Rod Dreher

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Viva The Un-Lance Armstrong

By Rod Dreher • January 18, 2013, 2:50 AM

Two weeks ago, on December 2, Spanish athlete Iván Fernández Anaya was competing in a cross-country race in Burlada, Navarre. He was running second, some distance behind race leader Abel Mutai – bronze medalist in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the London Olympics. As they entered the finishing straight, he saw the Kenyan runner – the certain winner of the race – mistakenly pull up about 10 meters before the finish, thinking he had already crossed the line.

Fernández Anaya quickly caught up with him, but instead of exploiting Mutai’s mistake to speed past and claim an unlikely victory, he stayed behind and, using gestures, guided the Kenyan to the line and let him cross first.

“I didn’t deserve to win it,” says 24-year-old Fernández Anaya. “I did what I had to do. He was the rightful winner. He created a gap that I couldn’t have closed if he hadn’t made a mistake. As soon as I saw he was stopping, I knew I wasn’t going to pass him.”

The sportsman as mensch. That there is a good man. I bet he has a real girlfriend, too.

Posted in Sports. Tagged Abel Mutai, Ivan Fernandez Anaya, running.

26 Responses to Viva The Un-Lance Armstrong

EliteCommInc. says:

January 18, 2013 at 5:09 am

Hope springs . . . . integrity, honor, respect . . . grace.

When I took up riding again in 2002, I loved watching the cycling, and Armstrong was beyond iconic. I was a bit put off by the hint of arrogance, but, when you reach beyond iconic status . . .

It was one of the few aspects of my life untainted by my bitterness, mostly. I was and am an advocate for him and since I can no longer defend him, I wish he would just be still and take care of his family.

Love that real girl friend line. But in the players defense, some people are genuinely vulnerable.

Oh, what’s girlfirend?
Sam M says:

January 18, 2013 at 6:30 am

Rod,

It’s not very often that I question your journalistic instincts, but I am not sure how you missed the obvious news here: El Pais is making Iron Maiden references in its headlines! “The Honesty of the Long Distance Runner” is clearly a play of “The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner.” And it’s not just a play on words. It’s kind of what the song is about:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3L-TOjazwg

Granted, it’s based on a short story and movie. But I still consider it an Iron Maiden reference. The world is flat!

Great story. This guy might want to give Sheryl Crow a call. Or not.

[Note from Rod: I don't know Iron Maiden, but I did get the "Loneliness" reference. Didn't think it worth mentioning. It was a short story, and then a film, before Iron Maiden got hold of it. -- RD]
Hunsdon says:

January 18, 2013 at 7:12 am

Class.
JohnE_o says:

January 18, 2013 at 7:31 am

That’s the difference between Sportsmanship and the Athletic-Entertainment-Commercialism Complex
KateLE says:

January 18, 2013 at 8:08 am

I applaud him, I wish professional sports were made up of people like him, but you’re probably never going to hear the guy’s name again. He’s probably never going to get chunks of cash from Nike, and we all know the reason why.

We sit around and congratulate people like Anaya when it’s brought to our attention, and we feel good about ourselves (and him) for doing so. Then we immediately forget him and turn on the TV to watch the winners.
Don Quijote says:

January 18, 2013 at 8:30 am

It;s the difference between a comfortable retirement in in your mid-thirties and never having to worry about money again and spending the rest of your life living a couple of paychecks away from the poor house…
JohnE_o says:

January 18, 2013 at 9:21 am

From The Onion

Lance Armstrong Admits To Using Performance-Enhancing Drugs To Show Remorse

http://www.theonion.com/articles/lance-armstrong-admits-to-using-performanceenhanci,30912/
Peter B. Nelson says:

January 18, 2013 at 9:32 am

It’s “Cars” come to life. Mr. Anaya is Lightning McQueen. Abel Mutai is The King. No one wants to be Chick Hicks.
M_Young says:

January 18, 2013 at 9:53 am

Truly an old school moment. Similar to this famous one from the 1950s where Australian miler John Landy stops and runs back to help a fallen competitor — and then makes up 35 yards to win the race.

Landy’s famous race with Roger Bannister is pretty inspiring too, the race itself and the interviews at the end. Banister won. He is hacking up a lung from having a chest cold, but doesn’t say a word about it, praising Landy profusely. Landy, on the other hand, is said to have cut his foot so severely before the race he needed stitches. He denied that, claiming that his pronounced limp after the race was due to a blister which developed during the race. At any rate, a model of grace in victoria and grace in defeat.
vandelay says:

January 18, 2013 at 10:08 am

Meh. “Rightful” winners are usually aware of what winning entails. If Tiger Woods walks off the course after the 17th hole, forgetting about the 18th, and that costs him the Masters, then he’s not a rightful winner of the green jacket. The guy who may have been trailing, but maintains awareness of where the “finish line” is, does indeed deserve to win. All sports, even track, involve more than pure athletic ability.

