This is the thrilling account of the heroism, ambition, and scandal of three remarkable men whose actions at the 1908 Olympics overshadowed the first London Games. Diminutive Italian Dorando Pietri fell five times, and was practically carried across the finish line. Scottish sprinter Wyndham Halswelle and American competitor Johnny Hayes were drawn into a dispute between the United States and the British Empire about sporting superiority, which spilled over into politics, lifestyle, and ethics, with allegations regarding cheating, drug-taking, and professionalism. John Bryant delves into the lives of these three extraordinary men in a tale that stretches from rural Italy to the battlefields of the Boer War and beyond to explore the foundations of the modern sporting and marathon movement.