Host City: London, Great Britain
Date Started: July 27, 1908
Date Finished: August 12, 1908
Participants: 64 (63 men and 1 women) from 5 countries
Youngest Participant: Charles R. MacIver (17 years, 289 days)
Oldest Participant: Thomas Littledale (58 years, 131 days)
Most Medals (Athlete): 48 athletes with 1 medal
Most Medals (Country): Great Britain (6 medals)
Races for the 6 metre, 7 metre, and 8 metre classes were held from the Royal Victoria Yacht Club in Ryde, Isle of Wight. The races for the 12 metre class were held on the River Clyde in Glasgow. There were no entries for the 15 metre class.
As there were no foreign entries in the 12 metre class and both the British entries were racing on the River Clyde in Glasgow that summer, the British Olympic Council agreed that no good purpose would be served by asking the owners to transport their vessels from Glasgow to the south coast of England solely for the Olympic races. The 12 metre class is the only Olympic event ever to be held in Scotland and the arrangements were made by the Clyde Corinthian Yacht Club and the Royal Clyde Yacht Club.
Placings were decided solely by the number of victories. An official points system was used only in the event of a tie for first or second place. The official tie-breaking system provided 3 points for first place, 2 for second place and 1 for third.