The Most Devious Cheat At the Olympics

        In the 1976 Montreal Olympics, a Russian athlete named Boris Onischenko, or dishonest chenko was going to compete in the modern day pentathlon. Pentathletes swim, run, shoot pistols, ride horses, and fence. Onischenko won the team gold in 1972 and the single silver twice.

        This would likely be Onischenko’s last Olympics, as he was already 38 years old. Many assumed he would leave the Olympic games with yet another medal, as the Russian team was fourth with their strongest skills still to come. The second day was the fencing competition, with a round robin tournament spread around 46 matches in 12 hours. The aim was to win 70% of the matches, which would award a point bonus.

        The Russians played the British early that day. Onischenko beat Danny Nightingale, Adrian Parker, and then Mike Proudfoot, who called an official to inspect the Russian’s fencing equipment. The officials found nothing wrong, and said this complaint was merely “early morning jitters”. After that, Onischenko played a 36-year old veteran named Jim Fox. In the middle of the match, Onischenko lunged at Fox, who successfully avoided the move by leaping backwards, but the scoreboard registered a hit.

        Fox was so experienced that he didn’t assume it was a malfunction. He asked the judges to inspect Onischenko’s gear again. When he saw Onischenko grabbing a new weapon, Fox stopped him and the judges found a button in the handle of his blade. When pressed, it would notify the scoreboard that a hit had been scored, even if it never had happened. It was like waving a magic wand.

        Onischenko was disqualified immediately. Furthermore, the incident became the most infamous case of sporting skulduggery in Olympic history. That night in the Olympic village, the Soviet volleyball team threatened to throw Onischenko out of a window because he had brought nothing but shame to their nation. Some would argue that he was just a victim of the winning attitude of the soviet nation. As Bill Gates once said, success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can't lose. But nevertheless, if you are smart, use your intelligence with good ethics towards notable actions, but not those you might regret for the rest of your life.