If an Olympic medal were ever to be awarded for that species of good-natured persistence called pluck, Felix Carvajal would be a certain candidate for the gold.

A postman in Havana , Cuba, and an amateur runner, the five-foot-one-inch (1.55 m)-tall Carvajal read in a newspaper that the 1904 Olympic Games would be held at St. Louis, Missouri. Nearly penniless, and with no Olympic Committee to sponsor him, Carvajal decided to pay his own way to the Games. At the close of the day, he would make his way to Havana’s central plaza and run in circles until he drew a crowd, whereupon he would declare his intention to travel to the United States and claim a prize for the greater glory of newly independent Cuba. His appreciative audience donated enough money to secure Carvajal a bunk on a tramp steamer bound for New Orleans, and off he went.

His money did not last long. The boat passage was expensive, and what little money Carvajal had left to him he lost playing dice in New Orleans. Undaunted, Carvajal walked, ran, and hitchhiked up the Mississippi River to St. Louis, where he appeared at the opening marathon, on a fiercely hot summer day, wearing woolen trousers, a linen shirt, street shoes, and a felt beret.

The race was delayed while a friendly American discus thrower cut off Carvajal’s trousers to fashion a pair of running shorts. Then the runners were on their way, with Americans Thomas Hicks and Arthur Newton leading a field that included contestants from France, Germany, Greece, and South Africa. Carvajal kept pace easily, seemingly unconcerned over the prospects of victory, even stopping from time to time to chat with bystanders and, once, to help himself to some green apples from a beckoning orchard. The apples caused him wrenching stomach cramps, and he fell by the wayside, losing long minutes while attending to his gastric discomfort.

Despite his unforeseen delay, Carvajal managed to finish fourth in the race, coming in at a time just shy of four hours. Hailed by the international press for his determination and amiable manner, he returned to Cuba a hero and resumed his mail route. He never appeared in international competition again.