On this day in 1904, the strangest marathon in Olympic history was run in the St. Louis Summer Olympics. Of the 32 starting runners, only 14 managed to finish the 24-mile course. This was due to the horrendous planning, poor officiating, and general absurdity of the contest.
The race was run almost entirely on rural dirt roads in 100-degree temperatures, with minimal water available to the contestants. Race officials drove ahead and behind the runners, kicking up so much dust that half the field succumbed to illness and quit from the abrasive damage to their lungs. Others fell victim to rotten fruit and tainted water that they consumed out of desperation along the way.
The winner, Fredrick Lorz, was disqualified on the podium when it was revealed he had quit on mile 9 and hitched a ride to the finish line. The new winner was a hallucinating and barely standing Thomas Hicks. Hicks had been fed high doses of strychnine and raw eggs, which should have probably disqualified him for doping. As it was, he was so weak that his coaching staff had to carry him over the finish line, further tainting his victory.
The 1904 Marathon was also noteworthy for the first two African Americans to run in the Olympics, Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani. The men reportedly ran the race barefoot.
Jason Roberts is a Seattle-based author noted for his acclaimed western horror series The Dead Wind Trilogy as well as other works of cosmic horror infused with historical fiction. His web-based series, Dark Distractions, examines paranormal mysteries, unexplained phenomena, and all things strange.
