As the poster suggests, this was held in tandem with the world fair. It was originally supposed to have been held in Detroit, but moved to St. Louis to combine the two events.
The marathon in the 1904 Olympics had the first known case of a competitor using performance-enhancing drugs: Thomas Hicks, the race winner, had been taking doses of Strychnine (rat poison which was believed to be a stimulant in those days) mixed with egg whites and drinks of alcoholic beverages during the race to give him "energy". The effects of the poison were so strong that by the end he had to helped across the finish line by two of his trainers. Four doctors on call in the stadium worked for over an hour to save his life. Despite all that, his time was considered official.
I love looking at all the details on those old posters, especially the fonts
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After seeing all of them this kind of remains my favourite :)
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It's in the top for me as well. I love that old style. :)
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Factoid:
The marathon in the 1904 Olympics had the first known case of a competitor using performance-enhancing drugs: Thomas Hicks, the race winner, had been taking doses of Strychnine (rat poison which was believed to be a stimulant in those days) mixed with egg whites and drinks of alcoholic beverages during the race to give him "energy". The effects of the poison were so strong that by the end he had to helped across the finish line by two of his trainers. Four doctors on call in the stadium worked for over an hour to save his life. Despite all that, his time was considered official.
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An officially bad time I guess. :) Like the swimmer from some small unknown nation a few olympics back that could barely swim.
Nice factoid. :)
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thanks :)
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