Beijing Half Marathon uproar: Kenyan says he let China’s He Jie win race ‘because he is my friend’
- Widespread ridicule over footage showing Willy Mnangat looking at He and beckoning his Chinese opponent to go ahead of him and two other runners
- The event’s organiser is looking into the incident, which a Chinese sports expert says ‘is simply not done at elite level’
Kenyan runner Willy Mnangat has said he let China’s He Jie win the Beijing Half Marathon, explaining that he did it “because he is my friend”.
The end of Sunday’s 21km (13-mile) race caused uproar online as suspicions were aroused about the leading runners appearing to let He overtake.
Footage showed Mnangat, fellow Kenyan Robert Keter and Ethiopia’s Dejene Hailu Bikila running together, with He, the Asian Games marathon gold medallist, just behind.
Mnangat was shown looking at He, pointing to the finish line and making a waving gesture, beckoning him to go ahead. He passed the trio and they made no effort to respond.
Asked by the Post whether he had let He win, Mnangat said “yes”.
“He comes to Kenya and I was [pacing for him] in the Wuxi Marathon, so he is my friend, OK,” Mnangat said.
Six hours later, Mnangat changed his story, saying he was a pacemaker. However, his bib was the same as He’s and did not say “pace”, as is common practice.
The organiser, Beijing Sports Competition Management and International Exchange Centre, said an investigation had been launched, while the global governing body said integrity was paramount.
“We are aware of the footage circulating online from the Beijing Half Marathon and understand an investigation is currently being conducted by the relevant local authorities,” World Athletics said.
“The integrity of our sport is the highest priority at World Athletics. While this investigation is ongoing we are unable to provide further comment.”
Chinese sports expert Mark Dreyer said “that’s simply not done at elite level”.
“It’s one thing to cross the line together, hand in hand, in a show of sportsmanship,” Dreyer said, “but that’s not what happened here, where the African trio clearly let He Jie win.
“He doesn’t need this charity. It makes a mockery of the competition and it undermines his previous achievements.”
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Kenyan says he let China’s He Jie win Beijing Half Marathon ‘because he is my friend’
On both Chinese and Western social media, many said the race was brought into disrepute.
“I have run marathons for several years, but I have never seen anything like this,” one Weibo user commented, as others called for the four runners’ results to be annulled.
“I thought football was dirty, but it turns out the whole sports world is dirty,” another said.
“This will undoubtedly become the most embarrassing championship in He Jie’s career,” one post read.
Karen Lin, a Chinese agent who represents Mnangat, refused to answer questions about the race.
“[It is] very common for African pro runners to compete in top provincial races around China – but highly unusual they would let a Chinese runner win so obviously,” Dreyer said on X.
“[The] most obvious explanation here is that race fees for the Africans were guaranteed and/or a bonus was offered for letting the local runner win,” he added.
“Otherwise, competing for prize [money] among themselves on the Chinese circuit can be a cruel game, with barely enough on offer to pay their costs.”
Mnangat said no one told him to let He win and he did not receive a financial reward for doing so.
“I have never participated in a half marathon before, so this time I wanted to set a personal best,” He told Chinese state media.
“I just finished the Wuxi Marathon not long ago, so I was not in my best competitive state. If I had been in the same condition as during the Wuxi race, I believe my performance would have been better.”
His time of time of 2:06:57 in Wuxi last month was a national record.
