Dear Sirs,
As promised, I have provided, for your perusal a trio of excerpts from my new book, “Greatest Moments in Road Running”.
Please feel free to check them for accuracy but I believe my recall to be quite competent and I have no desire to utilize any modern technologies for my research as I do not trust either the internet or its denizens.
I have many more that will constitute the bulk of the book and will be happy to provide further should your response be positive.
Herewith, excerpts from the first chapter…
The First Marathon
The Marathon came about thanks to the Greek runner Phidippihidippihodos who, after discovering that he was late for work and had missed the last cart to Athens out of Marathon, decided to simply run the distance.
Upon reaching the office he immediately exploded and his feet were found 26 miles and 385 yards away.
His workmates were so amazed that they instituted the the practice of running marathons to see if they could get it to happen again, but this time on camera.
Fortunately nobody has exploded since. (Paula Radcliffe’s bold attempt notwithstanding)
The Four Minute Mile.
The four-minute mile was considered an impossibility and had long thwarted the ambitions of even the fastest men.Many attempts failed, with frustrations rising, a German team even attempted the record on horseback, but to no avail.
The barrier was eventually broken in 1911 by Sir Edmund Hillary after he controversially reached the finish line before Tensing Norgay, and had his photo taken with the winner’s medal.
Some claimed he had preferential access to bottled oxygen and his use of pacers was also questioned.
The Trip : Zola Budd and Mary Decker
At the 1984 Olympics in Tasmania, Zola Budd(named after a type of South African taxi) controversially tripped her rival in the 3000m, Mary Decker (named after the mother of Jesus and one half of a power-tool company)
Considered a cautionary tale about the effects of fame and notoriety on a fragile child, the incident has long sparked debate as to whether or not the trip was intentional on the part of Ms. Budd -as what was not shown on the televised footage was that after tripping Ms. Decker, Ms Budd also punched, kicked, and, most egregiously, pistol-whipped her with a starter’s gun that she wrestled away from a nearby official.
This would seem to mitigate against Ms. Budd’s claims of innocence.
Thank you for taking the time to read these excerpts, I trust they meet your publishing standards ?
