Thirty runners disqualified from Chinese marathon for cheating

Tania Branigan The Guardian 01/23/2010 08:12

Runners in a marathon in China were disqualified for using vehicles and imposters.

Despite what their PE teachers might have told them, for many of those who competed in a Chinese marathon earlier this month, it was not the taking part but the winning that counted. Almost a third of the runners who finished in the top 100 have since been disqualified for cheating in the race in the southern port city of Xiamen.

Some of them hired imposters to compete in their place.

Some competitors jumped into vehicles part way through the route, Chinese media reported, while others gave their time-recording microchips to faster runners. Numbers 8,892 and 8,897 both recorded good times - but only thanks to number 8,900, who carried their sensors across the finish line.

Jiefang Daily, the Shanghai Communist party newspaper, said organisers caught the cheats when they scanned video footage. The paper said most of those involved had apologised, but that those showing an "unco-operative attitude" would be prevented them from competing in future events.

There was more than just prestige at stake in the marathon. Competitors stood to gain a crucial advantage in China's highly competitive university entrance exams. Those who finished in under two hours and 34 minutes could add extra points to their score in the gaokao, helping to explain why several of those disqualified came from a middle school in Shandong province.

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