All-Women Ultra Marathon organizers say two participants rode motorbikes during race
Organizers of the All Women Ultra Marathon (AWUM) disqualified two participants who were allegedly caught cheating in this year’s edition of the event held last Sunday.
In statements released on the AWUM Facebook page, organizers said they will disqualify the two runners after finding out they didn’t complete the 50-kilometer course on foot.
“After investigation and verification, Think Tank has decided to disqualify a runner from Awum 2015. She took a ride on a motorbike at one point in the race and got off in Cabangcalan, (Mandaue) then proceeded to the finish line on foot.
We are collecting back from her the medal and finisher’s shirt. Think Tank adheres to the rules of ultra runs, and a breach such as riding during the race will not be tolerated,” said the statement posted on March 10, Tuesday.
Another statement of another runner allegedly caught cheating was posted last Thursday.
Tony Galon, president of the organizing Cebu Ultrarunners Club, said they won’t disclose the names of the disqualified runners to show respect.
“This kind of incident is not new in ultra marathons. We investigated and found out about this matter. We are still happy that they cooperated,” Galon said. “We hope that this won’t happen again.”
According to Galon, 250 finished the 50k run while four failed to make it to the finish line and two were disqualified.
The annual prestigious run for women that is held in celebration of the International Women’s Month started at the Cebu City Hall and ended at the Family Park in Talamban.