Organizers of the Dalian Marathon in Liaoning province have apologized to a runner and the audience after one of its guiding vehicles went on the course and forced a runner to go around it during the final sprint of the competition on Sunday.
Live broadcast showed that near the end of the race, a pick-up truck that had led the race leaders along the course made a left turn to cross the course and appeared to be preparing for an exit after finishing its task. However, the truck's move blocked the course of runner Yin Shunjin, who was following the race leaders at several seconds behind.
Yin had to make a turn and go around the truck before returning onto the normal route. He finished the race about two minutes later at 2 hours, 11 minutes and 50 seconds, setting his personal best and becoming the fastest Chinese runner. Ethiopia's Zedat Abeje Ayana hit the finish line 27 seconds before Yin, claiming the race win.
The incident sparked outrage among running enthusiasts, who questioned the organizers' competence.
"Although it was unlikely for Yin to win, his result could be improved for at least 5 to 10 seconds had it not been the incident, as the truck disrupted his pace severely," a runner surnamed Cheng, who has participated in nearly 100 marathons, told Jimu News.
Organizers said they regretted the incident and apologized to Yin and the audience. They also said they would improve their management to avoid similar incidents from happening again.
Yin said he could do nothing but live with the result, but he hoped to be treated more fairly in the future.
