Joseph-Étienne Desmarteau (4 February 1873 – 29 October 1905) was a Canadian

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

, winner of the weight throwing event at the

1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the III Olympiad and also known as St. Louis 1904) were an international multi-sport event held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from 29 August to 3 September 1904, as part of an extended s ...

Biography

Born in

Boucherville Boucherville is a city in the Montérégie region in Quebec, Canada. It is a suburb of Montreal on the South Shore (Montreal), South shore of the Saint Lawrence River. Boucherville is part of both the urban agglomeration of Longueuil and Greate ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Desmarteau was member of the Montréal Athletic Club was one of the top competitors in the 56 lb (25.4 kg) weight throwing event, which is no longer an Olympic event. In 1902 he had won the American AAU championships, beating

John Flanagan John Flanagan or Jack Flanagan may refer to: Sportspeople * Jack Flanagan (footballer) (1902–1989), English footballer * John Flanagan (hammer thrower) (1868–1938), Irish-American three-time Olympic champion in athletics * John Flanagan (Limeri ...

. Flanagan broke the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

in the event prior to the 1904 Olympics, making him one of the favourites for the event along with Desmarteau. To compete in the Olympics, Desmarteau, a fire officer in

Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

, had to ask for a leave of absence to go to

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, but he was denied by his employer. He decided to go anyway, which cost him his job. In St. Louis, his first throw was 34 ft 4 in (10.46 m), enough for victory over Flanagan, who did not manage better than a 33 ft 4 in (10.16 m) throw. At the 1904 Olympics, Desmarteau was the only non-American to win in the field events. Desmarteau received a hero's welcome back in Montréal and was rehired as a police officer. The following year, he died, possibly of

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

. A district, a park and a sports arena in Montréal have been named after him; the

Étienne Desmarteau Centre Étienne, a French analog of Stephen or Steven, is a masculine given name. An archaic variant of the name, prevalent up to the mid-17th century, is Estienne. Étienne, Etienne, Ettiene or Ettienne may refer to: People Scientists and inventors ...

was used as a venue for

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

during the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

. The District d'Étienne Desmarteau is part of the borough of

Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie is a borough (''arrondissement'') in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located in the centre-east of the city. Geography The borough is bordered to the northwest by Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension, ...

. It is contended that Desmarteau was the first Olympic Games champion from Canada, although

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...

champion

George Orton George Washington F. Orton (January 10, 1873 – June 24, 1958) was a Canadian middle and long-distance runner. In 1900, he became the first Canadian to win a medal at an Olympic Games. He won a bronze in the 400 metre hurdles, and then, 45 ...

, who ran for an American university, was also Canadian.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Desmarteau, Etienne 1873 births 1905 deaths Sportspeople from Quebec People from Boucherville Canadian male shot putters Canadian male discus throwers Canadian police officers Male weight throwers Olympic weight throwers Olympic track and field athletes of Canada Olympic gold medalists for Canada Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1904 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1904 Summer Olympics French Quebecers Infectious disease deaths in Quebec Deaths from typhoid fever

Biography

See also

References

External links