Joasia Zakrzewski, a Scottish ultramarathon runner, was disqualified from a 50-mile event because she spent part of the race in a car.
Zakrzewski was taking part in the GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool race in northwest England on April 7 when officials said she obtained a “unsporting, competitive advantage” that would have undermined the fairness of the results.
She initially came in third place among women.
The third-place prize was a “massive error” on the part of the 47-year-old Zakrzewski, who told the BBC that she should have returned it since she was “tired, jet lagged, and felt sick” during the race after arriving in Australia the night before.
According to the BBC, she said she got confused about the halfway point and her leg started hurting, at which time she agreed to take a friend’s car to the next checkpoint. Zakrzewski told the BBC that the race marshals advised her to continue in a “non-competitive way” after she told them she was pulling out and that she had been in the vehicle.
They warned her that if she stopped, she would be unhappy with herself. CNN has been unable to get in touch with Doctor Zakrzewski, an international competitor for Scotland and Great Britain. Adrian Stott, a friend and fellow runner, claimed he was unable to provide any other information on the incident.
Director of the GB Ultras Wayne Drinkwater released the following statement: We can confirm that a runner has now been disqualified from the event for using vehicle transport during part of the route after looking over data from our race tracking system, gpx data, statements provided from our event team, other competitors, and the participant herself.
Drinkwater went on to add that the disqualification had been reported to the Trail Running Association (TRA), adding that the appropriate regulatory organizations, the TRA and UK Athletics, have subsequently been notified about the situation.
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