John Lordan

{{Short description|Irish born American runner (1874 or 1876 – 1960)}} {{for|the British politician|John Lorden}} '''John Charles Lordan (or Lorden)'''{{refn|Lordan's first name in some sources is noted as "J.C." or "Jack"<ref name="Gambit Weekly"/><ref name="LSHF"/> and his last as "Lorden" or "Lordon" in others.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1904/1904lucas.pdf|title=Official Report 1904 (Lucas) page 1|access-date=2012-06-26|archive-date=2009-03-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304003336/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1904/1904lucas.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> His family name is spelled Lordan on his baptismal and marriage records, but in his race results he is referred to consistently as Lorden, except for the 1904 Olympic record where it is spelled Lordon. His first child was registered as Lordan but subsequent children as Lorden.|group=nb}} (born June 30, 1874, or June 29, 1876{{refn|The first date is from his baptismal record, the second from his US naturalization and draft registration records.|group=nb}}, died February 12, 1960<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/78715 |title=John Lordan |work=Olympedia |access-date=20 March 2022}}</ref>{{refn|His name appears in the 1940 Census of the United States, and in Boston City Directories for 1947 and 1948. |group=nb}}) was an Irish born American long-distance runner who won the 1903 Boston Marathon and competed in the marathon at the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis, Missouri.<ref name="Martin">{{cite book |last1=Martin |first1=David E. |last2=Gynn |first2=Roger W.H. |title=The Olympic Marathon |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qb125O62NVQC |access-date=August 17, 2011 |year=2000 |publisher=Human Kinetics Publishers |isbn= 9780880119696 |pages=40, 50 |chapter=1904: Tom Hicks Conquers Heat Wave In St. Louis|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qb125O62NVQC&pg=PA40 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/78715 |title=John Lordan |work=Olympedia |access-date=January 17, 2021}}</ref>

Born in Murragh, Cork, Ireland. Lordan was trained by fellow Cantabridgian Tad Gormley.<ref name="Gambit Weekly">{{cite news |title=Who was Tad Gormley? |author=Blake Pontchartrain |author-link=Gambit Weekly |url=http://www.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/who-was-tad-gormley/Content?oid=1278932 |newspaper=Gambit Weekly |access-date=August 17, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120401130637/http://www.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/who-was-tad-gormley/Content?oid=1278932|archive-date=2012-04-01|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="LSHF">{{cite web |url=http://www.lasportshall.com/index.php?src=directory&view=inductee&srctype=detail&back=inductee&refno=370 |title=Tad Gormley |publisher=Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame |access-date=August 17, 2011}}</ref> After finishing fifth in 1901 and third in 1902, Lordan finished ahead of Sammy Mellor and Michael Spring to win the 1903 Boston Marathon in a time of 2:41:29,<ref name="Martin"/> At the 1904 Summer Olympics, condition were very warm during the marathon and Lordon was reported to have begun vomiting within the first half mile of the race.<ref name="Martin"/> He did not finish the competition.<ref name="Martin"/> The next year, he entered the Boston Marathon but finished twelfth in a time of 2:57:51.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Boston Marathon: The History of the World's Premier Running Event|last=Derderian|first=Tom|publisher=Human Kinetics|year=1994|isbn=0-87322-491-4|location=Champaign IL USA|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bostonmarathonhi00derd/page/35 35]|url=https://archive.org/details/bostonmarathonhi00derd/page/35}}</ref>

He was an Irish immigrant who worked as a shipping agent for a manufacturing company in Cambridge. He trained at night only because of his job.

On August 18, 1909, Lorden raced a marathon in St. John’s, Newfoundland against his former teammate and 1898 Boston Marathon champion Ronald MacDonald on a six-lap-to-the-mile track at St. Bonaventure's College before 3,000 spectators. MacDonald was four laps behind at the twenty mile mark when Lorden "hit the wall." At the end, MacDonald finished 40 yards and ten seconds ahead of Lorden, in a time of 3:07:50 over 25 miles (40 km).<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/ref/collection/telegram19/id/66540|title=Marathon Race! McDonald Defeats Lorden. A Close Contest After the 20th Mile -- Thousands Witness the Event|date=August 19, 1909|newspaper=St. John's Evening Telegram|page=7|access-date=May 21, 2016}}</ref>

A monument was erected in his home town, Bandon, Co. Cork, to commemorate his victory in the Boston Marathon of 1903.

==Notes== <references group="nb"/>

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * {{sports links}} *{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/lo/john-lordan-1.html |title=John Lordan |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120706013549/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/lo/john-lordan-1.html |archive-date=2012-07-06 |url-status=dead}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lordan, John}} Category:1870s births Category:1960 deaths Category:American men long-distance runners Category:Olympic track and field athletes for the United States Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1904 Summer Olympics Category:American men marathon runners Category:Boston Marathon men winners Category:Sportspeople from Bandon, County Cork Category:Sportspeople from Cambridge, Massachusetts Category:Irish emigrants to the United States Category:20th-century American sportsmen