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Sporting Witness: Women's Marathon Agony

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Women's Marathon Agony

02/03/2024 GMT

BBC World Service - Sporting Witness, Women's Marathon Agony

In 1984, Gabriela Andersen-Scheiss completed the Olympic marathon in terrible pain

In 1984, Gabriela Andersen-Scheiss shocked the world by completing the first Olympic women's marathon in a state of virtual collapse.

In 1984, the women's marathon was held in the Olympic Games for the first time.

But to the horror of the crowd in Los Angeles, one of the runners, Gabriela Andersen-Scheiss of Switzerland, entered the stadium in a state of virtual collapse from heat exhaustion.

The 40-year-old ski instructor was not used to the hot Californian climate. She had to hobble her way around the final lap of the race.  

The crowd of ninety thousand people in the LA Memorial Colosseum cheered her on as she made it to the finish line.  

Andersen-Scheiss tells Ashley Byrne about her ordeal. The programme is a Made-In-Manchester Production that first aired in 2016.

(Photo: Andersen-Scheiss finishing the race in 1984. Credit: John W. McDonough/ Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

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