It took Belainesh Gebre 2 hours, 32 minutes and 13 seconds to cover the Honolulu Marathon’s 26.2 miles.
It would be 2 more hours before her victory in the women’s race was affirmed.
And even after the ruling, a haze of controversy lingered around the outcome.
Gebre, an elite runner in shorter distances who entered the event online, broke ahead in the first mile and protected a wide lead to finish first in her marathon debut.
How she got to the tape is where things got murky.
Gebre’s companion, Sisay Tsegaya, ran directly in front of her for all but the last mile, occasionally passing her water and raising the possibility of disqualification due to illegal assistance.
A review by race officials was triggered when runner-up Svetlana Zakharova filed a protest after completing the race 48 seconds behind Gebre.
The ruling ultimately upheld the on-course result, sending Gebre back to Arizona with the $40,000 first prize, plus $3,000 more in time incentives, and a stern warning from Honolulu Marathon president Jim Barahal.
“We don’t necessarily like what happened out there, but I don’t think it rose to a level where we could justify a disqualification,” Barahal said. He came to the decision along with race referee Dick Sutton, also the marathon’s vice president and general counsel.
Gebre, originally from Ethiopia but now based in Flagstaff, Ariz., was not among the elite athletes invited by race officials and paid her own way to compete. But she ran off at record pace early on and spent much of the race without another female runner in sight.
“I’m so happy. I feel good now,” she said after being told of the ruling confirming her win.
Zakharova, the defending champion, claimed $16,000 with her sixth second-place finish in nine appearances. She was disappointed with the ruling but said she plans to make her 10th run in Honolulu next year.
“In sports anything can happen and there must be a reason they made the decision,” Zakharova said through an interpreter.
As a legally entered runner, Tsegaya was allowed to run with Gebre. But the assistance Gebre received brought Rule 241 (d) of the USA Track and Field Rules into play: “A competitor who collects refreshment from a place other than a refreshment station is liable to disqualification by the Referee.”
Barahal noted the rule allows for discretion and said the ruling was “based primarily on the fact that because she entered on her own and was not an elite athlete she was not able to access our elite aid stations.”
Barahal said the eight stations are set up every 5 kilometers with specialized drinks and food for the elite runners. Tsegaya ran with a belt around his waist with bottles of liquid and handed drinks to her at various points.
“One can argue that was an advantage because he handed it to her as opposed to having to run over to a table,” Barahal said. “I agree with that, on the other hand, I’m not sure that’s such a material advantage that would justify stripping her of a hard-earned victory. At the end of the day she did run 26.2 miles.”
Gebre moved from Ethiopia in 2006 and entered the race with a string of victories in half-marathons, winning the Big Sur Half Marathon last month with a time of 1:09:43. She entered online about a month ago and arrived in town on Friday.
Gebre broke away in the first mile while Kaori Yoshida, the designated pacesetter, tried to keep her within sight and left the pack in the dark distance. With Tsegaya leading the way, Gebre maintained a pace between 5:50 and 6 minutes per mile and shook Yoshida about 8 miles into the race on the leg taking them up Diamond Head.
Gebre maintained her stride despite a sore hamstring and a blister on her foot that hampered her over the last 4 miles. Her gradually slowing pace allowed Zakharova to close the gap to inside a minute.
Tsegaya dropped off in the last mile leaving Gebre to run alone to the finish at Kapiolani Park and earn an invitation to next year’s marathon as defending champion.
Barahal said he “lectured both of them in the strongest possible terms that that is not the way to go in the future.”
“We don’t think there’s any question the coach acted inappropriately,” Barahal said. “Whether that meets a standard for disqualification is something reasonable people could probably disagree on.”
