Does anyone have more information about this race? Supposedly it was a 10k run in 113 degree heat. Crazy to imagine half the field DNFing in the Olympics.
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2012/may/18/50-stunning-olympic-moments-paavo-nurmi
From Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paavo_Nurmi
In the cross country events, the heat of 45 °C (113 °F),[20] caused all but 15 of the 38 competitors to abandon the race.[16] Eight finishers were taken away on stretchers.[16] One athlete began to run in tiny circles after reaching the stadium, until setting off into the stands and knocking himself unconscious.[21] Early leader Wide was among those who blacked out along the course, and was incorrectly reported to have died at the hospital.[22][23] Nurmi exhibited only slight signs of exhaustion after beating Ritola to the win by nearly a minute and a half.[16] As Finland looked to have lost the team medal, the disoriented Liimatainen staggered into the stadium, but was barely moving forward.[24] An athlete ahead of him fainted 50 metres from the finish, and Liimatainen stopped and tried to find his way off the track, thinking he had reached the finish line.[24] After having ignored shouts and kept the spectators in suspense for a while, he turned into the right direction, realized his situation and reached the finish to take 12th place and secure team gold.[16][24] Those present at the stadium were shocked by what they had witnessed, and Olympic officials decided to ban cross country running from future Games.[25]