The 1904 Summer Olympic marathon in St. Louis is widely regarded as the most chaotic event in sports history. Run on dusty dirt roads in 90-degree heat, the race featured racers drinking rat poison, getting chased off course by aggressive dogs, and suffering severe dehydration.
The first runner to cross the finish line was American athlete Fred Lorz, who was immediately hailed as the gold medalist and posed for photos with Alice Roosevelt, daughter of President Theodore Roosevelt. However, Lorz's triumph was an absolute sham. Around the nine-mile mark, Lorz had suffered severe stomach cramps and decided to quit.
He flagged down his manager's automobile and hitched a comfortable 11-mile ride along the race course. When the car broke down near the stadium, Lorz got out and casually trotted the remaining distance across the finish line. When spectators acclaimed him as the victor, Lorz initially went along with it, later claiming he only accepted the wreath as a joke.
His trickery was quickly exposed by observers who saw him in the vehicle. Lorz was promptly disqualified, and Thomas Hicks—who survived the race by consuming doses of strychnine and brandy—was declared the official winner.