Biden’s speech struck me as the petty, narcissistic effort of a small, graceless man. He’s the Rosie Ruiz of the pandemic, cutting in near the finish line and claiming victory.
Ruiz infamously jumped into the 1980 Boston Marathon in the final stretch of the race and claimed the women’s win ahead of the true champion, Jacqueline Gareau of Québec. Runners and fans have always resented that Ruiz basked in acclamation for her supposed come-from-behind victory and refused to admit guilt. Gareau had to cross the finish line with no recognition of her course record time of 2:34:28, or her dominant defeat of the prerace favorite, Patti Lyons of Boston, who was second in 2:35:08.
It was also found that Ruiz began her course-cutting career in her first marathon, New York City in 1979, when she either dropped out, or skipped the course completely, and was seen on the subway to Central Park. She crossed the finish line, receiving medical attention for a supposedly injured ankle, and her bar code was recorded as a finisher. That gave her a Boston qualification for 1980. Her employer, thrilled by her result, paid her expenses to go to Boston.
https://www.runnersworld.com/news/a28615122/rosie-ruiz-boston-marathon-dies/