Bergvall system

The Bergvall system was a variation of the traditional knockout tournament system which was used at the at the 1912, 1920 and 1924 Summer Olympics. It was devised by Erik Bergvall, a Swedish water polo player, journalist and sports official. Bergvall wanted to improve on the traditional knockout method used in Olympic competitions. Believing that this was only fair in deciding the gold medal winner, Bergvall advocated separate competitions should also be held for the silver and bronze medals. Bergvall believed that teams knocked out in the early rounds of the main gold medal tournament should be given a second chance. He suggested that all the teams knocked out by the gold medal winner, including the losing finalist, should then compete in another knockout competition for the silver medal. Then all the teams that were knocked out by the gold and silver medallists would be eligible to compete in a third competition for the bronze. At the 1912, 1920 and 1924 Games, the Bergvall system was used to decide the water polo, while at the 1920 Games it was also used for the ice hockey and the tug of war.^{[1] [2]}