The organizers of the Mexico Metropolis Marathon mentioned they have been investigating runners of the race final month for “unsportsmanlike” attitudes, after experiences of individuals dishonest emerged on-line.
The Sports activities Institute of Mexico Metropolis, which organized the marathon, mentioned in a statement final week that it might “proceed to determine these instances during which the contributors” of the fortieth Mexico Metropolis Marathon “would have demonstrated an unsportsmanlike angle in the course of the occasion and can invalidate their recorded instances.”
The institute didn’t instantly reply to questions on how many individuals had been disqualified from the race or why that they had been disqualified.
There’s precedent for a lot of disqualifications on the marathon. Organizers mentioned in 2018 that 3,090 runners have been disqualified, principally for course slicing, or crossing the end line with out operating your complete distance. In 2017, they disqualified 5,806 individuals, most of whom had engaged in course slicing.
Accusations of dishonest in Mexican races are additionally documented in Fb pages together with Los CazaTramposos Del Maratón, or “The marathon cheater hunters,” and Ya se cansaron?, “Are you drained but?,” which in latest weeks have posted a number of claims of dishonest by runners within the Mexico Metropolis Marathon.
Marca, a sports activities newspaper based mostly in Spain, reported that hundreds of individuals had been disqualified from the race after utilizing public transportation and automobiles to shorten the space. That estimate was not confirmed by the race organizers.
The Mexico Metropolis Marathon is one in all 38 races this yr to have a World Athletics Gold Label, a classification that signifies it has met strict necessities after all design and race administration. The winner of the marathon receives 550,000 pesos, or greater than $31,000. This yr’s marathon was on Aug. 27.
The assertion from the Sports activities Institute of Mexico Metropolis mentioned, partly, that the marathon “not solely represents an essential celebration for all of the individuals of the capital, however it’s also a possibility to reaffirm the transcendental values of the game,” which incorporates bolstering “the essence of sports activities competitors and its constructive impression in our society.”
“We thank all of the contributors, spectators and collaborators for being a part of this occasion that uplifts not solely disciplined bodily exercise, but in addition the values that form an exemplary sporting neighborhood,” the assertion mentioned.
Questions on dishonest at this yr’s marathon once more have introduced consideration to among the best recognized marathon scandals in Mexico.
Roberto Madrazo, a former presidential candidate, was disqualified from the Berlin Marathon in 2007 for dishonest. He had used his marathon-running as a metaphor for dedication and steadiness in marketing campaign commercials. A sports activities photographer raised questions on Madrazo’s run after he was seen on the end line carrying a jacket, a cap and lengthy tights whereas most runners have been carrying sweat-soaked T-shirts and shorts.
Madrazo said last week in a put up on X, the social media platform previously referred to as Twitter, that he had stopped operating the 2007 marathon early due to an harm and went to the finisher’s line to gather his participant’s medal as a result of it was given to all runners.
He also responded to this yr’s Mexico Metropolis marathon debacle, saying that the 33 % of people that solely partially accomplished the race weren’t dishonest.