Was Paul at the Isthmian games? he seems to have been a sports fan from the number of references. I found this story
During the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City a few thousand spectators remained in the Olympic Stadium waiting for the last of the men to finish the 28
mile marathon run. An hour earlier Mamo Wolde of Ethiopia had crossed the finish line looking as fresh as when he started out. Since then the runners had come in, each looking worse than the previous one, to be carted off to the first aid station. As the fans were get ready to leave they heard from the marathon gates the sound of sirens and police whistles. A
lone runner, John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania was the last man to finish the race. His leg bloodied and bandaged he winced visibly at every step as he hobbled the 400 meter circuit around the track. The spectators rose and applauded him as if he were the winner. Crossing the finish line he walked slowly off the field without even acknowledging the cheering crowd.

In view of his injury and having no chance to win a medal someone asked him why he bothered to finish the race. Why didn't he just quit? He replied: "My country did not send me 7,000 miles to start the race. They sent me 7,000 miles to finish it." Akhwari knew for whom he was running.
do we?