Interesting footage has emerged shedding light on how Kenyan runner Moses Kibet beat the odds to emerge winner at the Hangzhou Marathon in China with just a five-second gap, earlier this month.
Kibet crossed the finish line first in the marathon on November 3, with an impressive time of 2:07:47. He was subsequently feted with Ksh6.4 million (USD 50,000) for his feat.
Things would have gone much differently for Kibet, however, had a volunteer not interfered with Ethiopia’s Tesfaye Ketema in the final stretch of the race.
Footage of the race shows how Ketema was misled by a race volunteer, who inadvertently led the marathoner down the wrong path using inexplicable hand signals, which ended up costing the runner five seconds.
Runners embark on the Hangzhou Marathon. PHOTO/ hangzhou.com.cn
Incidentally, the volunteer’s signals also misled Kibet who, along with Ketema, took the wrong course before realizing their mistake.
That slight mishap proved to be the difference as both runners quickly readjusted themselves to the right course, although the Kenyan was able to adjust much quicker than his Ethiopian counterpart. Kibet ended up winning the race.
Not only was Kibet in line to bag Ksh6.4 million for finishing first, but he was also eligible for a hefty bonus for breaking the course record.
For finishing second, Ketema was entitled to a cash prize of Ksh3.1 million (USD24,000) which, from the grand scheme of things, was a mere consolation since he would feel like he lost an extra Ksh3.3 million to Kibet.
Disclaimer: There is no certainty whether the men’s race was ratified as a quick spot check by Kenyans.co.ke at the World Athletics’ official website revealed the men’s results at the Hangzhou Marathon were pulled down. This suggests there is a chance the race results were nullified.Â
However, neither the race organizers nor the World Athletics have issued any statement on the developments.
Had Ketema finished the race in first place, he would have certainly also broken the course record since all top three finishers in the men’s race all went under the previous course record of 2:10:05.
In the women’s race, Helah Kiprop won the race with a time of 2:22:57 Â in what was her first marathon ever. She finished the race two minutes ahead of Sadiya Awel of Ethiopia who clocked 2:24:57.
The Hangzhou Marathon, being one of the oldest races in China, is quite prestigious, attracting 36,000 participants.Â
Bank of China Wuhan Marathon 2023
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Click China
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