# What the holy marathonic fuck!??? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 29, 2004, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106 "2004-08-29T17:04:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Creative\_Munster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/919ad9/32.png) [@Creative\_Munster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creative_Munster)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/41 "2004-08-30T02:39:51Z")
> [@whiterabbit](#): > > The way I read the post you’re talking about, I thought **Spezza** meant that Paul Hamm was the victim of somebody else’s poor sportsmanship. Which is exactly what you’re saying. Oh hell. If you are right, I owe him an apology. If I really did misread your post, **Spezza** , my bad. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/42 "2004-08-30T02:40:01Z")
> [@Greenback](#): > > Lima was still extending his lead as of the last interval when this asshole showed up. Doesn’t seem that was extending the lead. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5859225/](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5859225/) In case anyone thinks that’s an NBC conspiracy > **[Defrocked Irish priest disrupts marathon finish](https://www.espn.com/olympics/summer04/trackandfield/news/story?id=1870662)** > > A defrocked Irish priest bolted from the crowd and grabbed the marathon leader about three miles from the finish Sunday. The Brazilian runner wound up with the bronze -- and a special award for sportsmanship -- and the former priest was arrested. 1st link shows it in the 2nd paragraph, 2nd link has is further down. Also, it took a full mile after that for him to lose the lead. Whatever the reason is, Lima is truly a class act. ---
**Author:** ![Greenback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/2bfe46/32.png) [@Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greenback)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/43 "2004-08-30T02:59:53Z")
Thanks for the clarification **duffer**. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/44 "2004-08-30T05:52:47Z")
When watching sporting events, I prefer the old-school religious fanatics. Why couldn’t this guy hold up a “John 3:16” sign while wearing a rainbow wig? ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/45 "2004-08-30T06:20:39Z")
Rainbow Man was too peaceful, and he didn’t disrupt anything. Actve religioius fanatics are in now. ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/46 "2004-08-30T06:21:40Z")
> [@NDP](#): > > When watching sporting events, I prefer the old-school religious fanatics. Why couldn’t this guy hold up a “John 3:16” sign while wearing a rainbow wig? [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a971107.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a971107.html) > **[Dead or Alive?](https://www.deadoraliveinfo.com/names/Rollen_Stewart)** > > Use this site to find out if famous people are dead or alive. Problem was Stewart would have just stood on the curb holding a sign. Wheras Horan was friggin’ _pro-active!!!_ ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/47 "2004-08-30T06:23:54Z")
Mike Myers: Now, that bloke who stabbed Monica Seles, _that_ was prime hooliganism! Mark McKinney: Too right, oi? That was doon straight up. Myers: 'ere, give us a kiss. [head butts McKinney] McKinney: Ach, you right bastard! You broke me nose again! ---
**Author:** ![theR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@theR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/theR)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/48 "2004-08-30T16:21:34Z")
As much as I would like to pit the event, it produced one of the most heartwarming events of the Olympics. After all, athletes overcoming adversity is one of the compelling things in the Olympics, so much so that the coverage digs deeper and deeper every year to come up with more tales of adversity (AIEEEE! A hangnail!). This one is genuine and is actually related to athletics. Lima got back on the course and received the biggest ovation of any of the runners as he came into the stadium and again on the medal stand. The fans appreciated his effort, and he demonstrated a perfect response. He didn’t blame anyone, he didn’t get mad, he just accepted it and did his best, and seemed genuinely happy to have the bronze (as was apparent by his final few meters as he flew from side to side with his arms as wings). If every athlete was like Lima, athletics would be a lot better in many ways. ---
**Author:** ![vibrotronica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@vibrotronica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vibrotronica)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/49 "2004-08-30T17:40:19Z")
Amen, **theR**! ---
**Author:** ![Spezza](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a698b9/32.png) [@Spezza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spezza)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/50 "2004-08-30T18:00:50Z")
> [@Creative\_Munster](#): > > How about instead of accusing Paul Hamm of poor sportsmanship, you focus on the incompetence of the judges? > > Hamm has absolutely nothing to apologize for. True, it is the judges which created this unfortunate situation. True, this has nothing to do with Hamm apologizing. In all fairness, the sports organizations and judges should apologize to all the competitors and Hamm for creating this dilemma. This mistake by the judges stole the gold from another competitor and shoved Hamm into this predicament. However, the reality Hamm must confront is that he did not earn his gold metal. As a display of good sportsmanship, of honor, and of respect to his competitors, he should recognize he is the only one able to right this wrong and step up to this unwanted responsibility. Nevertheless, if he does not return his ill-gotten metal, it will rest on his conscious that he never really did _earn_ that gold; and only a mistake awarded it too him. ---
**Author:** ![Creative\_Munster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/919ad9/32.png) [@Creative\_Munster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creative_Munster)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/51 "2004-08-30T18:08:49Z")
> [@Spezza](#): > > True, it is the judges which created this unfortunate situation. True, this has nothing to do with Hamm apologizing. In all fairness, the sports organizations and judges should apologize to all the competitors and Hamm for creating this dilemma. This mistake by the judges stole the gold from another competitor and shoved Hamm into this predicament. However, the reality Hamm must confront is that he did not earn his gold metal. As a display of good sportsmanship, of honor, and of respect to his competitors, he should recognize he is the only one able to right this wrong and step up to this unwanted responsibility. Nevertheless, if he does not return his ill-gotten metal, it will rest on his conscious that he never really did _earn_ that gold; and only a mistake awarded it too him. I did read your first post correctly. I thought I did. Apology retracted. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/52 "2004-08-30T18:32:07Z")
I’d be more impressed with this guy if he had tackled one of the race cars. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/53 "2004-08-30T18:50:14Z")
