The Origin of Weird: 1904 Olympic Marathon

What happens when a world-stage marathon is staged like a dare? We head back to the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis and trace a course lined with heat, dust, and a shocking lack of common sense. With temperatures near 90 degrees, one lonely water stop, and cars belching dust into runners’ faces, the race becomes a case study in how bad science and thin rules can turn sport into survival.

We break down the pivotal moments that made this marathon infamous: Fred Lorz riding in a car for miles, then crossing the line to cheers; Thomas Hicks stumbling through the final stretch after his handlers fed him raw eggs, brandy, and strychnine; and Felix Carvajal, the Cuban mail carrier who ran in street clothes, chatted with spectators, ate apples, took a roadside nap, and still finished fourth. Each story exposes a different failure—of oversight, of medical judgment, of basic safety—that forced the sporting world to rethink how endurance events should be run.

Along the way, we connect the chaos to what came next: standardized marathon distance, closed and marked courses, real hydration protocols, bans on outside assistance, and the early roots of anti-doping. This is a fast-moving, eye-opening tour through the day the Olympics learned the hard way that grit needs guardrails. If you care about running history, athlete welfare, or just love a wild true story, this one delivers lessons with every mile.

If you enjoyed the ride, follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a quick review to help more curious listeners find us.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:16

Oh, hey there.

SPEAKER_00 0:17

Oh, hey there.

SPEAKER_01 0:18

How are you today?

SPEAKER_00 0:19

I'm well, how are you?

SPEAKER_01 0:20

I am well. This is Bradley.

SPEAKER_00 0:22

I'm Kate.

SPEAKER_01 0:23

This is the History of Buffoon's Origin of Weird. Yes. Where we try to find the origin of weird. There's so many weird things in this world. We'll never find it.

SPEAKER_00 0:37

One of these times it'll be a story on you. Well.

Setting The Stage: 1904 Marathon

SPEAKER_01 0:42

When you're right, you're right. Sorry.

SPEAKER_00 0:45

We're going all the way back to 1904 today.

SPEAKER_01 0:48

That is a long ways away.

SPEAKER_00 0:51

So we are going to talk about the 1904 Olympic Marathon.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 0:56

And it was an athletic event of truly Olympic proportions, if I do say so myself.

SPEAKER_01 1:04

I think you're the only one that's going to say that yourself.

SPEAKER_00 1:09

So I am going to go chronologically in the story, as you do, but I'm going to start by asking you a question.

SPEAKER_01 1:20

Alright, let's do it.

SPEAKER_00 1:22

I want to know if it's real or if it's fake.

SPEAKER_01 1:25

Okay.

Heat, No Water, Bad Science

SPEAKER_00 1:26

Okay. So this first one, Olympic officials believed drinking water during a marathon was dangerous and limited access on purpose.

SPEAKER_01 1:36

True.

SPEAKER_00 1:37

Unfortunately, that is true. Yeah. The marathon that was held on August 30th, 1904, in St. Louis, Missouri. During it was during a stretch of like insane brutal heat. Oh dear. Temperatures hovered around 90 degrees, the humidity was oppressive, and the race was scheduled in the afternoon. Maximum damage.

SPEAKER_01 2:02

Exposure. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:04

Fuck. So from this start, the event was less a test of athletic endurance and more an experiment in how much suffering the human body could tolerate without collapsing.

SPEAKER_01 2:19

Isn't it wild that at one point they thought, no, water's gonna be bad for you? Yeah. Don't do that. I mean, what did they give them? Sand? I mean, for fuck's sake.

SPEAKER_00 2:28

Oh, they gave them nothing.

A Course Choked With Dust

SPEAKER_01 2:30

Well, right. You know what I mean though. It's just it's wild that even in, you know, 121 years ago, a little over, I guess. They they thought water's bad. Don't drink that. That'll fuck up your running style.

SPEAKER_00 2:46

I know. They uh they thought that the water would flood the system, the body. Jesus Christ. Like slow the heart rate, reduce stamina.

SPEAKER_01 2:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:57

So in their view, thirst was not was not a warning sign. It was a weakness. It was a weakness. Yes. And some medical thinkers at the time also feared that drinking water while overheated would cause stomach cramps, nausea, or shock.

SPEAKER_01 3:16

Well, okay.

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So at this time there was no standardized Olympic marathon rules, no universal distance agreement or consistent safety protocols.

SPEAKER_01 3:27

So just like, uh, see that tree down there? We're doing that today. Is that what they did? I mean, what the fuck? They didn't know the distances they wanted to do.

SPEAKER_00 3:34

I I think they they had like a finish line. They had a distance, right? But but it the distance was 24.85 miles long.

