Rupp steps inside 1st lane during 5k indoor record

26.2 mi -- he was running on the curve. The video is on the letsrun.com homepage at the 10:45 mark. I doubt any refs noticed, though the camera from above made it clear. Rupp certainly did not gain an advantage.

Thanks; when I saw the photo that made it clear, although the degree to which some pursued it made that likely to be the case.

I am guessing that the high school rule (three steps inside) is there to make it easier to officials to decide 'big' infractions, since often there are not as many officials nor do they have as much experience (since there is not enough funding for typical events, not NIN etc).

By the way, if you look at the video from the indoor Hept WR you can see that the cones were place on the outside edge of the line, indicating that it is likely a track measured with a 'kerb' (curb in American English). If this is the case, the required IAAF distance on cones is 1.5 meters and the actual distance on the first curve is twice that. Now that is a technical issue of potential importance.

coach d wrote:

But USATF should not ratify the AR because I don't like Galen Rupp as much as Lagat or Solinsky, slurp slurp.

You truly are pathetic.

The Stache wrote:

2) offers the offending runner any kind of advantage,

Remember John Carlos stepped on the line 3 times in the curve during the 1968 200m Olympic final. He wasn't DQ'd so Rupp certainly shouldn't be. Case Closed!!!

coach d wrote:

My sense is that he should not be DQed unless it can be shown that he impeded Farah. But USATF should not ratify the AR because he stepped outside the lane.

Our sense is that you are one of the biggest F'tards on the planet.

Don't you have to step out for like three strides or something like that? One stride isn't enough. Anyway, he had to swing way wide on the final turn to pass all the lapped runners and make a run at Farah. That made up for all the distance he "cut" running one step inside the line.

26mi235 wrote:

What 'three step' rule;

Ask Gwen Torrence.

Rupp was running very close to the curb on many of the turns.

Nothing wrong with that, of course, but a mis-step will result in either stepping on the curb or over the curb.

In the States, especially on the curbless tracks such as Washington, there is no such worry. An athlete can step on the inner white line without a problem, other than developing a habit that might create a problem when racing with a curb.

How is this not obviously a DQ?

He ran inside the track, on a bend. Therefore <5000.

During the race the runners actually run farther than 5000 therefore one step inside is not <5000.

There are about three rules to follow in a 5k. Don't false start, don't run off the track, and don't knock over your competitors. Rupp violated one of them. The only way it isn't a DQ, according to the rulebook, is if you assume Rupp was "forced" off the track by Farah, which is a mind-blowingly generous interpretation for Rupp.

So the record deserves the dreaded asterisk. Hopefully Lagat or Solinsky or Rupp even will break the record before too long so that it's a moot point.

A few comparisons:

Hicham El Guerrouj's feet hit the infield in the 1996 Olympics after clipping Morceli's foot, but he wasn't DQ'd, despite obstructing other runners who had to hurdle over him. He finished last in 3:40.75, not a bad time for hitting the deck.

Natalia Rodriguez and her gold at Worlds in '09 were tossed after she elbowed Gelete Burka and stepped onto the infield.

Wallace Spearmon was deprived a bronze at Beijing in '08 for a lane violation in the 200.

I think you are misreading 4(b) of the rule. Occassions on which you lose time when a mishap lands you inside the kerb (curb) are not the particular concern of the rule, as you well know (or ought to). As for Rupp, the runner in front slowed and he lost his balance and put a foot inside the kerb, to no advantage (so where's the beef). If you think that this would alter the AR status, you will be shown to be a poor predictor of the situation. A lane violation on the curve involves stepping on the line - no other runners are involved here and the rule is clear (no three-step rule for either NCAA or IAAF, no guarantees on high school rules).Rodriguez was DQ'd for interfering, the other runner was not nailed for having to run over the kerb as a consequence. There actually IS a rule violation that could (but I doubt will) result in not ratifying a WR. If you look at the video of the Tallin Multis meet where the Hept WR was shattered you can readily see that the cones are set on the line and that probably is an indication that the track is measured for a kerb. It does not have a kerb in and the requirement is to have cones every 1.5m on the curve. The cones are very clearly no where near 1.5m apart, as they are much further than Eaton's height and comparisons can be made with the stagger lines. However, despite hundreds of posts about the illegal setup of the Washington track - with not support in fact it appears - here is what is likely a violation that occurs when someone sets a world best.

I don't believe I am misreading the rule, as I don't think 4b even applies, as Rupp ran inside his lane on the bend, not outside the outer line. That it didn't help him is thus besides the point.

I agree that his AR will stand, I just think that a clear violation of the rules occurred. If this were, say, the Olympics and a medal was at stake, there would be a formal protest.

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4. An athlete shall not be disqualified if he

(a) is pushed or forced by another person to run outside his lane or

on or inside the kerb or line marking the applicable border, or

(b) runs outside his lane in the straight or outside the outer line of his

lane on the bend,

with no material advantage thereby being gained and no other athlete

being obstructed.