Frederick "Fred" Lorz (1880 ? – February 4, 1914) was an American long distance runner who, while he had some race victories, is best known for cheating in the marathon at the 1904 Summer Olympics.
In the marathon at the 1904 Olympic Games, Lorz stopped running because of exhaustion after nine miles. His manager gave him a lift in his car for the next eleven miles, after which it broke down. Lorz then continued on foot back to the Olympic stadium, where he broke the finishing line tape and was greeted as the winner of the race.
Though he initially went along with it, he soon admitted that it was a joke after spectators claimed that he had not run the entire race.[1] Thomas Hicks went on to become the real winner, though he too had an unusual race, walking part of the route and being assisted by substances (strychnine sulfate) which have since been banned; among the 32 runners that entered, he was one of several who came near death (along with William Garcia) and he retired the next day.[2]
Lorz was banned from all future amateur competitions by the Amateur Athletic Union, but was reinstated soon afterwards after he apologized for the stunt and it was found that he had not intended to defraud.[3] He genuinely won the Boston Marathon in 1905 with a time of 2:38:25.[4]
See also
References
- ^ Hanc, John. Newsday, 25 August 2004. "The Worst of the Modern Olympics Was Held ... ?". Accessed 5 August 2006.
- ^ Miller, Mike. 30 August 2004. "Olympics flashback: 1904 marathon a joke of a race". Accessed 8 August 2006.
- ^ Gettings, John. FactMonster. "Lorz of the Rings". Accessed 5 August 2006.
- ^ Boston Athletic Association. "Past Champions". Accessed 5 August 2006.
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