TIL The first man to finish the 1904 Olympic marathon rode in a car half the race. The actual winner had to be carried across the finish line after his coaches gave him a mix of brandy, eggs and strychnine. 4th place stole 2 peaches from a spectator, ate rotten apples from an orchard and took a nap.
The actual winner, Thomas Hicks, was near collapse and hallucinating when he crossed the finish line, a side effect of being administered brandy, raw eggs, and strychnine by his trainers.
why the fuck did they give him strychnine
Thomas Hicks ended up as the winner of the event, although he was aided by various measures that would not have been permitted in later years.[9] Ten miles from the finish, Hicks led the race by a mile and a half, but he had to be restrained from stopping and lying down by his trainers. From then until the end of the race, Hicks received several doses of strychnine (a common rat poison, which stimulates the nervous system in small doses) mixed with brandy and egg white.[2] He continued to battle onwards, hallucinating, and was barely able to walk for most of the course. When he reached the stadium, his support team carried him over the line, holding him in the air while he shuffled his feet as if still running.[6] Hicks had to be carried off the track on a stretcher, and might have died in the stadium had he not been treated by four doctors. He lost eight pounds during the course of the marathon.[6][10]
what the fuck
why the fuck did they give him strychnine
Per wikipedia, “Strychnine was popularly used as an athletic performance enhancer and recreational stimulant in the late 19th century and early 20th century, due to its convulsant effects.”
You know times were tough when people were convulsing recreationally.
I suggest you to watch the series Murdoch Mysteries. It passes in the late 1890s and beginning of 1900s. Sometimes they make jokes with this, with people taking heroin and cocaine as medicine. It’s quite funny knowing the history of these drugs.
The pure chaos of this race.
I would watch this movie.
For anyone interested in learning about this in video form, Jon Bois has you covered
Still fared better than the first guy to run a marathon
