Kenya’s Leonard Langat was named the winner of the Vienna City Marathon after a fellow runner was disqualified for wearing “illegal” footwear.
Ethiopian runner Derara Hurisa, the winner of Europe’s first big-city marathon, was “disqualified for wearing shoes which are not compliant with the rules.”
The 24-year-old Hurisa crossed the line first by three seconds but was later disqualified. According to marathon officials, his shoes were 1 centimeter (0.4 inches) thicker than the maximum 4 centimeters allowed.
According to Complex, Hurisa ran wearing Adidas Adizero Prime X sneakers.
The athlete had registered another shoe that met race rules but switched to the shoes he had used in training for the main event.
“We are very sorry, but the decision is clear. He ran with a model that he knows well from training and is only used in training. We informed the athletes at the technical meeting and I can’t say at the moment why he didn’t walk with the shoe that was specified on the form,” race director Johannes Langer.
Langat, who had initially finished second with a time of 2 hours, 9 minutes, 25 seconds — was declared the winner just 30 minutes later.
“Of course I would have preferred to have broken the tape, “said Langat after the race. “I had no clue about the disqualification until they told me. It was of course my aim to win and I thank god that in the end I did. It was a good race, but the heat was a problem. “
Langat was followed by Betesfa Getahun of Ethiopia and Kenya’s Edwin Kosgei.
More than 26,000 runners were registered for the Vienna City Marathon from 126 nations for the various events. Of the 26,000 thousand, 6,000 were marathon runners.
