There are various stories of what exactly occurred while Brown was in Germany for the 1936 Olympics. It is known that for more than half of the Olympic marathon, Brown was in the top five when an issue with leg cramps arose. Brown was known to have issues with a hernia from time to time. When a German spectator stepped in to aid him with rubbing out the severe cramps he was suffering from, he was tragically forced to withdraw, and was disqualified from competition.