In the heats, however, Jarvis and another American, Walter Tewksbury, posted times of 10.8, equaling the World Record. All three Americans qualified for the final, complemented by Stan Rowley of Australia. After a close first half of the final race, leading Duffey pulled a muscle, fell, and retired the race, leaving the three others to decide for the victory—Jarvis won.
At the same Olympics, Jarvis also competed in the triple jump and the standing triple jump (with no run-up), but did not achieve top classifications.