[Misc] A thread full of Iconic photos

shingle said:

Sharbat Gula aka 'the afghan girl' Its one of the most iconic pics of the 20th century taken by photographer Steve McCurry

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Flounce said:

View attachment 190849

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The Clamp said:

The one of Katherine Switzer fighting to finish the marathon make me genuinely cry. I have no idea why. Perhaps it’s defiance in the face of such bullying. It’s an astonishing feat and an astonishing picture .

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Professor Plum said:

The most memorable part of my Boston Marathon experience in 2009 wasn't from the race itself but from the expo, the day before. In a small darkened breakout room, Kathy Switzer spoke for 15 minutes or so about her iconic unofficial marathon in 1967. The detailed story behind her entering and running (as the deliberately gender-neutral 'KV Switzer') is well worth looking up.

A few miles into the race, word spread via the press boys to the race director, Jock Semple, that there was a girl out there on the course. Astonished and horrified, he located the guilty party and tried to drag her off the road. With the help of fellow (male) runners who protected her all the way to the end, Switzer was able to escape Semple’s aggression, and went on to finish in a creditable 4:20. The photographs are many and famous, and to Semple’s embarrassment, made the front pages of newspapers around the world the following day. Reluctantly, he had to concede that perhaps it really was possible for women to run 26 miles, a claim he had previously denied. It was an ungracious climb-down. But the rules were duly changed, and women’s marathon running became established. Later, as an official entrant, she completed Boston in a creditable 2:50.

The atmosphere in that room in 2009 was profoundly moving. I heard a couple of women weeping as she went through the story. And at the end, as she received her standing ovation, there can't have been a dry eye in the place. Certainly mine weren't. Like @The Clamp, I don't know what it is that jangles those emotions with this one, but it absolutely does.

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Professor Plum said:

The most memorable part of my Boston Marathon experience in 2009 wasn't from the race itself but from the expo, the day before. In a small darkened breakout room, Kathy Switzer spoke for 15 minutes or so about her iconic unofficial marathon in 1967. The detailed story behind her entering and running (as the deliberately gender-neutral 'KV Switzer') is well worth looking up.

A few miles into the race, word spread via the press boys to the race director, Jock Semple, that there was a girl out there on the course. Astonished and horrified, he located the guilty party and tried to drag her off the road. With the help of fellow (male) runners who protected her all the way to the end, Switzer was able to escape Semple’s aggression, and went on to finish in a creditable 4:20. The photographs are many and famous, and to Semple’s embarrassment, made the front pages of newspapers around the world the following day. Reluctantly, he had to concede that perhaps it really was possible for women to run 26 miles, a claim he had previously denied. It was an ungracious climb-down. But the rules were duly changed, and women’s marathon running became established. Later, as an official entrant, she completed Boston in a creditable 2:50.

The atmosphere in that room in 2009 was profoundly moving. I heard a couple of women weeping as she went through the story. And at the end, as she received her standing ovation, there can't have been a dry eye in the place. Certainly mine weren't. Like @The Clamp, I don't know what it is that jangles those emotions with this one, but it absolutely does.

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