The Beijing Half Marathon has been the center of controversy after the top three finishers including two Kenyan athletes were stripped off their medals following an investigation into the race’s outcome.
The investigation found that the three African athletes deliberately slowed down allowing China’s star runner, He Jie, to win the race.
The race organizing committee, which led the investigation, said that none of the three had been officially registered as pacemakers for He, which breached the competition rules.
Subsequently, the runners’ results have been annulled, and their trophies, medals, and bonuses withdrawn.
The Chinese Athletics Association said it would seek to improve the organization of road running events in the country.
Details of the controversial video in Beijing Marathon
The investigation was initiated after footage went viral showing Kenya’s Robert Keter and Willy Mnangat and Ethiopia’s Dejene Hailu pointing to the line and slowing down to wave as He ran past them.
In an interview with BBC Sport Africa on April 15, 2024, Mnangat said that the three of them were participating in the race as pacemakers.
“I was not there to compete. It was not a competitive race for me,” said Mnangat.
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According to the Kenyan athletes, four runners had been contracted to help the Chinese runner break the Chinese half-marathon record of 1:02:33, with one not finishing the race.
In his defense, Mnangat noted that he did not understand why the marathon organizers put his name on his bib/chest number instead of labelling it as a pacemaker.
“My job was to set the pace and help the guy win but unfortunately, he did not achieve the target, which was to break the national record,” he said.
The organizing committee report findings on the Runners
In the investigation report, the organizing committee noted that the three African runners were invited to join the race as pacemakers by Chinese sports company Xtep, which sponsored both He and the Beijing Half Marathon.
However, Xtep failed to identify the trio as pacemakers to the race operator, Zhong’ao Lupao Beijing Sports Management company, which led to the controversy.
“Xtep did not clearly mark the pace runners, which led to the failure of Zhongao Road Running Company to report to the Organizing Committee, and registered four foreign pace runners as invited athletes,” read the report.
The incident has sparked widespread outrage in China, with many calling for an investigation and action from organizers.
Race operator is punished
As a result, the organizing committee disqualified the race operator from hosting future events and banned Xtep from sponsoring any more races this season.
In a statement, Xtep “sincerely apologized” to all the runners and its customers, vowing to conduct a deep review to prevent similar incidents in the future.
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“We bear a great responsibility for this, fully accept the punishment decision made by the organizing committee,” said Xtep.
The investigation also highlighted the importance of transparency and accountability in sports events, particularly those with significant cultural and national significance.
