Boston Marathon 2024: Are Controversies Clouding the Pride of This Historic Event?

Boston Marathon is that wise old man of the sprinting world! Starting in 1897, it stands to date as the oldest annual marathon in the world. While glory moments are aplenty in the century-old race, all can not be good in such a long journey. So the race has seen those dark patches as well. Probably one of the earliest of such patches took place in 1967.

After much hiatus about the participation of women in the event, Kathrine Switzer registered as the first female participant in the Boston Marathon in 1967. Sadly, instead of being celebrated, a race official did everything possible to stop her from finishing the race. While this incident became an infamous part of the Boston Marathon’s history, the coming year would see many such happenings that seem to overpower the legendary status of the race. Let’s have a look.

The Boston Marathon stained with cheating and falsification

As we open Pandora’s box of controversies in the Boston Marathon, one that might come out as one of the firsts is the infamous case of Rosie Ruiz from 1980. After crossing the finishing line first, the lack of sweat on Ruiz’s face raised a lot of suspicion. Only later it was learned that she entered the race from the sidelines only a mile before the finishing line of the 26-mile race. The startling revelation ended in her award being revoked. Hold your heart! This is not the only attempt to earn undeserved glory.

In a recent post made by marathon participant Jo Page, a jaw-dropping revelation stunned the world with its seemingly unbelievable nature. “Anyone heard of fake bibs?“, starts off the post and fans can expect a blow to the guts almost immediately. “I didn’t realise that fake bibs were a thing until I got my marathon photos and I have more of someone else wearing my number than me.“, elaborates Page further with images of the runner using the same number as hers. Such incidents have expectedly made the organizers take a hard stance.

In 2019, three Chinese runners were handed a ban from all future road competitions for life. While two of the runners were caught cheating in their applications, it was again bib swapping that resulted in the third runner being banned by the Chinese Athletics Association. While these are incidents where a measure could be taken, some discussions and debates will probably never see an end.

There have been widespread talks about the differences in the qualifying procedure for the men’s and women’s categories. With little substantiation, it is often claimed that it is easier for women to gain entry into the Boston Marathon than it is for men. Alongside, the inclusion of the non-binary category also caused a significant ruckus, and many alleged that this would taint the race’s integrity. But there’s more.

More taints on the good name

The 2021 Boston Marathon winner Diana Kipyokei of Kenya was stripped of the title a year later after the athlete was found guilty of doping. The decision made another previous winner of the race to be crowned the champion for 2021. Kipyokei’s use of prohibited substances on the other hand led to her being banned for six years.

Betty Wilson Lempus was also banned after her blood results tested positive for triamcinolone acetonide. Such things only continue to make the Boston Marathon look like a heaven for cheating athletes, when in reality its rich legacy should have prompted stars to maintain a decorum fueled by the utmost reverence. If these were not enough, 2022 added one more page to it.

The ongoing tumultuous situation between Russia and Ukraine resulted in several athletes from Belarus and Russia being denied to run under their national flags in the 2022 Boston Marathon. We only hope that sailing through the difficulties, the iconic race continues to uphold its glory forever!

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