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Race: Len Tau (left) and Jan Mashiani of South Africa participated in the 1904 Olympic marathon but didn’t officially represent the country. Photo: Missouri History Museum
BW HARRIS

Who were the first Africans at the Olympics?

The story of two marathon runners in the 1904 Games held in the US exposes the racist and colonial attitudes of the day

  • Francois Cleophas
6 min read