After a grueling hour, there was little to separate the four runners as the finish line approached. But then one of them reached out to the other and gestured forward, as if waving. A few seconds later, another runner did the same.
China's He Jie then strode ahead of the other athletes in a recorded livestream of Sunday's Beijing Half Marathon Show. Three other runners, Kenya's Willy Mnangat and Robert Ketel, and Ethiopia's Dejen Haile, were just behind him from a short distance, giving him first place.
The results of the half marathon are currently being investigated by race organizers. After footage of the finish went viral online, many questioned whether the three African runners had intentionally slowed down.
He took first place with a time of 1 hour 3 minutes 44 seconds. Munangat, Ketel and Heil tied for second place, one second behind.
Livestreams showed the four athletes running as a pack for much of the race, staying ahead of the rest of the pack, with the African athletes slightly pulling ahead at times.
But questions arose during a moment late in the race when both Mr. Mnangat and Mr. Ketel appeared to motion for Mr. Ketel to run in front of him.
The Beijing International Running Festival, which organized the event, said in a statement Monday night that it had launched an investigation into the matter in response to an online commentator's “questions about the race results,” but did not name the runners involved. Ta. Organizers have set up a “special investigation team” to look into the matter, the statement said.
A spokesperson for the Beijing Municipal Sports Bureau, the city's sports regulator, confirmed by phone Tuesday morning that it was also investigating the race.
He did not immediately respond to a request for comment through his sportswear company, Xtep, where he is a spokesperson. Ketel and Heil could not be reached for comment.
Munangat told the South China Morning Post that he acts as a pacemaker (a person who runs alongside other athletes to keep them up to speed, but is not an official competitor). Mr. Munangat did not immediately respond to a request for comment through his agent.
The 25-year-old is the 77th-ranked male marathon runner in the world, according to World Athletics. He won the men's marathon at the Asian Games last year, and last month he completed the Wuxi Marathon in 2 hours, 6 minutes and 57 seconds, setting a Chinese national record.
This is not the first time a Chinese long-distance runner has faced accusations of cheating, as long-distance running has skyrocketed in popularity in the country.
In 2018, 258 participants at the Shenzhen Half Marathon were penalized for cheating, according to Chinese state media, with organizers saying participants wore fake bibs, hired fraudsters and took shortcuts. accused of doing so.
And in 2019, a female runner was caught riding a bicycle at the Xuzhou International Marathon and the Chengdu Women's Half Marathon.