> [@Futile Gesture](#): > > I’m afraid this particular cretin is a British cretin. > > He looks very like the same guy who [ran out in the middle of the Formula 1 race last year.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/3081905.stm) > > I hope they lock him up for a long time. Idiot. See, now, this is the problem with Formula 1. If it was a NASCAR race, the drivers could have run him over with only minor front end damange. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/54 "2004-08-30T20:03:42Z")
Acc. to Yahoo News, no jail time for the offender. I guess he’s off to the U.S. Open! ---
**Author:** ![Rashak\_Mani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@Rashak\_Mani](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rashak_Mani)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/55 "2004-08-30T20:42:51Z")
Well everyone talking of islamic fundamentalists ruining the games… and there goes a catholic/armageddon fundamentalist to ruin the marathon instead. Hope to see him in F1 soon… and not getting jail time. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/56 "2004-08-30T21:13:58Z")
> [@Spezza](#): > > True, it is the judges which created this unfortunate situation. True, this has nothing to do with Hamm apologizing. In all fairness, the sports organizations and judges should apologize to all the competitors and Hamm for creating this dilemma. This mistake by the judges stole the gold from another competitor and shoved Hamm into this predicament. However, the reality Hamm must confront is that he did not earn his gold metal. As a display of good sportsmanship, of honor, and of respect to his competitors, he should recognize he is the only one able to right this wrong and step up to this unwanted responsibility. Nevertheless, if he does not return his ill-gotten metal, it will rest on his conscious that he never really did _earn_ that gold; and only a mistake awarded it too him. OK, first things first. It’s “medal.” Medal has a D in it. Medals are made of metals. Secondly, it is in no way incumbent upon Hamm to return his medal. He won it. He acted in good faith and the spirit of competition, putting forward his best performance and in the process coming back from a massive mistake. During the preliminaries, there was some controversy because two (or perhaps three) American athletes were informed that the routines they were planning were going to have a lower start value than the one that had previously been set. The athletes were advised of this two days before the start of the Games. This leads me to believe that the athletes were aware of the start values of their routines in advance of going out onto the mat to compete. If this is so, then there is no excuse for the Korean delegation not catching the error and protesting it then. If this isn’t so, then at the very least the athletes were aware of the start values at the time of the actual competition and the delegation could have protested before the athlete started his routine. Hell, someone could have gone and sat on the pommel horse; it wouldn’t be the first time a Korean staged a sit-in at the Olympics. As has been shown and noted in other threads, there was a huge blunder on the part of the scoring judges in not taking a mandatory .2 deduction on the Korean for an extra hold in his routine. Add on the .1 for the value judges’ mistake and take off the .2 for the scoring judges’ mistake and the Korean ends up out of the medals entirely. Finally, if the Korean had stuck one more landing then we wouldn’t be having this conversation in the first place. And really finally, fucko off. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dead\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Badger)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/57 "2004-08-30T21:31:28Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > See, now, this is the problem with Formula 1. If it was a NASCAR race, the drivers could have run him over with only minor front end damange. This year’s [Williams](http://bmw.williamsf1.com/ms/images/de/4_serien/41_f1/411_news/4114_galerie/00_launch/00_launch_02.jpg) could have gored him to death, though. **Otto** , I don’t believe the gymnast’s routine had its difficulty consciously reduced, rather it was simply a cockup _during_ the judging; given that the athlete and team are more likely to be concentrating on his performance during the actual competition, they can hardly be blamed for not spotting the judges’ error soon enough. I agree that Hamm is in no way to blame, though, and think it’s remarkably big of him and the US team to offer to share the medal, as I believe is the case. At least the Olympics tends to bring out the best in the performers, if no-one else. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![shelbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@shelbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shelbo)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/58 "2004-08-30T22:40:11Z")
Just an update – the Grand Prix Priest (as he prefers to be called, evidently) got off with a slap on the wrist: “Cornelius Horan was given a one-year suspended sentence. Horan also was fined $3,600 and warned to stay out of trouble in Greece for the next three years.” [From Here](http://sports.yahoo.com/oly/news;_ylc=X3oDMTBpNWZic251BF9TAzI1NjY0ODI1BHNlYwN0aA--?slug=ap-marathon-intruder&prov=ap&type=lgns) Not a bad price for the amount of world wide advertising he got – I bet IBM is jealous! ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2004, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/59 "2004-08-30T23:20:46Z")
> [@Dead Badger](#): > > **Otto** , I don’t believe the gymnast’s routine had its difficulty consciously reduced, rather it was simply a cockup _during_ the judging; given that the athlete and team are more likely to be concentrating on his performance during the actual competition, they can hardly be blamed for not spotting the judges’ error soon enough. I’m not sure what you mean. There are two sets of judges, one set that decides the start value of the routine and one that does the deductions. Blaine Wilson and (I think) Jason Gadsen were both informed before the Olympics that their high bar routines, which had previously been rated with a certain start value, would be started at a lower value for the Olympic competition. Wilson changed his routine to get a higher start value and fell off the bar. Gadsen didn’t change his routine and started with the lower value. If the American team was informed before the Games of the start value of the routines then it stands to reason the Koreans were informed of their start values too. The judges who score the deductions don’t have anything to do with setting the start values. Both sets of judges screwed up on the Korean’s PB routine but the Koreans seem to want only one error taken into consideration. Meanwhile, some people (not you) are calling Hamm a bad sport because he isn’t volunteering to give away the thing he’d been working toward for over a decade. ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2004, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106/60 "2004-08-31T00:03:48Z")
> [@Creative\_Munster](#): > > I did read your first post correctly. I thought I did. Apology retracted. Apology extended for misleading you. Obviously I totally misread it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-holy-marathonic-fuck/262106.md?page=4)