Win or Lose

[Markel]

I'm in an online discussion with someone, and I thought I'd solicit some other opinions.

In a race with more that 2 participants, if one of the participants is said to "lose" the race, in what position did they finish.

[ShawnLee]

The classic answer is that second place is first loser, but I'd say being the out and out loser means that you've come in absolutely last.

[Grimm]

Any position other than 1st.

[Markel]

Man - you guys start answering before I get the poll posted! :P

[Yossarian]

he's dead jim, dead.

[Memo]

Anything other than 1st is losing man. If you get 2nd...sure you won 2nd but you LOST 1st. You're still a loser!

[AlpineJay]

In any race, runner-up and below are the losers IMO.

[raimin]

agree with everyone, you win something, but overall you lost the race

[Gothic Girl]

Yeah, I could see all your guy's point. I guess losing is anything after first, but I think as long as you at least place something, whether it be 2nd or 3rd, you didn't completly lose. But my son's racing BMX so I'm trying to teach him that a 2nd and 3rd place trophy is good too.

[Merlin]

Yeah, I could see all your guy's point. I guess losing is anything after first, but I think as long as you at least place something, whether it be 2nd or 3rd, you didn't completly lose. But my son's racing BMX so I'm trying to teach him that a 2nd and 3rd place trophy is good too.
Yeah, you did not win the race but you still beat someone.

As for the question....If three people are running for president only one of them wins. The other two are losers.

But in other areas it could depend on how you frame the question. If you win an Olympic Silver Medal, are you a loser? I guess so since someone had to beat you to get it.

[Markel]

The particular question was posed concerning a hypothetical horse race.

[zenbooty]

Any result that doesn't involve celebration, reward, or advancement to the next round of competition is losing. So for horses, assuming its a one shot race, you've got the winner, the placer, the shower, then the losers.

[Butch]

It depends on the perspective.

In the grand view, anybody who didn't finish first in the race, lost.

However, within particular contexts and in more narrowly viewed perspectives, there are any number of ways in which one could "win."

Did a competitor in the special olympics "win" even if he/she didn't finish first? Sure. Did the person who had a personal best time during the NYC Marathon "win?" Sure.

It's all relative. However, in the absolute sense, it is not.

[bachviet]

Any position after first

[zippyjuan]

There are races within a race. You can lose the race for first but not lose the entire race- meaning coming in last. I guess it depends on where you are looking at it from. The categories of finish in a horse race are Win, Place, and Show, not Win, Lose, and Lose to the Loser.

[Maarchk]

I think also what might affect how people view something, is the bigger picture. In any car racing series. A 2nd place may not be a win, but it really helps your standings and no one would say it was a loss.
In poker tournaments, if you finish "in the money" meaning you get paid more then you paid to enter, you lost by not coming first, but you still won something, vs those who win nothing and are the losers.
But in a single even with no bigger picture, 2nd isn't winning.
But then again... in my last marathon, i sure didn't win.. I got beat down by all the pros... but i had my best time by 30 minutes, so i didn't really feel as if i lost. I didn't ever think i could win.

[WhiskeyPapa]

More than ever, people are finding new ways to celebrate mediocrity.

If you didn't win, you lost. Therefore, finishing in any position other than 1st place means you "lost".

[MikeD]

Won't ever forget my youth football coach...

"Second place is just the first place loser..."

It's first place or nothing.