Woman collapses in half marathon. What happens next?

DQ

Disqualified.

She's gonna have a hard time finding a 13.0 sticker

They don't call it the "Love Run" for nothing.

Lawsuit time.

Trying not to be overly cynical but did anyone else notice that as soon as she gets across the finish line her cramps seem to disappear and her next 5 steps look way more normal and upright (without assistance)?

I would be p*ssed if I got helped to the finish line. It's a DQ, and even if not officially DQ'd, I know that I didn't ffinish it myself. For someone to be collapsing in HM, I bet finishing was a big deal for her, but that's been taken away from her.

She is a faker . Toughen up lady, this ain't a sport for the soft.

Should they really even bother timing after 2 hours for a half marathon? Good lord.

Med runner wrote:

Disqualified.

Why DQ? The half marathon isn't a real event. It's just a made up distance for joggers who can't finish a marathon.

The idea that "saving" someone from DNFing is heroic seems to rest on the assumption that DNFing is some kind of horrible fate. I don't really get this.

If I enter a local half-marathon, and then realize at some point that I'm just not going to have gas in the tank to finish, it will be disappointing to have to step of the course. Disappointing. Not fatal. Not devastating. Not heartbreaking. Just disappointing.

Call me cynical, but saving someone from mild disappointment just doesn't strike me as heroism.

What happens next? A bunch of holier than thou wannabe fast but aren't runners come on LetsRun and criticize and a nice story.

DNF isn't death wrote:

The idea that "saving" someone from DNFing is heroic seems to rest on the assumption that DNFing is some kind of horrible fate. I don't really get this.

If I enter a local half-marathon, and then realize at some point that I'm just not going to have gas in the tank to finish, it will be disappointing to have to step of the course. Disappointing. Not fatal. Not devastating. Not heartbreaking. Just disappointing.

Call me cynical, but saving someone from mild disappointment just doesn't strike me as heroism.

I don't get it either, but you have gotten to the heart of the matter. For many, many hobby joggers, finishing the race is everything and the only thing. The thought of DNFing is an unimaginable disaster.

I have never understood this. I've never dropped out of a half-marathon but I've DNF'd a number of marathons when it became clear by the halfway point that it was just not my day and I was not going to run the sort of time I wanted. I was always amused at the response of race volunteers when I would pull off the course at 14 or 16 miles, looking healthy and obviously capable of continuing, and tell them I'm dropping out. They'd seem utterly astonished that anyone not on death's doorstep would voluntarily drop out of a race, and I've had volunteers try very hard to talk me into reconsidering, "just walk a few blocks and see if you feel better". I guess I'm weird for treating it as a RACE.

That Ultra Guy wrote:

Oh wow, I didn't realize Alana Hadley was racing again!

lol

DNF isn't death wrote:

The idea that "saving" someone from DNFing is heroic seems to rest on the assumption that DNFing is some kind of horrible fate. I don't really get this.

If I enter a local half-marathon, and then realize at some point that I'm just not going to have gas in the tank to finish, it will be disappointing to have to step of the course. Disappointing. Not fatal. Not devastating. Not heartbreaking. Just disappointing.

Call me cynical, but saving someone from mild disappointment just doesn't strike me as heroism.

I thought I was the only one who also seen it this way. I see it as a robbery, at the end of the day she'll remember it as not finishing. The people had it right to stop and ask for help, but to carry someone to the finish line and let them cross is not something I'd want to remember. She kept trying to jog into the finish. She could have just stopped and walked it in like she did after she was carried .09 miles. I get people race distances for a variety of reasons(maybe her mom died and she wanted to run this in her remembrance?, maybe she wanted to prove something to herself? ) who knows, but all pride is lost the moment a knight in shinning armor arrived to carry your butt any distance to finish. On the other hand if she had a serious medical issue then thats another story.

I agree with amkelly, directors and audience try to push people along when some people tap out, only true runners look up to that more then crawling/hobbling to a finishline. Those who died to cross just killed probably 3 months of future training, where as the one who tapped out will likely be doing another race in two weeks.

I want my medal back!

I saw the video; it didn't look to me like she was faking. It was nice of those guys to help her, but she was already near the finish, so no skin off their nose.

I think the bigger issue is that someone had that happen during a HALF MARATHON! What kind of training program does not prepare an athlete for 13 miles!?

I guess you are weird for believing that everyone has exactly the same motivations and opinions as you. Some people don't see a problem with quitting when they don't get what they want. Other people see quitters as losers. Go figure.

fisky wrote:

This story is going viral. What's your opinion of this "selfless" action?

https://www.facebook.com/fox5dc/videos/10154767423113855/

Hopefully Mr. Murphy will profile this cheater and the bib mules who enabled it. Then I hope LRC destroys their lives. Scum bags.