But I get what you’re saying, Rod. Sorry if that was too pedantic.
Joe the Plutocrat says:

January 18, 2013 at 10:10 am

well said.
Floridan says:

January 18, 2013 at 10:19 am

Well, if that’s the way Anaya wants to play it, then that’s fine. However, if he had passed Mutai it would hardly be an indication of poor sportsmanship.

Anaya might have felt a win under those circumstances would be less than complete; on the other hand it is not Anaya’s job to compensate for other competitors’ mistakes.
runner123 says:

January 18, 2013 at 10:41 am

What kind of runner doesn’t know where the finish line is? Has he never run a race before?

How do you pull up 10 meters before the finish? Weren’t there people waving him on?

It’s not enough to be fast, you need to be intelligent enough to know where the finish line is. Running is a very intellectual sport in that regard.
Hunsdon says:

January 18, 2013 at 11:48 am

A friend once quoted from “Deadwood” to me. Apparently some Chinese residents turned to the big boss of the town for help after one of them was killed, and the big boss asked, “Did you come here to make your way, or did you come here for justice?”

God help me, I came here for justice.
SK says:

January 18, 2013 at 11:56 am

When I read the headline, I thought it would be an article about an athlete who won without taking drugs. Silly me: this is an article about an athlete who lost without taking drugs.

sk
Tony D. says:

January 18, 2013 at 3:15 pm

Oy. I’m getting all verklempt. Thanks for this.
M_Young says:

January 18, 2013 at 3:32 pm

Flodidan makes a good point — especially in a Cross Country race, as this seems to be, knowing the course is legitimately part of the competition.
Mike W says:

January 18, 2013 at 3:33 pm

Cool. Sent the link along to my distance runner teenage son…that was his reaction, too. Thanks for posting.
bill holston says:

January 18, 2013 at 3:54 pm

Senor Anaya shows grace and honor. Rare indeed. Ask yourself if you were his father, would you be prouder of him ‘losing’ this race, or showing this character. I know what I think. Thanks Rod.
Saint Andeol says:

January 18, 2013 at 4:05 pm

The full story has a good quote from Anaya’s trainer:

“The gesture has made him a better person but not a better athlete. He has wasted an occasion. Winning always makes you more of an athlete. You have to go out to win.”

I feel like this is a pretty cynical view to have, but then I remember that most people who paricipate in competitive athletics are extremely driven to be successful, and nowadays the main metric of success is getting “the win”.

I think we will ALL agree, since it’s not really up for debate, that John Candy said it best in Cool Runnings, explaining why he cheated in bobsledding:

Irv: [telling Derice why he cheated] “It’s a fair question. It’s quite simple, really. I had to win. You see, Derice, I had made winning my whole life, and when you make winning your whole life, you have to keep on winning, no matter what. Understand?”

It took a team of scrappy Jamaican underdogs carrying their crashed bobsled across the finish line to teach him what it means to be a real champion. Given some of the comments here, maybe they still have something to teach the rest of us . . .
Noah G. says:

January 18, 2013 at 4:09 pm

Great story. I love that this happened.

(I’m assuming the “I bet he has a real girlfriend” line was referring to the Manti Teo thing. There’s some new information on that, supposedly the person that tricked him did it to at least one other person before. The guy’s cousin has come forward, and the person who was previously the victim. He used the same picture both times, of the fake girl. Admittedly I want to believe it, but it does seem legit.)
GuitarMan says:

January 18, 2013 at 4:17 pm

For the record, “The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner” was not an Iron Maiden original….it’s actually a short story by Alan Sillitoe…..Maiden simply adapated the story into song….

For the record, “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is a much better Maiden adaptation!!
Naturalmom says:

January 18, 2013 at 6:28 pm

awesome.
RB says:

January 19, 2013 at 3:08 pm

I showed this to my distance-runner husband. We love the story.

This is the kind of guy who should get the endorsement deals, though I know in the real world that’s unlikely to happen.
Garrett Elwood says:

January 20, 2013 at 8:20 am

In all fairness, Armstrong did the same thing in the 2003 Tour De France.

“Beyond sportsmanship, the reason for Ullrich’s decision not to make a mad dash for it is that, just two years earlier, Armstrong did not make a move on current leader Ullrich on this crash” (The 8 Most Memorable Tour de France Crashes. By Bill Hanstock on Jul 18, 11:02a) http://www.sbnation.com/tour-de-france/2012/7/18/3163318/tour-de-france-crash-videos

See the crash here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=jPsktl4T-S4#!
Kent Long says:

January 23, 2013 at 1:41 pm

“What a chump!” said Hilary Clinton. “He should have crossed the finish line and won, then during the award ceremony graciously invited him to the top podium for the photo op. You get the pub for being a nice guy and still keep the prize money. It’s just good politics. Next question……”