The image depicts a scene from the the 1908 Olympics held in London. The marathon was watched by 80,000 spectators, including Queen Alexandra, who witnessed the collapse of the leading competitor only metres away from the finish line. Dorando Pietri, from Italy, fell several times before completing the race. He managed to finish the race in first position but had to be disqualified as he had needed assistance from the officials and the medal was awarded to the American, Johnny Hayes. Since Dorando himself had not been responsible for his disqualification Queen Alexandra awarded him a gold cup in recognition of his achievement.