The women’s race at the USATF Half Marathon Championships on Sunday in Atlanta ended in controversy.
After the 12-mile mark, the video broadcast showed race leader Jess McClain put on the brakes and make a U-turn in the middle of the road. A few seconds behind her, Emma Grace Hurley and Ednah Kurgat, who appeared to be confused, did the same thing. The three runners, who had decidedly separated themselves from the rest of the field, were led off course by a lead vehicle, which ultimately cost them about 2 minutes.
The incident starts at 1:29:38 below.
McClain would go on to finish 9th in 1:11:12. Hurley was 12th in 1:11:38. And Kurgat took 13th in 1:11:50.
As a result, the three athletes lost out on spots making Team USA, as the top three in the race are eligible for the World Road Running Championships team in September.
The final podium, instead, looked a lot different. Molly Born took the win in a time of 1:09:42 to claim her first U.S. title at the distance. Carrie Ellwood was not far behind in second, running 1:09:47, and Annie Rodenfels rounded out the podium in her half marathon debut in 1:10:12. Born earned $20,000 in prize money for the win.
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In the early afternoon, USATF released a statement explaining that some athletes filed a protest, which was denied, and then appealed. A jury of appeals eventually decided that “the event did not meet USATF Rule 243 and that the course was not adequately marked at the point of misdirection. This violation contributed to the misdirection taken by the athletes within the top four at the time of misdirection. However, the jury of appeals finds no recourse within the USATF rulebook to alter the results order of finish. The results order of finish as posted is considered final.”
The statement noted that the official team for Worlds isn’t finalized until May, and USATF will continue to review the incident and “ensure an ultimate decision is in the best interest of all the athletes involved.”
According to USATF, the lead vehicles for the race were coordinated by the local organizing committee, in this case, the Atlanta Track Club.
In a statement later in the day, Rich Kenah, the CEO of Atlanta Track Club, took accountability:
“In the women’s race, a pace vehicle left the official course during Mile 11. As Race Director, I take full responsibility for what occurred. Athletes should never have to make a split-second decision between following a pace vehicle or trusting the official course.
“We are conducting a full review to determine exactly how and why the vehicle left the course to strengthen safeguards moving forward. Atlanta Track Club will make best efforts to ensure the affected athletes—Jess McClain, Emma Grace Hurley, and Edna Kurgat—are made whole.”
McClain, who was seeking her first U.S. title, made a move around the hour mark to pull away from Hurley and Kurgat, and built about a 10-second lead. With around a mile to go, the podium appeared to be decided. But the wrong turn forced them to run about an additional half mile, according to Hurley’s publicly available Strava file. Ellwood was also briefly led off course.
“It’s frustrating because … you’re just robbed of multiple things,” McClain told Race Results Weekly. “What’s getting you through the last two miles is that moment you cross the finish line.”
Born was understandably confused when she finished. “I crossed and I just thought they had the tape out for fun because I didn’t know where I was,” she said to Race Results Weekly. “I thought I was in fourth. I was so far back that I didn’t see them make the wrong turn.”
“I shouldn’t go to [Worlds in] Copenhagen,” she said moments after the race. “I shouldn’t. I’m fine. I’m not going to fight for my spot.”
The men’s race finished without drama, as Wesley Kiptoo used a late surge to take the win in 1:01:15. Hillary Bor was second (1:01:30) and Ahmed Muhumed was third (1:01:51).
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This isn’t the first time there’s been a course mishap in Atlanta. Last year, the Atlanta Marathon, which is run on the same morning as the half marathon and also put on by the Atlanta Track Club, was found to have been 554 feet short, technically invalidating the results of the 2,000 participants and costing some runners their Boston Marathon qualifying times.
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Theo Kahler is the news editor at Runner’s World. He’s a former all-conference collegiate runner at Winthrop University, and he received his master’s degree in liberal arts studies from Wake Forest University, where he was a member of one of the top distance-running teams in the NCAA. Kahler has reported on the ground at major events such as the Paris Olympics, U.S. Olympic Trials, New York City Marathon, and Boston Marathon. He’s run 14:20 in the 5K, 1:05:36 in the half marathon, and enjoys spotting tracks from the sky on airplanes. (Look for colorful ovals around football fields.)
