Event    From 29/7/1948  To 14/8/1948

Olympic Games - 1948

Categories: Sport / Games

The 1948 Summer Olympics were the first Summer Olympics held since the 1936 Games in Berlin. The second time London had hosted, 1908 being the first.

The 1948 Olympics came to be known as the "Austerity Games" due to the difficult economic climate and rationing imposed following WW2. No new venues were built for the games. Events took place mainly at Wembley Stadium, also known as Empire Stadium, and the Empire Pool at Wembley Park. Basketball and other indoor events were held at the Harringay Arena. Field hockey preliminaries took place at the Lyons' Sports Club, Sudbury.  Athletes were housed in existing accommodation in the Wembley area.

Germany and Japan were not invited to participate.

2024: The Guardian reported "Wooden sauna from 1948 London Olympics gets Grade II listing". It's in Aylesford near Maidstone, Kent.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Olympic Games - 1948

Commemorated ati

Harringay Arena

The Harringay Arena, 1936 - 1978 The Arena Shopping Park takes its name from ...

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Olympic Way - 2023 plaque

On the day this plaque was unveiled so was a restored plaque from 1948, at th...

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Other Subjects

Efraim Zinger

Efraim Zinger

Chair, Israel Olympic Committee

Person, Politics & Administration, Sport / Games

1 memorial
Dennis Bergkamp

Dennis Bergkamp

Footballer. Born in Amsterdam. Nicknamed 'The Non-Flying Dutchman' because of his aviophobia. He played for Ajax in his home country and for Arsenal F.C. from 1995 to 2006. 

Person, Sport / Games, Netherlands

1 memorial
West Ham Stadium

West Ham Stadium

Former greyhound and speedway racing stadium, located on Prince Regent Lane. It also hosted football and baseball matches, and stock car racing. In spite of local protests it was sold for re-develo...

Place, Sport / Games

1 memorial
Charlton Athletic Football Club

Charlton Athletic Football Club

The club was founded from the combination of a number of youth clubs in south-east London. Their nickname is the 'Addicks' which is supposedly derived from 'haddocks'.  One of the explanations of t...

Group, Sport / Games

5 memorials
Rio Ferdinand

Rio Ferdinand

Footballer. Played 81 times for the England national team 1997 - 2011, Born at King's College Hospital in Camberwell and grew up in Peckham, living on the Friary Estate.

Person, Sport / Games

1 memorial