was kicked and their ties awarded to the Netherlands and France.
For some inexplicable reason France were allowed to field two teams but their ‘B’ team was thrashed 9-0 by Denmark. Team GB cruised to a 12-1 victory against Sweden including a brace from Harry Stapley. The Netherlands were then soundly beaten in the semi-final with all four goals scored by Harry.
France’s semi-final descended into farce as they were 5-1 down at half time against Denmark. The French idiotically demanded a supply of strong cigarettes at half time. The aforementioned fags were obviously not forthcoming. France contrived to concede a dozen more goals in the second half as they lost 17-1.
Harry Stapley was Team GB’s top scorer with six goals as they defeated Denmark 2-0 in the final. In all honesty the only decent team Great Britain played was Denmark; and the scorelines clearly demonstrate the mediocrity of opposition. But as the old maxim states ‘you can only beat who’s put in front of you’.
Great Britain triumphed in similarly emphatic style at the 1912 games. Hungary and Finland were dispatched with ease whilst Denmark were defeated 4-2 in the final. The FA’s stormy relationship with FIFA later came to a head over the distinction between professionals and amateurs.
They subsequently withdrew from the Olympic tournaments of 1924 and 1928, which were won by Uruguay. With the inaugural World Cup in 1930, it was apparent that Uruguay were playing with virtually the same line-up.
From 1936, the principle was firmly established that Olympic football should be strictly amateur. However, between 1948 and 1988 the Soviet Bloc would dominate the Olympic football tournament.
Hungary led by Ferenc Puskas won gold in 1952 and was the first of three Olympic titles for the Magyars. The Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Czech Republic, Poland and East Germany shared a further six titles between them.
The players were ostensibly amateur and usually enlisted in the armed forces or at the very least state employees. In reality they were full time athletes who benefited from a centrally-funded training programme.
Team GB fought to compete with the Eastern European powerhouse but it was a fruitless exercise. A fourth place finish in 1948 was as good as it got. In other years they fell in the preliminary round, quarter finals and group stage.
After three failures to qualify, Great Britain finally gave up the ghost in 1972. The FA abolished the distinction between professionals and amateurs in 1974.
As the Berlin Wall came down and the Soviet Bloc crumbled, Olympic football encountered its own transformation. The IOC was shedding its amateur ethos and agreed to admit professional players at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.
But FIFA remained twitchy about the World Cup’s status as the premier football competition. So a plan was hatched to allow countries outside of Europe and South America to field their best teams.
Meanwhile players from UEFA and CONMEBOL countries would only participate if they had never played in the World Cup. This fuzzy policy was abandoned at the 1992 Barcelona games. Olympic football would now allow participants under the age of 23 with a maximum of three over age players in each squad.
It seemed the ideal compromise for what was basically an U23 World Cup tournament. Fittingly Spain won the 1992 title and included a certain Pep Guardiola in their line-up. An exciting Nigerian side beat Argentina in the Atlanta games of 1996. For the Eagles it was a golden generation that featured Celestine Babayaro, Kanu, Jay-Jay Okocha and Daniel Amokachi.
Team GB was still cut adrift by the historical independence of the home nations. But when London won the right to stage the 2012 Olympics, feverish negotiations ensued. The Scottish, Welsh and Irish FAs remained opposed and declined to put players forward.
FIFA’s executive committee gave assurances that Team GB’s participation ‘would not affect the existing individual status of the four British football associations’. But was still seen as the beginning of a slippery slope, so it was agreed that only English players would be selected. However this compromise would soon be fudged.
Team GB would be managed by former Hammers player Stuart Pearce. The 17-strong squad eventually included 12 players from England and five from Wales. The latter boasted Ryan Giggs, Aaron Ramsey and ex Hammer Craig Bellamy, whilst the English contingent was a mixture of young players on the cusp of the full squad.
Pearce was told to avoid using players who had just played in the European Championships, so opportunity knocked for a certain Basildon-born central defender. James Tomkins broke into the West Ham first team a week shy of his nineteenth birthday in 2008. By the 2011/12 season, Tomkins had established himself in the first team. He gained 10 England U21 caps and was given the dreaded ‘new Bobby Moore’ tag.
Great Britain sported contrasting blue Union Jack kits designed by Stella McCartney. It was a shirt that people loved and hated in equal measure. But they made a bright start beating Uruguay and the United Arab Emirates and drawing with Senegal.
Disappointingly they lost in the quarter finals to South Korea on penalties. James Tomkins made two appearances and became one of a dozen Englishmen to have played Olympic football in the modern era. Women’s football arrived fashionably late to the Olympic party and was first staged in 1996.
The USA have dominated winning five out of eight titles. They were also victorious in Paris and coached with aplomb by our very own Emma Hayes. Team GB was again confronted by the same issues that plagued the men’s team. As host nation of the 2012 Olympics, they would also enter a women’s team.
The debate rumbled on with no real conclusion as the protagonists remained entrenched. The competition began with an essentially English line-up. They cruised through the group stages but lost 2-0 in the quarter final to Canada. More internal wrangling scuppered the GB entry for 2016.
In 2020, an agreement was reached with the other three home nations. The highest ranking home nation would be nominated for the qualifying phase. As beaten World Cup semi-finalists, England duly qualified for the Olympic tournament.
Team GB stalled at the quarter finals and were beaten 4-3 by Australia despite a hat trick from West Ham-fan Ellen White. England were again the top ranked home nation for 2024 qualification. But missed out when they failed to finish top of their Nations League group.
The Paris Olympics would sadly be missing the women’s Great Britain team, but West Ham had four players lining up for their respective countries. McKenzie Arnold and Katrina Gorry played for Australia; whilst Risa Shimizu and Riko Ueki helped Japan to the quarter finals.
There is now an inextricable link between West Ham and the Olympics; we now occupy the stadium that was centrepiece to the 2012 games. This was where Usain Bolt cruised to a sprint double; and where fans were enthralled by Super Saturday as Great Britain won three gold medals in the space of 44 minutes. Shouldn’t we embrace this Olympic history that sits under our very noses?
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