SPEAKER_01 3:46

That's a long, long way to run for for me.

SPEAKER_00 3:50

And their single and only water stop was 12 to 13 miles in.

SPEAKER_01 3:56

Well, halfway, I guess. So at least they got that going for them.

SPEAKER_00 4:01

Next question. Oh dear. The marathon course was clearly marked, fenced off, and closed to traffic. False. It's fake.

SPEAKER_01 4:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:10

The course itself was a mess.

SPEAKER_01 4:12

Oh, wait. Am I supposed to say real or fake?

SPEAKER_00 4:14

No, you're you're correct. Yeah, it's fake. Yeah. False, fake, whatever.

SPEAKER_01 4:18

No, I just yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:20

Yeah, that's fine.

SPEAKER_01 4:20

True or false, real or fake, similar things.

SPEAKER_00 4:22

Um, so rather than mean close to traffic, the route, the route ran along dusty, unpaved public roads. Oh my god. Race officials followed the runners in cars, unintentionally creating massive clouds of dust that hung in the air.

SPEAKER_01 4:38

Well, right, because God forbid the people have water. They're not going to water the road to keep the dust down.

SPEAKER_00 4:45

Athletes were not just running these miles, they were also inhaling all the dirt and the grit and the exhaust with every breath. Several runners being coughing violently within the first few miles while others struggled to clearly see.

SPEAKER_01 5:02

Yeah, like I think I'm off course here. Shit.

SPEAKER_00 5:06

Shit.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

Oh, that's funny. Because, like, I mean, I know they probably didn't know better, I guess, but yeah. Clearly, hey, it's really dry, dusty cars. That's how we'll do this.

SPEAKER_00 5:19

That's how we'll do this.

SPEAKER_01 5:21

What the fuck? They didn't they could not even fathom that this would kick up all this dust and I don't know, fuck with the runners.

SPEAKER_00 5:30

Question number three. Oh dear. Several runners collapsed or dropped out within the first 10 miles due to heat and dehydration.

SPEAKER_01 5:38

True. Real.

SPEAKER_00 5:39

Correct. Within the opening stretch stretch of the race, competitors began dropping out, heat exhaust exhaustion set in early, exacerbated by high dehydration and lack of shade. And by 10 miles in, the field was already like thinning pretty bad.

SPEAKER_01 5:56

Do you have a total number of runners for this race?

SPEAKER_00 6:00

I don't.

SPEAKER_01 6:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 6:03

Do you want me to look it up real quick? I mean, not really now. Fine. Some run runners collapsed outright while others simply wandered off course, unable to continue. They're just like, yeah, I'm just gonna go sit over here and watch everybody else.

SPEAKER_01 6:16

See that tree? You'll find me right there sitting below the boughs.

SPEAKER_00 6:20

Uh medical support was minimal, and officials largely viewed these withdrawals as personal failures rather than predictable outcomes of the conditions.

Fred Lorz Rides, “Wins,” And Lies

SPEAKER_01 6:30

Most people are super dicks. I know personal failures. Man, if you were fucking training better, you wouldn't have this. It's like, go fuck yourself, man. I know. That's insane that they would even blame the fucking contestants on the fucking conditions that they're making them run in. That's fucking wild.

SPEAKER_00 6:52

So I I looked it up real quick. I figured there were 32 runners.

SPEAKER_01 7:00

Wow.

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Only 14 finished.

SPEAKER_01 7:02

I'm surprised it was that many. Yeah. I mean, Jesus Christ.

SPEAKER_00 7:07

Okay. Question number four. Yes. One runner quit early, rode in a car, then rejoined the race towards the finish line.

SPEAKER_01 7:17

True.

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Correct. One of the early casualties was Fred Lors, a New York runner who developed severe cramps around mile nine. Okay. Unable to continue, Lors climbed into a car driven by his manager. The car followed the course for roughly 11 miles, during which time Lors rested and recovered.

SPEAKER_01 7:40

Imagine that.

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Near the finish line, he hopped back out and rejoined the race on foot.

SPEAKER_01 7:48

I mean, they disqualified him, right?

SPEAKER_00 7:50

Question number five. Race officials immediately noticed the cheating and stopped the runner before he crossed the finish line. False. It's false.

SPEAKER_01 8:00

Because they're fucking idiots. Jesus Christ.

Thomas Hicks And The Poison Plan

SPEAKER_00 8:04

Lores jumped out of his car and jogged across the finish line ahead of everyone else. Officials initially declared him the winner. Spectators cheered, photographs were taken, and Lores was even going to meet President Theodore Roosevelt. Oh, Jesus. It was only later, after witnesses spoke up, that officials realized he had spent most of the race riding in a vehicle. When confronted, Lores claimed it was all a joke. He was banned for a little bit of time. I don't know how long, but should have been banned for life. He was quietly forgiven.

