On a blistering August afternoon in 1904, 32 athletes entered the Olympic Marathon in St. Louis, Missouri. Only 14 made it to the finish line.

What followed was a perfect storm of incompetence, stupidity, betrayal, cheating, wild dogs, and rat poison.

A brass worker from Birmingham, a bricklayer from New York, and a postman from Cuba in dress shoes and woollen trousers are among the hopefuls gathered for a grand new sporting event — the Olympic Marathon. Drawn by the promise of glory, redemption, and a first prize awarded by the First Daughter, Alice Roosevelt, they have no earthly idea what they’ve signed up for.

Marathon tells the story of the 1904 Olympic Marathon, a race so chaotic it nearly killed its contestants — and the event itself — for good.

This is a play about falling short, spectacularly. Marathon finds the comedy and heart in sporting disaster, celebrating the losers, the cheats, and the ones who never made it to the finish line.

Award-winning New Zealand comedian Nic Sampson brings to life the unbelievable true story of one of the strangest sporting events of all time.