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HistoryPhotos is for photographs (or, if it can be found, film) of the past, recent or distant! Give us a little snapshot of history!

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Photos MUST be at LEAST 10 years old, and ideally over 20. We appreciate that we are living through events which will become history, but this is ultimately not a comm for news or current affairs, but events which have occurred some time in the past.

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210

Katherine Switzer, first registered woman to complete the Boston Marathon, with her fellow runners interfering with an official's attempt to remove her bib number, USA, 1967 (media.piefed.social)

submitted 4 months ago by PugJesus@piefed.social to c/historyphotos@piefed.social

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[–] logicbomb@lemmy.world 108 points 4 months ago (1 children)

There's a lot of things to think about in that photo, but one of the most shocking things is the date. 1967.

This is from Switzer's wikipedia page:

In response to her run, the AAU banned women from competing in races against men—women had not previously been explicitly excluded. Five years later, in 1972, women were first accepted officially to run the Boston Marathon. Switzer finished third in that 1972 race and Semple presented her with her trophy.

So, there wasn't even a rule that forbid women from running in 1967. They just acted that way because all of the organizers held the bigotry in their hearts.

Maybe to some young'uns here, 1967 seems like a very long time ago. But it really wasn't. Switzer herself is 78 and still making appearances.

[–] maltasoron@sopuli.xyz 53 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (4 children)

To add, Semple is the guy trying to take her bib. They made amends and became good friends afterwards (wiki).

[–] PugJesus@piefed.social 14 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Some people are legitimately just imaginationless (and sometimes misinformed in addition) and process-oriented rather than malicious - I know more of them than I care to.

At their core, they aren't inherently bad people. But in a bad system, they often end up its defenders.

Him coming 'round and ending up a staunch supporter of women in running shows just how entrenched people can get in a way of doing things - and how, once that entrenchment is eroded (either by their own realization or the system itself changing), they're not that different from you or I.

[–] maltasoron@sopuli.xyz 7 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Indeed, his Wikipedia page describes him as being prone to attack anyone who didn't take the marathon sufficiently serious:

Semple was a Boston Marathon race co-director. He had an established history dating back to at least 1957 of physically attacking Boston Marathon runners he perceived to be "non-serious" competitors, whether officially entered or running the course unofficially.[2] In a 1968 interview with Sports Illustrated,[2] he remarked "These screwballs! These weirdies!", crying at the ceiling "These MIT boys! These Tufts characters! These Harvard guys! They write me askin' should they put on spiked shoes for the marathon!" According to fellow race official Will Cloney: "He hurls not only his body at them, but also a rather choice array of epithets... Jock's method of attack is apt to vary." In 1957, Semple narrowly escaped arrest for assault after attempting to knock down a marathon competitor who was wearing webbed snorkeler's shoes and a grotesque mask. "The thing that made me so damned mad," Semple said, "was that the guy was runnin' with the good runners." at the 6.5 miles (10.5 km) mark.[2]

(As I understand it, he didn't take issue with women running the marathon unofficially, like Bobbi Gibb, who ran in the same race and finished well before Switzer.)

[–] PugJesus@piefed.social 3 points 4 months ago

In a 1968 interview with Sports Illustrated,[2] he remarked “These screwballs! These weirdies!”, crying at the ceiling “These MIT boys! These Tufts characters! These Harvard guys! They write me askin’ should they put on spiked shoes for the marathon!”

Ironically, that statement makes him sound like the biggest screwball of them all.

[–] brown567@sh.itjust.works 11 points 4 months ago

That's wonderful!

[–] Madison420@lemmy.world 4 points 4 months ago

There's a dollop on it. Gotta be like 170 something I'll look it up in a bit.

[–] Fredselfish@lemmy.world 2 points 4 months ago

Guy was even named Jock, glad she could be so forgiving but he was big asshole that should of not been allowed 100ft to any marathon. If I been her boyfriend he gotten an ass kicking. Not just pushed down.