July 6 in Swedish History
1912: Opening ceremony for the Olympic Summer Games in Stockholm. It is the fifth Olympic Games in modern time, and the main arena is Stockholms Olympiastadion (built for the games in 1910-1912). The games are referred to as “sunshine Olympics” because of the unusual sunny and warm weather. Though the spectators like this, it causes problems for the ones participating, and the Portuguese marathon runner Lazaro dies of a heat stroke during a race.

The Olympics are held between May 5 and July 27, with 28 nations involved and 2,408 competitors, including 48 women in 102 events in 14 sports. With the exception of tennis, soccer and shooting, the games are held within a month. 1912 Summer Olympics is the last Olympics to issue solid gold medals, and with Japan’s debut, the first time an Asian nation participates.

The United States wins the most gold medals, while at 65, Sweden wins the most medals overall. Stockholm had been the only bid for the games, and was selected in 1909. So far it is the only full Olympics to have been held in Sweden.