MOTOR BOAT RACING IN 1908

1908: Motor boats in action during competition at the 1908 Olympic Games in London where Motor Boat Racing was included for the first and last time, with races round the Isle of Wight off the south coast of Britain. The races were delayed a couple of months in order to await the return from New York of the Duke of Westminster's crack boat Wolseley Siddeley (a commercial name which would not now be permitted). However while this craft was certainly fast and led by a long way (there were only three competitors), His Grace apparently - in trying to cut a fine course - ran aground on a sandbank and became stuck. Emile Thubron of France in Camille came from a long way back to pass the Duke and win the gold medal. Mandatory Credit: IOC/Allsport