Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2024/01/19/marathon-runner-disqualified-for-chain-smoking-during-race.html
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In high school a friend said that running a lap around the track, cancelled out the effect of smoking a cigarette.
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Uncivilized behaviour from runners such as open defecation,
Uh…was this a thing?
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Reminds of when i was a kid, a school friend’s dad would go jogging in the neighborhood somewhat regularly and he would always job while chain smoking. It always struck me as really weird 
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It can be a problem in races in some places. Marathon running often results in bowel movements
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Marathon runners getting the shits is not uncommon, but I don’t see how dropping your shorts to let it fly is more “uncivilized” than letting it stain your shorts and run down your legs leaving a long trail behind you *(although, in a James-Bond-Aston-Martin kind of way it might benefit your lead.) I guess they just want you to lose minutes by running behind a bush, which means serious competitors will still just poo-on-the-go.
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Reminds me of when I did the Chicago Marathon back in 2000: a quarter mile from the finish line I was passed by this woman running full bore. She had wrapped her long-sleeve shirt around her waist, but you could see the effects of her discomfort running down her legs. Kudos to her for finishing. I’ve never had the trots that extreme, but very close.
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Only if it’s open.
Golly, can you imagine how well he might had done if he didn’t smoke?
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I get this, if I were also on the course I wouldn’t want to be near another marathoner puffing away at a cigarette. If I were running nearly the same pace as the guy I might have to deal with it for literally the whole race.
A vape pen doesn’t really smell like much at all, especially in open air, that might be less noxious. Would be more likely to give a pass to that.
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For sure. A race anything above half-marathon length goes better if you have a satisfying trip to the bathroom or port-a-potty before the start, absolutely no doubt.
It was the… when were you a kid? 70s? 80s?.. but yeah, up until the late 90s, people just smoked everywhere, all the time. The whole world used to constantly smell like an ashtray.
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Many long-distance races have portable toilets at intervals along the route but an athlete who was dedicated to their best finish time over all other considerations might not take the time to use one.
Besides, going in the middle of the street isn’t just gross because it’s “uncivilized.” It also directly impacts all the racers behind you.
Most people get diarrhea at some point in their lives, but very few deal with it by immediately dropping their pants and letting it fly wherever they happen to be at the moment.
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I read the headline and assumed he was disqualified because of the stimulant effects of nicotine enhancing his performance. Never thought it would be because of the hazards of outdoor second-hand smoke, but looking at the AQI in Xiamen, I guess runners need all the help they can get.
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I’m reminded of a King of the Hill episode where Dale lit his cigarette off of the Olympic torch.
(In the end Dale’s chain-smoking saved the integrity of the Olympics when Bobby used his cigarette to reignite a torch that had accidentally been extinguished.)
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This would’ve been maybe early to mid 90s 
but even then he was the only one i ever saw jogging while smoking and easily comes to mind when i think of silly things smokers do
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It’s not always a voluntary action during a marathon…
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Yeah, that period, too…
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I’ve run a some halves, a full marathon and everything in between.
I just wanted to brag.
I’ve seen smoking before and after but never during. I’ve also seen the other stuff, thankfully it’s never happened to me but it is on my mind when casing the courses.
Where are the porta potties, before after and during the race. I really do get anxious about it for anything longer than a 10k.
Haven’t run a race since covid we may seek out a race with very few participants and see how it goes this sumer. Me and the wife still want to do one more Detroit International Marathon while we still can but it is a crazy number of people congregating before and after and I’d need a backpack for my emergency sanitizing kit.
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