Tswana Trailblazers St Louis , 30 August 1904

The 1904 Olympic Marathon is unfortunately remembered for less than complimentary reasons . The 40km race took place during the hottest part of the day , with temperatures reaching 32 degrees Celsius , and the route was mostly on country roads , with thick clouds of choking dust kicked up by the procession of horses and cars accompanying the runners , causing some athletes severe respiratory problems . Worse , there was only one water stop – a roadside well around the 19km mark – because the organiser believed in “ purposeful dehydration ,” and all of this resulted in just 14 of the 32 starters eventually finishing the poorly organised race .

The field featured three South Africans , including Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani , who had served as despatch runners during the Anglo-Boer war and were actually in St Louis to appear in the Boer War Exhibition at the World Fair , doing famous battle reenactments . Neither had run a marathon before , and they were listed as Tswana athletes , because the Union of South Africa was not yet established – that only happened in 1910 . The historic significance of their participation was that they were the first black Africans to compete in the modern Olympic Games .

Jan Mashiani ( left ) and Len Taunyane

The first runner to reach the finish line was Frederick Lorz of the USA , breaking the tape in 3:13 , but it was pointed out to officials that he had actually dropped out of the race after nine miles , due to cramping , and had hitched a ride in a car . However , when that car broke down , he jogged the final part of the course and entered the stadium first , ostensibly as a practical joke . With Lorz disqualified , the win went to another American , Thomas Hicks , who was practically carried over the line by his seconds , who had fed him small doses of strychnine ( rat poison ), washed down with brandy and raw eggs , to keep him going ! By the time he finished , he was hallucinating and barely able to walk !

Taunyane , who most likely ran the race barefoot , was well positioned until a pack of wild dogs chased him more than a mile off course , which saw him drop back to eventually finish ninth , while Mashiani was 12th over the line . Overall , the marathon proved so controversial that the event was almost struck from the Olympic programme for the following Games .

Silver for Hefferon London , 24 July 1908

The 1908 Olympic Marathon is famous for the disqualification of the first athlete to finish , Italian Dorando Pietri , for being helped over the line by officials , but this resulted in South Africa ’ s second ever Olympic medal , a silver going to Charles Hefferon , just two days after Reggie Walker had won gold in the 100 metres . This marathon was the first ever run over what later became the standard distance of 42.195km ( 26 miles 385 yards ), and was run from the grounds of Windsor Castle to the Shepherd ’ s Bush Stadium in London , and remains the most dramatic Olympic Marathon ever .

A total of 55 runners gathered just before 2:30pm on the East Terrace of Windsor Castle . Hefferon , who was born in England but emigrated to South Africa , had dropped out of the first SA Marathon three months before , but was selected for the Olympics ahead of winner of that race Kennedy McArthur ( another immigrant , originally from Ireland ). It looked like a good selection when Hefferon took the lead shortly after halfway , and at 15 miles , he was in front by two minutes , then by almost four minutes at 20 miles .

Charles Hefferon

However , Pietri was cutting into his lead and passed him at 25 miles . The Italian entered the stadium first , well ahead , but with just the final 385 yards left to the finish line in front of the Royal Box , the exhaustion caused by the midday heat caught up with him , and he collapsed several times . The harrowing spectacle of his efforts to finish saw him receive assistance from officials to eventually stagger over the finish line , but was subsequently disqualified . Hefferon was also passed by American John Hayes near the stadium , and he was adjudged the winner and gold medallist in 2:55:18 , with the South African being given second place in 2:56:06 , then the fastest ever by a South African .

On the train trip back to Turin , Pietri had a good lunch and is quoted as saying afterwards , “ I feel so happy after the macaroni and the good Italian wine . If only I had had a dish of macaroni before starting the marathon , I am sure I should have arrived a quarter of an hour before anyone else .”

Controversy in London

At the 1908 Olympics , an exhausted Dorando Pietri was disqualified after winning the race but was assisted over the finish line by officials . However , the Italian subsequently became an international celebrity .

Images : Courtesy Missouri History Musuem / Wikimedia , Olympedia , IOC / Wikimedia , OlympicGamesMarathon . com , National Library of France / Wikimedia

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