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How Are People Cheating In Races And Should We Care? | EP 191

TRC (The Running Channel) Podcast

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Welcome back to The Running Channel Podcast, with Andy, Sarah and Rick. On this episode we're talking all about why people are cheating in marathons and should we actually care?

We break down what counts as cheating, bib swapping, historical cases of cheating, and social media's influence on running. After, we find out the answer to Rick's riddle from last week. Then we head over to Andy's argument to find out all about the mysterious one-stepper in The Running Channel office.

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What’s in this video?
00:00 - Intro
04:07 - What constitutes cheating in running
08:02 - Bib swapping & safety risks
12:19 - GPS watch controversy
15:29 - Historical marathon cheating
24:26 - Social media clout
27:04 - Our training updates
31:02 - Rick's riddle
32:14 - Andy's argument

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15 Comments

@tonyd7185 1 hour ago

Chances of amateurs doping are high considering what you can order online. And yes we should care.
Also just because you can rationalise a rule to be not important and ok to break doesn't mean it's not cheating.
It speaks volumes about where we are as a society if we're even having a conversation is it ok to cheat.

@kris1103 20 minutes ago

I must say I've been very tempted in a few races when there's a long out and back and people 30 mins in front of me pass in the opposite direction.

@devonchris 56 minutes ago

I'd never heard of someone cheating for a 5hr marathon before today. All the previous cheats I'd seen were trying to rig a BQ time or win a title. The idea of quite literally cheating against yourself is surreal.

@tfjrunning 2 hours ago (edited)

Social media creates a forum where individuals feel the need to 'impress' to keep up with all the 'influencers' and 'look at me' stories. So the need to trim a bit a time off here and there, to make them look good happens.

@EleriWilliams 1 hour ago

Saw someone cross over on an out and back section in the Great Scottish 10K last weekend, cutting off several hundred metres

@edwin5419 2 hours ago

I got accused of cheating in a marathon once, but it was because I was following the blue line (there was plenty of room, I wasn't cutting anyone) instead of sticking to one side of the road like they all were. For those that don't know, the blue line marks the official marathon distance and is set I think a foot away from the corner as it curves around. If you don't follow it, you'll end up running 43 or even 44km

@turbo_brian 13 minutes ago

At the end of the day, society should hold everyone to a high standard. Why let people get away with cheating in running? That just seems like something that will translate to other aspects of life. Someone who runs a 5 hour marathon and cuts a course and finishes in 4 hours, sure they're not going to impact the top finishers, but they're doing that so they can go brag about their time to their friends. If they get away with it they'll just get addicted to that high of praise and acceptance from their peers and do it more. Plus where do you draw the line? I finished 120th in my last race with a time of 3:02. I wanted to get top 100 and if you told me 20 people cut the course to finish ahead of me and that's why I missed out on top 100 I'd be miffed. They didn't put in the work, why should they get the bragging rights?

@OwenLikesGoats 1 hour ago

I think anyone who has played rugby should get a free pass for one stepping. It’s too intrenched not to be on a flat line with someone

@Rich-Wilson-8647 38 minutes ago

There are at least three recent cases of ultra runners open!y admitting to taking banned substances.

@maverickmikeruns-p5v 2 hours ago

a lot of people who i follow on strava , go by their " moving time " and never their offical parkrun time , i always go by my official time , but i know i have prob done 5k slightly faster , also when im on a run , i always go by elapsed time , even if i wait at traffic lights etc... , also sometimes people i know go by their moving time rather than thier chip times , but again , its always the chip time , despite races measuring longer

@jnnymtchll 1 hour ago

So weird to have an influencer cheat, not least because heroic failure drives way more engagement than perfect performance (looking at TRC sub 20 /75 attempts)

@maverickmikeruns-p5v 2 hours ago

good topic , nowadays i dont care if anyone cheats at my parkrun or races that i take part in , i just cant be bothered , mainly because i do badly in my age group these days , however , go back 40 years ago when i was a teenager , and getting to english schools x - country , having to get in a certain position to qualify , i would have been very frustrated , so i do get it , but more importantly i really feel for athletes that have lost potential medals in olympics , worlds etc... due to doping etc..., then an athlete getting a meal they should have got yeard before , one example , my fave event mens 4x400 metres , i cant remember what meeting it was . runners included roger black , anyway , have a good weekend

@VPhan-io6wv 1 hour ago

I honestly don’t see a problem with giving away your bib if you genuinely can’t start and are not using that result for any qualification

@gregormckinney621 1 hour ago

Loads of influencers are on peptides to aid recovery. Would you say that's cheating?

@lukeblack52 1 hour ago

My first ever race was the Great North Run, and I set myself a slightly ambitious goal based on the average pace I’d trained so hard to achieve. When I crossed the finish line and stopped my watch, I saw a new PB and knew I’d hit the pace I’d worked so hard for. I was buzzing. Then my official chip time came through, almost two minutes slower than I’d expected. I’d covered an extra 600m by zigzagging through the crowded roads, which meant I’d missed my A goal and my official average pace didn’t reflect the effort I’d put in. Honestly, I was devastated. It took all my strength to post my official chip time rather than my Strava time, but I did.
It was a tough lesson in race execution. You can put in the training, get yourself into the best shape possible and run your heart out, but on race day, every metre counts. Find the best racing line, be patient in the crowds, and don't give away distance unnecessarily.
I didn't get the result I wanted on paper, but I came away with a PB, a lot of pride in the effort, and a valuable lesson for the next one.