Athletics at the 1908 London Summer Games:

Ralph Rose was the greatest shot putter of the pre-World War I era. For the time he was a massive 6-6¾ (2.00), weighing up to 285 lbs. (130 kg.). Rose was AAU shot put champion in 1907-1910 and had won the Olympic shot put gold medal at St. Louis in 1904. In his career, he set eight world records, ending with the first IAAF-recognized mark of 51-0 (15.54), set in San Francisco on 21 August 1909. Prior to Rose, the top putter in the world had been the Irishman, Denis Horgan. Born in Banteer, County Cork, Horgan's career would see him win 13 British AAA shot put crowns - 1893-1899, 1904-05, 1908-10, and 1912. He was also AAU champion in 1900. He also won 17 Irish titles with the shot and 11 in other weight-throwing events. Horgan would possibly have won the shot put gold medal in the Olympics of 1900, 1904, and 1906 but he did not compete at those Olympics.

At London in 1908, Rose and Horgan competed against each other for the only known time, but Rose had little difficulty in turning back the aging Horgan's challenge. Surprisingly, Rose did not approach his Olympic record of 48-7¼ (14.81) from St. Louis in 1904, or his world record of 49-7¼ (15.12). In an exhibition throw after the competition had entered, he recorded 47-2. Interestingly, no toe board was used in shot putting.