2008 summer olympics marathon disaster

I won't be saying anything that hasn't already been said, but I think it will be funny if the marathon becomes a spectacle if all foreign marathon runners fail to complete the race, and have to be carried away on a stretcher. If pollution in china is anything like smoking your first cigarette for the first time, the effects on a healthy body will be very intense. Marathon runners are usually well tuned machines for pumping in air. If someone goes from never having smoked, to smoking a whole carton of cigarettes in one day, its very possible that they might even drop dead. Even if they push through and finish the race, we're talking about life altering permanent damage to the body. Does a marathon runner want that? No, that's the last thing they are looking for. No medal is worth harm to your health. Its like a chess champion who knows that he can be #1 this year if he's willing to walk away with brain damage. Gee...no thanks.