On a broiling, 90-degree August afternoon in 1904, 32 men dressed largely in white with leather belts gathered at Francis Olympic Field, a newly const

The Unbelievable True Story of the Craziest Olympic Marathon

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2022-09-21 12:30:08

On a broiling, 90-degree August afternoon in 1904, 32 men dressed largely in white with leather belts gathered at Francis Olympic Field, a newly constructed stadium in St. Louis. Flanked by other men in suits and porkpie hats, they were about to compete in what would become the most infamous marathon in history. The event was part of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, also known as the 1904 World’s Fair. Within the crowd of dapper onlookers was the man in whose honor the stadium was named: David R. Francis, a former Missouri governor and president of the organizing committee for the Olympic Games. At 3:03 p.m. he fired the starting gun; so began the first Olympic marathon race on U.S. soil.

The race started with five laps around the track and a flurry of lead changes. Among the cast of largely American runners were three previous Boston Marathon winners. None of them would finish. In fact, only 14 men eventually completed the race: one after hitchhiking, one after taking a nap, and one—the eventual gold medalist—after drinking strychnine mixed with raw egg and brandy. Not only would the percentage of finishers rank as the lowest of any Olympic marathon, but the event itself would be marred by the racism that pervaded and even guided the 1904 Olympics and World’s Fair.

Frank Pierce from the Seneca Nation—the first Native American to compete in the Olympics—briefly took to the front. Pierce was followed closely by fellow Americans Arthur Newton, Thomas Hicks, and Sam Mellor.