The men's marathon race of the 1908 Summer Olympics took place in London on 24 July 1908. Johnny Hayes won after Dorando Pietri was disqualified for having received assistance before the finish line. For the first time in an Olympic marathon, the distance was 26 miles, 385 yards (42 195 m), which would become the standard distance in 1921. 75 competitors entered the race, of whom 55 from 16 nations started, with 27 from 11 nations finishing.

The official race report lists the leaders at each mile from the fourth to the twenty-fourth: Thomas Jack (miles 4–5); Frederick Lord (miles 6–14); Charles Hefferon (miles 15–24). Dorando Pietri of Italy caught Hefferon and sped up between Old Oak Common Lane and Wormwood Scrubs. He was the first to enter the stadium, but was already exhausted, and the most famous incident of the entire Games ensued.

Pietri turned the wrong way onto the track, and after turning round, collapsed several times as he progressed. Not far from the finish-line, two of the officials (Jack Andrew, the clerk of the course; and Dr Michael Bulger of the Irish Amateur Athletic Association, the chief medical officer that day) went to his aid. As a consequence the runner-up, American Johnny Hayes protested, leading to Pietri's disqualification.

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