Sports / Other
Kenyan man cheats his way to marathon podium
26 Oct 2015 at 20:29hrs | Views
A 28-year-old man fraudulently claimed second place at the Nairobi International Marathon, at the Nyayo Stadium on Sunday and will face charges after being nabbed at the end of the race.
Julius Njogu joined the 42km race towards the end, emerging from a group of spectators and coasted to the runners' up place ahead of a tired-looking Shadrack Kiptoo, in a sprint finish.
Njogu was in line to claim a $7,000 prize for finishing in second but was caught and disqualified after race officials found that he hadn't broken a sweat and wasn't suffering from fatigue like the other athletes.
In an attempt to prove that he'd been participating in the race, Njogu removed his running shoes to show the officials blisters on his feet, but the race director confirmed that he'd been following the leading group from the start and did not see the 28-year-old until he suddenly burst from the sidelines.
This is not the first incident in which a runner has been caught cheating his way to a podium finish at the Nairobi Marathon, two others tried their luck in 2013, in the women's race.
Joshua Kipkorir won that men's race in two hours, 13 minutes and 25 second, while Elizabeth Rumokoi claimed the women's title in two hours, 29 minutes and 32 seconds.
Julius Njogu joined the 42km race towards the end, emerging from a group of spectators and coasted to the runners' up place ahead of a tired-looking Shadrack Kiptoo, in a sprint finish.
Njogu was in line to claim a $7,000 prize for finishing in second but was caught and disqualified after race officials found that he hadn't broken a sweat and wasn't suffering from fatigue like the other athletes.
In an attempt to prove that he'd been participating in the race, Njogu removed his running shoes to show the officials blisters on his feet, but the race director confirmed that he'd been following the leading group from the start and did not see the 28-year-old until he suddenly burst from the sidelines.
This is not the first incident in which a runner has been caught cheating his way to a podium finish at the Nairobi Marathon, two others tried their luck in 2013, in the women's race.
Joshua Kipkorir won that men's race in two hours, 13 minutes and 25 second, while Elizabeth Rumokoi claimed the women's title in two hours, 29 minutes and 32 seconds.
Source - ewn
