When did "just finishing" become a big accomplishment?

When Jimmy Carter started jogging.

I don't get it, my wife gets annoyed when I finish too quickly, but you're saying that's a good thing?

Well, it was probably harder on them, than it was the winner...what's your point ?

it's been a thing since at least the time i "just finished" doing a marathon with your mom but i think there were other guys who "just finished" before me

SON; A TIME IN YOUR LIFE WILL COME WHEN YOU SIMPLY...DO NOT GIVE A SH!T!

RE: When did "just finishing" become a big accomplishment?

yup. Only pu$$ies set their goals to just wanting "to finish" rather than winning.

Signed,

Rocky "just wanna go the distance" Balboa.

When did "just finishing" become a big accomplishment?

When those who didn't think it was possible actually gave it a try.

Back in the old days only those who knew they could finish were the ones who ran.

Most people are incapable of doing anything awesome, but they need their validation somehow. Hence celebrating participation.

People run for different reasons, which is the beauty of the sport. I know it’s LRCool to make fun of hobbyjoggers, but, in reality, it’s those people that are keeping major races from going under. And some of them are people who register for a race to give themselves a goal or to attempt to do something they never thought possible.

My brother in law, for example, struggled with opioid addiction and mental health issues for 20 years. He’s now over 5 years sober and finished his first half marathon last fall. His time wasn’t impressive, but he finished something that was hard for him (he never ran or played sports before training for the half). It completely hit a switch in his life: he has a job for the first time in over a decade, he’s living on his own, and now he’s training for his first marathon.

So while it’s easy to write these people off as unprepared or whatever, maybe you should take a few moments to be empathetic and really think about what some of these people have gone through before you pass judgment.

Watch Free Solo, all he did was finish climbing up the mountain. So what.

But really, if it became common place for people to climb up that big rock, the next thing would be how fast it was.

To those people at the back, just being able to get their bodies to cover 26.2 miles is a big accomplishment like being able to carry your body up a rock wall.

probably a long time before you were happy "just finishing" college with your 2.8 GPA and business degree.

sorry for the personal attack but it's true

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Great responses so far but very few actually addressing my question..

I'm not saying everyone has to be an olympian but why is the bar so low for us? And how did we let it get there?

It'd be nice to see an article about running on Facebook that's about not some overweight lady walking a marathon she didn't train for.

It's great for her I guess, but why are we told to believe it's something remarkable?

A generation of participation trophies. The only kudos I give to just finishing is doing an Ironman without walking or doing a 100k.

I totally get what you’re saying!

Like, there’s a lotta phoney baloney praise out there for people who show up to an event undertrained and out of shape. Then, others will bestow praise, that these people are so courageous. They are our heroes!

In the real world, it is praiseworthy to either BE in shape for the race you’re signed up for, or to POSTPONE a race because youre not in shape to run it. That’s the way i see it.

If the weekly mileage a person has been doing, is not suitable for the event distance, then things get pretty awkward and pretty unsightly. (Not to mention, pretty unsafe.) I know everyone is trying so hard to be inclusive these days, but running a distance or pace that is beyond one’s fitness, is Poor Judgment.

Its, of course not a crime to have a lapse in judgment, but the gushy platitudes from some commentators and finish line announcers aren’t warranted if you ask me.

Is it really an accomplishment to walk a 5k/half/marathon?

I get the whole doing something you set out to do, but you could also go out any day and walk that distance. Humans are designed to walk and have been doing it for a very long time without receiving praise.

People have forgotten that marathons are actually races and care more about the people just finishing than those who are out racing.

To answer the OP's question, it started right about when it was decided that everyone need a participation trophy or when millenials got old enough to participate in marathons.

To the OP:

Because Communism

I actually couldn't complete walking a marathon (I'm getting a bit old tho now). I can run a lot further than I can walk though. You would probably be surprised how few people without any training at all could complete one.

This is why for that overweight, older, somethingorover'er, it's a bigger ask than it is for you, and why it's become a big accomplishment.

Let's don't over think this.

When you are a virgin right?

I "just finished" on your mom's face. You're right, it felt wholly routine.