The story of Shuhei Nishida and Sueo Ōe: Japanese pole vaulters who shared their medals

Shuhei Nishida and Sueo Ōe were Japanese pole vaulters who shared their medals, blazing a path for Olympic humility and team spirit.

Pole vaulting has been an individual sport since its inception in the mid-19th century. Except for on August 5, 1936. The day pole vaulting became a sport about team spirit was at the men’s pole vault event at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.

Five pole vaulters were left after clearing a height of 4m 15 cm. Three Americans: Earle Meadows, William ‘Bill’ Sefton, William ‘Bill Graber; and two Japanese: Shuhei Nishida and Sueo Ōe.

Two of the Americans went first, with Graber failing to clear 4m 25cm in his three allocated attempts. Meadows then stepped up and was not only able to clear 4m 25cm, but also 4m 35 cm, a height that Sefton, Nishida, and Ōe were unsuccessful in, thus allowing Meadows to take gold.

The remaining three were left to battle it out for who would take silver and bronze. All three cleared 4m 25cm, so they had an extra vault as a tie-breaker. Sefton was unable to clear his bar, while both Nishida and Ōe did. The Japanese duo won, securing second and third place, respectively.

How did two athletes end up with one Olympic medal?

The competition seemed done and dusted until everyone realized there were no rules in place for which of the two would get what medal. Both cleared 4m 25cm, and neither were able to do what Meadows did, leaving them to have technically accomplished the exact same feat.

The Olympics Committee at the time did not have a rule in place to determine what would separate two athletes in such a rare situation. Both Nishida and Ōe refused to compete in another jump-off; instead, they wanted to share the honors. When that was not allowed, the Japanese team came to a decision together after much deliberation that Nishida would take silver and Ōe bronze, as the former vaulted the 4m 25cm in his first attempt, while the latter needed two.

The medal ceremony went underway, but Nishida and Ōe were not particularly happy with the situation, despite having medaled. They felt that each of them being allocated one medal was not representative of the situation at the Games, and as friends who had respect for one another, they took matters into their own hands.

Upon arrival in Japan, the two decided to physically split the medals into two and merge one half of the silver medal, and one half of the bronze medal, thus creating two silver-bronze medals. What is now known as ‘Medals of Friendship’ are what Nishida and Ōe felt were more representative of their achievements in the Games.

The situation was definitely unique in that it had never happened prior to 1936, nor would it ever happen again due to the rule change after these events (it became official that the vaulter with the least attempts would place higher), which made the ‘Medals of Friendship’ the only two of their kind. Ōe, who died fighting in World War II in 1941, kept his medal in private hands. However, Nishida’s, who died in 1997 due to heart failure, had his medal held by his alma mater, Waseda University in Tokyo, where it remains to this day.

The current International Olympic Committee, President Thomas Bach, stated in a press conference last year that the Olympics “are the only event in our world which manages to really bring the entire world together. Athletes come to the Olympic Games respecting the same rules, all being equal, without any discrimination.”

While a nice sentiment from Bach, it hasn’t always been the case. The 1936 Summer Olympics are not a Games that most would think of when attempting to define the spirit of bringing the world together. Adolf Hitler saw the 1936 Games as an opportunity to elevate his global status and convince the world that the Nazi Party’s views, antisemitism, and racial supremacy, were for the better.

That being said, the story of Shuhei Nishida and Sueo Ōe and their unity, despite competing against each other, is a fantastic example of humility and team spirit, a light needed in such a hate-filled Games.