The men's single sculls was one of four rowing

Sport rowing

Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...

 events on the Rowing at the 1908 Summer Olympics

Rowing at the 1908 Summer Olympics

At the 1908 Summer Olympics, four rowing events were contested, all for men only. Races were held at Henley-on-Thames. The competitions were held from July 28, 1908 to July 31, 1908. There was one fewer event in 1908 than 1904, after the double sculls was dropped from the programme...

 programme.

Standings

Place	Rower	Nation
1	Harry Blackstaffe Harry Blackstaffe Henry Thomas "Harry" Blackstaffe was a British rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.Blackstaffe was born in Islington, London, and became a butcher. He was a long-standing member of Vesta Rowing Club in Putney and also a cross-country runner who represented South London Harriers in the...
2	Alexander McCulloch Alexander McCulloch Alexander McCulloch was a British rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.-Biography:McCulloch was born at Melbourne, Australia, the son of George McCulloch...
3	Bernhard von Gaza Bernhard von Gaza Bernhard von Gaza was a German rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.He won a bronze medal in single sculls.-External links:*...
	Károly Levitzky Károly Levitzky Károly Levitzky was an Hungarian rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. He won a bronze medal in single sculls. He was Jewish.-External links:*...
5	Walter Bowler
	Gino Ciabatti
	Joseph Hermans Joseph Hermans Joseph Hermans was a Belgian archer and Olympic champion. He competed at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, where he won a gold medal with the Belgian team, and also an individual bronze medal in fixed target small bird.-References:...
	Louis Scholes
9	Ernö Killer

Heat 1

Von Gaza won easily, and Killer abandoned the race after the German crossed the finish line.

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Bernhard von Gaza Bernhard von Gaza Bernhard von Gaza was a German rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.He won a bronze medal in single sculls.-External links:*...		9:35.0
DNF	Ernö Killer		-

Quarterfinal 1

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Bernhard von Gaza		9:47.0
2	Louis Scholes		Unknown

Quarterfinal 2

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Károly Levitzky Károly Levitzky Károly Levitzky was an Hungarian rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. He won a bronze medal in single sculls. He was Jewish.-External links:*...		10:08.0
2	Gino Ciabatti		Unknown

Quarterfinal 3

Bowler capsized, leaving Blackstaffe with the win.

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Harry Blackstaffe Harry Blackstaffe Henry Thomas "Harry" Blackstaffe was a British rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.Blackstaffe was born in Islington, London, and became a butcher. He was a long-standing member of Vesta Rowing Club in Putney and also a cross-country runner who represented South London Harriers in the...		10:03.0
DNF	Walter Bowler		-

Quarterfinal 4

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Alexander McCulloch Alexander McCulloch Alexander McCulloch was a British rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.-Biography:McCulloch was born at Melbourne, Australia, the son of George McCulloch...		10:08.0
2	Joseph Hermans Joseph Hermans Joseph Hermans was a Belgian archer and Olympic champion. He competed at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, where he won a gold medal with the Belgian team, and also an individual bronze medal in fixed target small bird.-References:...		Unknown

Semifinal 1

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Alexander McCulloch		10:22.0
2	Károly Levitzky		Unknown

Semifinal 2

von Gaza fell ill at the 1500m mark, leaving Blackstaffe to ease off and win.

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Harry Blackstaffe		10:14.0
-	Bernhard von Gaza		DNF

Final

McCulloch took the early lead, but started by pulling fewer strokes than Blackstaffe. McCulloch opened up by a length and led through 1200 yards before being caught by Blackstaffe. At 1 mile, Blackstaffe pulled ahead by ¾ of a length and held this lead to the finish.

Place	Rower	Nation	Time
1	Harry Blackstaffe		9:26.0
2	Alexander McCulloch		(9:27.5)