SPEAKER_01 8:38

It was just a joke, man. Just a joke. Dude, can't don't you have a sense of humor? What the fuck? No, it's not a joke. You straight up fucking cheated. And then kind of like, oh hey.

SPEAKER_00 8:49

Yeah. I'm gonna play with this. Yeah, exactly. Hey, Teddy. Question number six. The runner that ended up being declared winner after Lores was so exhausted he could barely stand on his own.

SPEAKER_01 9:03

True.

SPEAKER_00 9:03

Correct. With Lores' disqualified attention, turns at an ex finisher, Thomas Hicks. By the time Hicks reached the final miles, he was in horrific condition. He was pale, disoriented, and barely conscious. Oh my god. Question seven. Oh dear. Hicks trainers gave him alcohol, raw eggs, and small doses of rat poison during the race.

SPEAKER_01 9:27

True. It's true. Why the fuck? Oh did you know what kind of alcohol?

SPEAKER_00 9:34

Um, yeah. Um, so what few people realized at first was that Hicks trainers had been actively administering performance enhancers during the race. These included raw egg whites, brandy, and small doses of strict strict strychnine.

SPEAKER_01 9:54

Strychnine.

SPEAKER_00 9:55

Strychnine. Really? Yeah. I didn't know it was pronounced nine at the end. I thought it was nine-nine. Strychnine. So that was um commonly used as rat poison back then.

Held To The Line, Declared Champion

SPEAKER_01 10:05

And these are performance enhancing? Apparently. I feel like they're performance deterrents. What the hell? Um, you're slacking a little bit, rat poison.

SPEAKER_00 10:18

I mean just the thing.

SPEAKER_01 10:19

Oh, that's really getting me going. Thanks, coach. I mean, what the hell?

SPEAKER_00 10:24

In the early 20th century, strychnine was believed to act as a stimulant in tiny quantities, but in reality, it caused Hicks to hallucinate and teeter on the edge of organ failure.

SPEAKER_01 10:38

Yeah, no shit. God damn, fucking sometimes you bring up the Middle Ages and they're so close. Fucking hell. How would you? I mean, oh, I don't even know how to start this. Fucking idiots. I don't worry. The brandy will counteract it. I mean, his liver was probably shutting down foot by foot and yard by yard. Like, oh yeah. Dude, you're not gonna make it.

SPEAKER_00 11:06

Question number eight.

SPEAKER_01 11:08

Oh dear.

SPEAKER_00 11:08

Hicks was disqualified because his trainers physically helped him cross the finish line.

SPEAKER_01 11:13

True.

SPEAKER_00 11:14

False.

SPEAKER_01 11:15

You already said he won, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:17

As yeah, that's okay. As Hit Hicks approached the finish line, his trainers physically held him upright and guided him forward. His legs moved but barely, and he was effectively being carried for parts of the final stretch. And despite this clear outside assistance, officials allowed the finish to stand. Hicks crossed the line and was declared the official Olympic marathon champion.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

I mean, it's not far off from driving in a car.

SPEAKER_00 11:47

I mean, it is and it isn't, but moments later he collapsed and required hours of medical treatment.

SPEAKER_01 11:52

Well, they give more strychnine.

SPEAKER_00 11:54

No, but a doctor did say that if he um had received another dose of strychnine, he would have died.

SPEAKER_01 12:02

Fucking hell.

SPEAKER_00 12:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:04

And then his managers or whatever would have been charged with murder. Probably not, probably not, no.

Felix Carvajal’s Wild Fourth Place

SPEAKER_00 12:09

Question number nine. Oh boy. One runner stopped. Excuse me. One runner stopped to chat with spectators, ate fruit, got sick, took a nap, and still finished near the top.

SPEAKER_01 12:24

Good on him. True.

SPEAKER_00 12:25

It is true. Amid all the chaos, one of the most remarkable performances belonged to Felix Caravajal. Caravajal. Sorry, I'm not Cuban.

SPEAKER_01 12:37

Is that what his ethnicity?

SPEAKER_00 12:39

He is a Cuban mail carrier. And he arrived in St.

SPEAKER_01 12:42

Cuban mail carrier? So like he carries men around. Sorry.

SPEAKER_00 12:50

He arrived in St. Louis with almost no money and no no formal training. He ran the marathon in street clothes, including long pants and leather shoes.

SPEAKER_01 12:59

That sounds terrible.

