In a marathon race held in Beijing, an incident where three foreign athletes “escorted” a Chinese athlete to victory has sparked continued public attention. According to one foreign participant in the race, they were actually pacemakers contracted to help the Chinese athlete break the Chinese half marathon record.
The 2024 Beijing Half Marathon took place on April 14th, and during the sprint phase of the men’s race, Chinese athlete He Jie was neck and neck with three African athletes at one point, eventually crossing the finish line with a slight lead. However, a scene just before the finish line raised questions among many fellow runners: was the race against the spirit of sportsmanship? Were the sponsors “suspected of manipulating the race?”
Broadcast footage showed that in the final few hundred meters, He Jie was initially trailing behind, while the three foreign athletes “cooperatively” did not sprint at full speed, even making gestures like looking back and waving hands. Eventually, He Jie made a comeback, winning by a 1-second lead with a time of 1 hour 03 minutes 44 seconds. Ethiopian runner Dejene Hailu, Kenyan runner Robert Keter, and Willy Mnangat finished as joint runners-up.
Mnangat, who finished as a runner-up, told the BBC that the three of them were pacemakers (“rabbits”) for He Jie. Four contracted athletes were there to help him break the Chinese half marathon record, but one did not complete the race.
The Kenyan athlete explained that his role was to set the pace and assist He Jie in winning, but unfortunately, he did not reach the goal of breaking the national record. Mnangat expressed that to him, this was not a fiercely competitive race.
On the evening of April 15th, the Beijing Half Marathon Organizing Committee announced that a special investigation team had been formed and was conducting an investigation.
According to a report by the “China Youth Daily,” a related official from Anta responded to the media post-race, stating, “The current situation is still under confirmation and verification from various investigations, further information will be communicated promptly.”
It is noteworthy that He Jie is a contracted athlete of Anta, and the three foreign athletes were also seen wearing Anta sportswear, as Anta is a partner of the 2024 Beijing Half Marathon event.
The Beijing Half Marathon “escort” incident has continued to draw significant attention and discussion among netizens.
In June of last year, during a marathon race held in Lanzhou, Gansu Province, some netizens noted that the organizers invited many African athletes to compete and gave domestic athletes a 50-meter head start. Ultimately, three Ethiopian runners claimed the top three spots in the men’s event, and two Ethiopian runners secured the top two positions in the women’s event, sparking controversy.
An official from the Lanzhou Sports Bureau’s Sports Science Department told the media: “To prevent international elites from being disturbed, a certain buffer zone must be maintained for other amateur runners.”
In response, some netizens commented: “What is the point of organizing a marathon? It feels irregular if foreigners are not invited to participate. I personally believe the purpose of organizing a marathon is to promote mass sports, improve the physical fitness of the nation, and allow more people to experience the joy of running. But now, it has taken a different turn, showing excessive adoration for foreign countries.”
The organizing units for the 2024 Beijing International Long-distance Running Festival – Beijing Half Marathon event are the Beijing Municipal Sports Bureau and the Beijing Sports Competition Management and International Exchange Center, in cooperation with the China Athletics Association certified by the International Association of Athletics Federations and the Chinese Athletics Association.
Responsibility Editor: Zheng Haoyu#