1936, Marathon, Men, Olympic Games, Berlin

1936, Marathon, Men, Olympic Games, Berlin Date: 9 August 1936 Rank Name Nation Time 1 Sohn Kee-Chung KOR 2:29:19.2 2 Ernest Harper GBR 2:31:23.2 3 Nam Sung-Yong KOR 2:31:42.0 4 Erkki Tamila FIN 2:32:45.0 5 Vaino Muinonen FIN 2:33:46.0 6 Johannes Coleman RSA 2:36:17.0 7 Donald Robertson GBR 2:37:06.2 8 Henry Gibson RSA 2:38:04.0 The 1936 Marathon was won by Kitei Son of Japan- except it wasn’t. Here’s the story! On November 3, 1935, Sohn Kee-chung of Korea set a world marathon record of 2:26:42.0. Because Korea was, at the time, occupied by Japanese forces, Sohn’s hopes for competing in the Olympics depended on his ability to qualify for the Japanese team. This he accomplished, as did fellow Korean Nam Seung-yong. Both young men were forced to endure the further insult of adopting Japanese names. Sohn, a fervent nationalist, always signed his Korean name in Berlin, and whenever he was asked where he was from, he made it a point to explain that Korea was a separate nation which was Defending champion Juan Carlos Zabala tore into an early lead and was still in front at the 28km mark although by that time both Sohn and Harper were very close to the leader and it came as a shock to Zabala when he was passed by both Sohn and Harper. Zabala, who was exhausted, fell to the ground, got up, struggled on for four more kilometres, and then retired. Meanwhile, Sohn pulled away and won by over two minutes. Harper finished heroically, holding off the fast-closing Nam despite a bad blister that had filled one of his shoes with blood. At the medal ceremony Sohn was forced to endure the humiliation of having his victory celebrated by the raising of the Japanese flag and by the playing of the Japanese national anthem. Both Sohn and Nam registered a silent protest by bowing their heads. Interviewed by the press afterwards, Sohn used the opportunity to educate the world about the plight of his nation. Few reporters were interested, and most seemed relieved when he turned to the race itself. “The human body can do so much,“ he said. “Then the heart and spirit must take over.“ Back in Korea, however, Sohn was a national hero. One newspaper, Dong-a-Ilbo, published a wire-service photograph of Sohn on the victory platform—but with one alteration: they painted over the Japanese flag on his sweatshirt. The Japanese colonial government responded by jailing eight people connected with the paper and suspending its publication for nine months. In 1948 Sohn was given the honour of carrying the Korean flag in the Opening Ceremony of the London Games, the first to be attended by an independent Korea. Forty years later, in a moment that brought tears to an entire nation, Sohn Keee-Chung entered the Seoul Olympic Stadium bearing the Olympic torch. The 76 year-old Sohn bounded around the track, leaping for joy and bursting with pride for himself and for his country.