David Monti. wrote:
Only five people witnessed with a consistent view Ezkyas Sisay and Belainesh Gebre running together at the Honolulu Marathon: Shane Enright (a local radio reporter), Enright's production assistant (didn't get her name), Jason Kaneshiro (the reporter for the Star-Bulletin newspaper), the race photographer on motorcycle (didn't get his name, either), and me. There were only four of us in the back of the women's lead truck.
From my vantage point, I was able to watch the race from gun to tape. The men got off to a slow start, and through the first kilometer Gebre and Sisay were running close to the men's leaders. By the one mile mark (5:33), the men were away, and Gebre was tucked in behind Sisay. Only one other woman was visible, Japan's Kaori Yoshida who had been designated by the race organizers to pace the women's race.
Mile after mile, Gebre followed Sisay, one stride behind. Yoshida was able to stay near them for the first 15 km, then fell behind (she went on to finish third). During the remainder of the race, Sisay took bottles off of his fuel belt with a red liquid, opened the tops, then passed them behind him to Gebre who drank from them. I saw him hand the bottles to her six times. He also looked behind then to see if anybody was gaining on them (she didn't look), he checked his watch frequently and provided her with splits, and he also went to the side of the road to the drink tables to fetch her water and sponges.
The race photographer on the motorcycle snapped a number of photos of the couple, but none with her taking Sisay's fuel belt bottles, only the water from the public drinking stations.
With about two miles to go Svetlana Zakharova had cut the lead down on the slowing Gebre to about 40 seconds. She could see our white truck ahead of her, so she knew where Gebre (and Sisay) were running. The Ethiopian couple ran strongly down the final hill on Diamond Head Avenue to hold the gap, and with about a mile to go, Sisay ducked off the course, and Gebre ran alone to the finish line for the victory.
As I reported in my story for Race Results Weekly, Sisay claimed that the bottles were for him and that it was his intention to vie for the podium (against several Kenyans with 2:07 PB's). His claim was ridiculous. It was quite clear that he was there to assist Gebre, and that was their plan from the beginning.
I really don't think any of what I've written so far is in question. The questions which remain are: 1) whether or not they broke any rules by doing what they did, and 2) was their approach to the competition ethical?
To the first question, the answer isn't clear cut. Two USATF rules come into play: 144 (Assistance to Athletes) and 241 (Medical and Safety Concerns for Road Events). While the first rule has some specific language, it is also somewhat vague. It's particularly vague when you consider that both Sisay and Gebre were bonafide competitors in the race, wearing bib numbers (Sisay was not a coach or spectator). The second rule specifies that "a competitor who collects refreshment from a place other than a refreshment station is liable to disqualification by the Referee," which Gebre did. Again, the rule is vague because it says the competitor is "liable" for disqualification, but it is not mandatory. The Honolulu organizers didn't think their behavior rose to the level of rule-breaking.
To the second question, whether their approach to the comeptition was ethical, depends on how you feel about good sportsmanship. In my personal opinion, for one competitor in the women's race to receive systematic aid from a male runner, while the other women did not have that advantage is unethical. Others would say that as long as they didn't clearly violate any rule, the ethics of the situation aren't important.
I also want to add one more thing. Although they finished five seconds apart at the Big Sur Half-Marathon in November, and that two photographs show Sisay running in front of Gebre, Sisay did NOT pace Gebre throughout the race, according to an official I communicated with who witnessed the entire race. Sisay ran well ahead of her for most of the race, then dropped back only in the very final stages.
However, there is evidence of their using ths approach at both the Crazy 8's 8-K and the Wharf to Wharf 6 Mile. A writer for the industry newsletter Road Race Management, Claudia Piepenburg, is thoroughly investigating this issue and will have a story published early next year about it.
Respectfully,
David Monti, Editor & Publisher
Race Results Weekly
Since 1994