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Bill Rodgers

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Athlete

The Resume

    (December 23, 1947- )
    Born in Hartford, Connecticut
    Long distance runner
    Four-time winner of the Boston Marathon (1975, 1978-80) and the New York Marathon (1976-79)

Why he might be annoying:

    He lost out on competing at the 1980 Olympics due to the U.S. boycott over the USSR’s invasion of Afghanistan.
    He found himself at the center of the Rosie Ruiz Boston Marathon cheating controversy, after he publicly doubted she had won fairly (April 21, 1980).
    He appeared with Ruiz the following day for a nationally televised morning show, and privately encouraged her to come clean before the show aired.
    When she doubled down and insisted she had really won, he sat next to her patiently before flatly stating that he didn’t believe her (‘I think Rosie will have to resolve this for herself, but I can’t conceive of it’).

Why he might not be annoying:

    He set a new American record after his first win at the Boston Marathon in 1975.
    He made the 1976 U.S. Olympic team and raced the marathon at the Montreal Olympics.
    After winning the Fukuoka Marathon in 1977, he became the first runner ever to hold the championship of all three major marathons at the same time.
    He was an inaugural inductee of the National Distance Running Hall of Fame in Utica in 1998.
    He was inducted to the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1999.
    He has written five books on running, including The Complete Idiot's Guide to Running.

Credit: BoyWithTheGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying