Winning Means Everything: Honourable Mention

While these cheaters did not make the Top 10 Cheaters List, their desire to win and lack of moral backbone has earned them an honourable mention. Federick Lorz, while considered a very good runner, is best known for hitching a ride in his manager's car during the 1904 Olympic marathon. Althougth he 'won', the gold medal was eventually given to Thomas Hicks. The following year Lorz actually won the Boston Marathon.

Rosie Ruiz, also won the Boston Marathon in record time, in 1980, after joining the race by jumping in from the crowd and sprinting to the finnish line.


Then there is Dora Ratjen. Unlike Casta Semenya and Stella Walsh, who didn't know they possessed both male and female genitalia, Ratjen dressed up as a woman and competed in the 1936 Olympic high jump. The worst part is he didn't even win, he came fourth. If you're going to cheat atleast make sure you win the damn thing.

Back at home, while Australia was playing New Zealand in the 1981 World Series Cup, Greg Chappell, the Australian cricket captain, ordered his brother to roll the ball along the ground to prevent New Zealand from hitting six and winning the game off the last ball. There is some ambiguity as to whether the move constituted cheating, since it was technically legal. It does, however go against the concept of fair play and sportsmanship, thus deserving an honourable mention.

There is no such ambiguity in our next cheater, Marcus Trescothick, who revealed in his autobiography that in the 2005 Ashes series, that he used lollies to help the ball swing. It was the opening batsman's job to polish the ball. After experimenting he discovered that the sugary saliva from Murray's Mints created the most swing. So that, ladies and gentlemen is why we lost the ashes in 2005...I don't, however have an excuse as to how we lost it again.

-Alpii

2 comments:

ajtaylor said...

HAHA,

Thanks for the Underarm mention... i can appreciate that one

AdLand Suit said...

I believe Richie Benaud described the underarm ball as the most disgraceful thing he'd ever seen on a cricket pitch. I concur.

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