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Michel Johann Théato (22 March 1878 – 2 April 1923) was a Luxembourgish long-distance runner, and the winner of the marathon at the 1900 Olympics in Paris for France. He was born in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg and died in Paris, France.[1][2]

Michel Théato

Théato in 1900
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Luxembourg
Olympic Games
	1900 Paris	Marathon

Early life

Little is known about Théato's early life. For many years it was believed he was a baker's delivery boy in Paris. He also worked for some time as a cabinetmaker. In the 20th century, Alain Bouillé discovered that Théato was born in Luxembourg and had moved to Belgium before settling down in the Paris suburbs. There is no evidence that Théato ever applied for French citizenship.[3] Théato was a member of the athletics club in Saint-Mandé in Paris.[1]

1900 Olympics

The marathon started at 2:30pm in blazing heat. There were only 13 starters of the race, of whom 6 finished.[4] Théato won the race with a time of 2:59:45.[5]

Théato's victory was initially disputed, as several of his opponents, including American runner Arthur Newton, who finished fifth, alleged that Théato had cheated by taking multiple shortcuts, helped by his local knowledge of the Parisian streets through his job as a delivery boy. These allegations have since been disproved, but as a result of them, Théato did not receive the gold medal until 1912.[6]

Later life

Théato later became a professional runner, although with relatively little success. He set a personal best in the marathon of 2:42 in 1901.[1]

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg lodged an official complaint with the International Olympic Committee and petitioned to change the Olympic record of Théato's nationality; the complaint was officially rejected in 2004.[3] In 2021, the IOC site mistakenly displayed the Luxembourg flag on Michel Théato's page, which led some to believe that Luxembourg had officially recovered this Olympic title. It was actually a technical error in the IOC database, error since corrected, between nationality and NOC represented by the athlete.[7]

References

External links

• Michel Théato at French Athletics Federation (in French)
• Michel Théato at Olympics.com
• Michel Théato at Olympedia

На других языках

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- [en] Michel Théato

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[fr] Michel Théato

Michel Théato est un athlète luxembourgeois courant pour la France, né le 22 mars 1878 à Luxembourg-Ville et mort le 2 avril 1923 à Paris, et licencié à l'Union Athlétique de Paris. Il est champion olympique du marathon lors des Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900 à Paris. Il remporta la première médaille d'or olympique en athlétisme pour la France (depuis 2021 le CIO donne la victoire au Luxembourg). Il fut également vice-champion de France de cross-country en 1901.

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[it] Michel Théato

Michel Johann Théato (Lussemburgo, 22 marzo 1878 – Parigi, 2 aprile 1923) è stato un maratoneta lussemburghese naturalizzato francese.

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[ru] Теато, Мишель

Мишель Иоанн Теато (люксемб. Michel-Johann Theato; 22 марта 1878 (1878-03-22), Люксембург, Люксембург — 1919, Париж, Франция) — люксембургский легкоатлет, чемпион Олимпийских игр 1900 года.

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