“Blocking or Impeding Other Runners
This can happen in many ways, but is restricted to longer races (800 and up individually, plus the 4x400 and 4x800) since sprinters are always in their own lanes. One athlete cannot prevent another athlete from proceeding in their normal movement during the race, and impeding another runner can result in disqualification. Some examples:
Runner A is in the lead as they come off the final curve, but Runner B begins to pass on the outside. Instead of maintaining a straight line to the finish, Runner A drifts outward, ending up in the outside of lane 2 in an attempt to prevent the pass. Runner A is disqualified.
Runner A is leading during the middle of the race, when Runner B passes on the outside. Runner B cuts into lane 1 in front of Runner A without having a full stride length of space, causing Runner A to stumble or break stride to avoid contact. Runner B is disqualified.
Other cases are more obvious: using your arms to block or grab another runner, or tripping them (intentional or not, it means you were too close to their feet). You can use your arms and body to maintain your own position in a tight pack, but not to gain an advantage or impede another runner. Of course, there has to be an official present to witness the contact or impedance and make the call, which is why the first example above results in the most disqualifications.”
….pasted the above for reference in case you weren’t familiar with the rules and what illegal conduct can get you DQ’d. If you’d like a finish line photo for evidentiary support, head over to Getty images and the licensed photograph of the illegal block is posted there 👍🏻