SPEAKER_00 13:00

During the race, uh Carvajal um stopped repeatedly to chat with spectators. At one point, he picked apples from an orchard along the route, ate them, and then became violently ill.

SPEAKER_01 13:12

Because it probably ate a worm or something. Jesus.

SPEAKER_00 13:14

Later he lay down by the roadside and took a brief nap. Despite all this, he finished fourth.

SPEAKER_01 13:22

That's that's impressive. Do you think he's running along? These people look nice. Hey, where's a good place to eat? Yeah. I mean, what are you doing?

unknown 13:30

I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 13:31

But he was one of the few runners to complete the race without cheating, chemical assistance, or medical collapse because he took a nap.

SPEAKER_01 13:38

Well, he got he got some rest. He did. Some well-needed mid-race rest.

SPEAKER_00 13:43

Okay, question 10. The Olympic committee immediately apologized and admitted the marathon was a mistake.

SPEAKER_01 13:51

False.

SPEAKER_00 13:52

Yeah. That's false.

SPEAKER_01 13:54

Yeah, there's no way they're admitting that.

SPEAKER_00 13:56

Accountability took its sweet, sweet time.

SPEAKER_01 13:59

Oh, no shit.

What Changed Because Of 1904

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In the aftermath of 1904, the Olympic marathon was widely criticized, though not immediately reformed. The race exposed the dangers of unregulated endurance, competition, and outdated medical beliefs. Wow. Over time, it contributed to major changes in marathon standards, including better hydration practices, clearer rules about assistance, improved course safety, and eventually the introduction of anti-doping regulations. Nice. The modern marathon exists in this current form largely because this one went so bad.

SPEAKER_01 14:36

That's wild that it uh it created so many stipulations for future races. They literally just fucked this one under the ground so hard.

SPEAKER_00 14:47

In the end, the 1904 Olympic marathon was not won by strength or speed, but by whoever managed to survive the longest.

SPEAKER_01 14:56

Whoever could just be like, all right, just a little longer.

SPEAKER_00 15:00

Just a little longer.

SPEAKER_01 15:01

Just a little longer. Oh my god, is that a dust cloud?

SPEAKER_00 15:04

I think marathons now are 26 miles or something. Is that the 26? 26. Yeah, 26.6.

SPEAKER_01 15:13

It's funny. Long before I ever saw this official one, I'd see the 26.2, I'm like, I should do a 0.0. And then of course I start seeing those. Oh, did you?

SPEAKER_00 15:21

Oh, I had I haven't seen those yet.

SPEAKER_01 15:23

Oh my god, they're they're they're everywhere, but I'm like, I should do 0.0 because I'm never doing that. Um, I don't have what you would call the knees to get me through a race.

SPEAKER_00 15:33

I thought you were gonna say the need, the need to run.

SPEAKER_01 15:36

Yes, that too. Or the want, yeah, or the gumption, whatever old timey word you want. You don't have the moxie. I don't have any moxie. I have a couch, and my butt implant needs to get back. That's why I gotta butt uh like you never really watch The Simpsons, right? No, there was one episode I haven't watched them in years. They're a great show. I love it, but I just I just don't watch it anymore. Um there's one from long ago though where uh Homer was on his couch and um I don't remember exactly all the details because it's been so long, but he uh someone else sat there. He's like, Man, you're messing up my groove. He's had to like his butt groove. Yeah, and he's like getting it back, and he's like he spent a lot of time to get his butt groove back in his couch.

SPEAKER_00 16:26

Sounds like Sheldon from Big Bang Theory.

SPEAKER_01 16:29

A little bit where he's got his spot, yeah kind of thing. Yeah, but no, I would not have any inclination at all to be like, you know what? Sounds like a great idea. A dusty run in the Olympics. Cause no. And plus my knees would fail. Yeah, they would. They would hurt so bad. Yeah. But you know.

SPEAKER_00 16:51

Welp.

Closing, Jokes, And Callouts

SPEAKER_01 16:51

I suppose. All right, buffoons. That's it for today's episode.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

Buckle up because we've got another historical adventure waiting for you next time. Feeling hungry for more buffoonery? Or maybe you have a burning question or a wild historical theory for us to explore?

SPEAKER_01 17:07

Hit us up on social media. We're History Buffoons Podcast on YouTube, X, Instagram, and Facebook. You can also email us at history buffoonspodcast at gmail.com. We are Bradley and Kate, music by Corey Akers.

SPEAKER_00 17:21

Follow us wherever you get your podcasts and turn those notifications on to stay in the loop.

SPEAKER_01 17:26

Until next time, stay curious and don't forget to rate and review us.

SPEAKER_00 17:29

Remember, the buffoonery never stops.