Thread by @DavidZabinsky

On August 30th, 1904 at 3:03pm, David Francis fired the starting pistol.

The marathon at the Summer Olympics in St. Louis, Missouri had begun.

But what ensued from there is a tale of rat poison, wild dogs, and a rotten apple.

A thread on the most INSANE race in world history:

The St. Louis stage was set.

18 Americans, 9 Greeks, 3 South Africans, 1 Cuban, and 1 Frenchman took their marks in the scorching heat.

Add to the heat several train crossings, steep hills, and an uneven, cracked terrain, and it was bound to be a hard race.

And hard it was.

We start with American runner William Garcia.

A few miles in, Garcia collapsed after breathing in too much dust, which effectively drowned his esophagus and caused severe hemorrhaging.

He was immediately hospitalized and unable to finish the race.

Then there was Len Tau from South Africa.

Tau, who according to some records ran the race barefoot, was chased one mile off the course by a pack of WILD DOGS.

Tau eventually escaped the mutts and returned to the race, only to finish much later on in ninth place.

Next we have Félix Carvajal from Cuba.

Carvajal travelled from Cuba to St. Louis in two days and showed up to the race in STREET CLOTHES.

To make Carvajal appear a bit more, erm...professional, his friends cut his pants at the knees so that they'd resemble racing shorts.

Carvajal was also a socialite.

He stopped every mile or so to chat with spectators.

He even passed by an apple orchard, only to eat a rotten one that caused awful stomach cramps.

Exhausted, he took a nap.

When Carvajal woke up, he rejoined the race and finished in 4th place.

American Fred Lorz also suffered from cramps.

But Lorz's cramps were from dehydration, not a bad Granny Smith.

So what'd Lorz do?

Instead of taking a nap, Lorz hitched a ride from a few strangers.

And after DRIVING 11 miles, Lorz hopped out the car and crossed the finish line

"An American won gold!" the fans celebrated.

Alice Roosevelt, daughter of then-President Theodore Roosevelt, presented Lorz with the famous floral wreath for his victory until it was revealed he travelled over 40% of the course in a CAR.

Needless to say, Lorz was disqualified.

And then we've got US runner Thomas Hicks.

Hicks fell violently ill at mile 19.

The solution?

A concoction of raw egg and... RAT POISON, administered to him by two of his supporters.

The poison, known as strychnine, was meant to give the ailing Hicks a bit of a boost.

At the last mile, Hicks took more rat poison, this time washed down by a shot of brandy.

Fuelled by poison and booze, Hicks crossed the finish line in 3 hours, 28 minutes.

Most shocking?

Hicks won.

Less shocking?

That's the longest winning time in Olympic Marathon history.

Right behind Hicks was Albert Corey, who finished the race a few minutes later, securing a silver medal.

Although Corey was French, he didn't have the proper papers to prove it, so he was listed as American.

🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

Of the 32 runners in the event, more than half (18 runners!) were unable to finish the race due to dehydration and breathing in too much dust.

Contest organizer James Sullivan, who was testing the effects of dehydration on athletes, put only TWO water stations along the route.

When it was all said and done, Thomas Hicks, Albert Corey, and Arthur Newton took home the top three spots.

But had Carvajal avoided his post-apple nap and Tau not been run off the course by a bunch of dogs, things likely would have looked far different.

Perhaps the most important part of the ludicrous 1904 Marathon?

It was the first time an athlete used performance enhancing drugs mid-contest.

But no, it wasn't steroids or testosterone that Hicks took, but instead:

The famous rat poison.

(Please don't try this at home.)

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For two great reads on the hilarity that was the 1904 Olympics Marathon, check out the summaries by @AbbottKahler and @Brian_Cronin below:

smithsonianmag.com/history/the-19…

latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/20…