In both cases the drift out to lane 4 the reason wasn't the reason they maintained their leads. Chelimo and the Columbia kid both had more gas in the tank. I didn't see any contact, and the guys in 2nd didn't have to cut their strides. Play on.
Imagine that the leading runners would have been dropping caltrops. Would you still claim 'no harm = no foul'?
It was obvious that Chelimo should have been DQ'd when it happened. He intended to block the other athletes. Period. There's no other reason to drift that far out in that scenario. It's a simple rule to follow and it should just be enforced. The guy always plays dirty when he can and had a big mouth. Glad I don't hear anything from him anymore since he's getting destroyed every race.
If you dq'd anyone who comes off the turn in first if the person leaves the lane, then you'd have to dq someone who led off the turn, was passed by someone who then went in front of the ex-leader legally into lane one, and then had to go out to lane two to take back the lead.
Indoor rules: "A competitor may run anywhere on the track at any pace or any change of pace as long as he or she does not use any body or arm action to impede another runner’s progress."
"A competitor may cut in front of another runner, provided that the overtaking runner has one full stride."
vs.
"shall disqualify a competitor who: a. Jostles, cuts across or obstructs another competitor so as to flagrantly impede the other runner’s progress (direct contact is not necessary - any action that causes another runner to break stride or lose momentum is grounds for disqualification);
...
Veers to the right or to the left so as to flagrantly impede a challenging runner or forces the challenging runner to run a greater distance;"