What happened in the Beijing half marathon, held on Sunday, was “embarrassing”. This is how many people defined the episode that many witnessed live or in the following hours on social media. The protagonists are two Kenyan runners (Robert Keter and Willy Mnangat) and an Ethiopian (Dejene Hailu) who – from what we can see – did everything to ensure that the Chinese star, He Jie, won.
The three, according to the images, would have left their rival by giving way, slowing down, even using very explicit facial expressions to get him to come forward. No one would have hindered him, nor would they have challenged him for the victory despite the four-man sprint and the advantage that the African athletes had over their home competitor.
4月14日，北京半程马拉松比赛现场疑似出现假赛，引发大众质疑。视频中，比赛最后几百米，中国选手何杰原本落后，但3位外籍运动员中有人回头摆手疑似示意何杰反超，又示意队友减速。最终，何杰在默契中完成反超，以一秒优势夺冠。
这一戏剧性画面引发大众质疑。… pic.twitter.com/dRWxbBcIhB— 李老师不是你老师 (@whyyoutouzhele) April 14, 2024
He Jie, a few meters behind his opponents, would hardly have been able to catch up considering the pace of the three in front of him. Then something strange happens. Very strange. So much so as to fuel strong suspicions about the regularity of the competition. One of the three African runners turns to see where the Chinese is, realizes that he is not that far away and makes a very clear sign with his hand: he extends his arm just enough to indicate the green light and, at the same time, turning to the others two runners he had next to him, he signals them not to push…
The Beijing Sports Bureau and the event organizer, the Beijing Sports Competition Management and International Exchange Center, have launched an investigation. Whether it will have disciplinary repercussions (and to what extent) will be seen. Meanwhile, the winner said of himself: “I wanted to set a sort of personal record because I had never participated in a half marathon before.” And he added that he considered the race to be just a sort of “training for the upcoming 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, where I hope to show the speed of Chinese athletes to the whole world.”
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