Holy smokes….incredible finish at LA Marathon today by American Nathan Martin coming from behind to catch and beat Kenyan Michael Kamari at the finish line pic.twitter.com/hYk1jxsqBk
— Wu Tang is for the Children (@WUTangKids) March 9, 2026
March 9, 2026
An exciting finish to the L.A. Marathon yesterday. That's the American Nathan Martin, catching up to the Kenyan Michael Kamari.
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39 comments:
Nice finish! Shocked the Kenyan so much he fainted (or something).
Not sure what the announcers' vantage point was and what they could see. Given the history of the race, I doubt they had any reason to anticipate anything but a routine ending. I find them not guilty of Extreme Terribleness.
A photo finish in a 26+ mile race.
I wonder how many more times we will ever see that.
That commentary is right up there with my TDS suffering friends saying "I have no words" when demonstrating their latest Trumpian outrage.
"Achilles said...
A photo finish in a 26+ mile race.
I wonder how many more times we will ever see that."
It happened just a few months ago at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. 9/15/25
"Mike (MJB Wolf) said...
Nice finish! Shocked the Kenyan so much he fainted (or something)." I think he lengthened his gate at the last second and fell.
Vapid media announcers, all over the place in participation trophy/ managed decline/ LA.
"A photo finish in a 26+ mile race. I wonder how many more times we will ever see that."
I don't think the length of the race has as much effect as you think. Martin could see where Kamari was and only needed to surprise him in the last few seconds.
Much better announcers at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
This is a classic stealth take-down. Kamari had the race "in the bag" mentally and was just trotting. He could have kicked and won easily. Psychological hubris led to losing.
Thanks for posting this!
here’s a link to that photo finish:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ED_3d6f-Fxg
Great job by martin. Crazy he still had so much gas in the tank after 26 miles.
Reminds me of when the Hide-And-Seek Olympics ended in a tie.
https://youtu.be/Ycb9_Y_gJ-g?si=fTxS9DJBGgD4oPON
Yeah, its obvious Kamari didn't see Martin or he would've kicked it up a notch. Incredible athletes. Martin can till talk after doing that. I'm huffing and puffing after a mile. An eight minute mile.
Yes, incredible sprint after 26 miles.
LA Marathon organizers made a head-scratching decision to reward runners "who have had a tough day" through 18 miles of the course. Runners participating in the marathon have the option to receive their medals at the 18-miler marker, and don’t necessarily have to cross the finish line after 26.2 miles.
Oh the humanity!
Earlier in the race, Kamari got distracted by a woman who started running front of him waving a flag and took a wrong turn. He had to double back to the proper course. It probably cost him 30 seconds and the race.
The announcers sound like they are describing a float in the Rose Parade.
A runner from Africa didn’t win a marathon? Is that even allowed? They’re dominated marathons for so long that seeing someone else, and an American no less, is surprising.
He was robbed!
"Carlitos
@cptn_carlos
What a wild ending to the LA marathon. My mom was able to catch what led to the cinematic ending. The leader went the wrong way. Woman impedes his path, runs to his left and forces him into the middle of the fork + orange shirt waving him right + motorcade goes right at the fork."
https://x.com/cptn_carlos/status/2030856505294250359
Nathan "Afterburner" Martin
@rehajm on the 18-mile medal option.
I suspect that race organizers hate to manage the laggards. They hate to pay for security and medical teams. They hate to keep the roads closed. At 18 miles, those who "gave it a go" can declare victory and quit. There may be many injuries and support teams required for those pushing beyond their abilities.
U.S.A.! U.S.A.! U.S.A!
I don't think I have ever seen an exciting marathon finish before.
Surprised they didn’t tell people to jump the line and run the last 18 miles. Or the last 18 meters.
“In this house we believe no finisher is illegal!” CC, JSM
“I suspect that race organizers hate to manage the laggards. They hate to pay for security and medical teams. They hate to keep the roads closed.”
Easily solved. If runners don’t complete X number of miles by a certain time - race is over for them. But handing medals out like candy is not the answer.
CA believes humans and animals have the same rights. So just treat any laggards like lame horses, Far Side style. CC, JSM
Old and slow said...
Earlier in the race, Kamari got distracted by a woman who started running front of him waving a flag and took a wrong turn. He had to double back to the proper course. It probably cost him 30 seconds and the race.
Maybe, but maybe not. The guy int eh #2 position knew where the #1 guy was, but the reverse wasn't true. If he'd known the #2 guy was closing on him, THAT would have let him keep #1 and win
john mosby said...
"Surprised they didn’t tell people to jump the line and run the last 18 miles. Or the last 18 meters.
“In this house we believe no finisher is illegal!” CC, JSM"
Rosie Ruiz approves this message.
“Martin could see where Kamari was and only needed to surprise him in the last few seconds.”
I don’t think Kamari was surprised. He knew where Martin was and that he was gaining fast. You can see him looking back to check, and I’m sure people in the crowd were yelling at him. He tries to speed up near the end but just doesn’t have enough left. Amazing kick from Martin at the finish.
The incident where he went off course was 400 meters from the finish line. It most certainly cost him the race.
Isn't this basic race tactics? They say the leader sets the pace, but the pace is actually set by the field. Once the leader is lulled into "just keeping ahead", then you can go into attack and surprise them. The trick is timing it, so they don't realize the attack is on or that you run out of distance to out sprint them.
"RCOCEAN II said... Incredible athletes."
Are they? https://www.tiktok.com/@thefilm_fraternity/video/7504758785794182443
Omg, Omg ... ad infinitum
Video : This sounded hilarious to me. I'm not sure but, I don't think they were being coherent.
It reminded me of the Dean Scream.
That reminds me of those smartphone videos where people keep saying, "OH, SHIT! OH SHIT! OH SHIT!..." when something bad or spectacular is happening. (BTW, you can inject any of the classic swear words in there."
The last time there was an upset like this, Rosie Ruiz jumped in from the crowd at the 25.7 mile mark. Rosie went from crime to crime, ending up, appropriately enough, as a pharma rep. She passed away in 2019. R.I.P.
Announcers? This is how a professional does it:
"High fly ball into right field, she is gone!" and then, not another word for over a minute.
Kirk Gibson's legendary 1988 World Series walk-off home run, called by Vin Scully!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4nwMDZYXTI
In the year of the improbable, the impossible has happened!
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