Runner Disqualified After Claiming 2nd Place in Fort Lauderdale Half Marathon

By
Derek
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330
20828

 

Photo taken approximately 1-1/2 miles from the finish

The initial 2nd place finisher of the Ft. Lauderdale A1A Half Marathon was disqualified Sunday night. She cut the course.

Splits:

10K – 44:22
13.1  – 1:21:46

These results would equate to a 7:09 minute/mile pace for the 1st 10k and a 5:25 minute/mile pace for remaining 11.08 kilometers.

After the race, she denied having cut the course. She approached other runners and race officials to defend her time. She was on the podium to accept the 2nd place award.

Shortly after the race she posted this to her Strava account.

One member commented on the lack of data. This entry was posted manually and was not linked to any GPS data.

Later that afternoon, she made another Strava entry. This one shows that she did indeed travel the entire course.

 

She had this labeled as a run, and the total time *almost* matches her original time for the 1/2 marathon. The cadence data is more consistent with what you would expect on a bike ride, not a run. Also, through the Flyby screen , I was able to confirm that she actually covered this course in the afternoon – long after the race was complete.

Below is her data from a different run. This run was done at a much slower pace, yet her cadence and heart rate were much higher.

I then looked at her race photos…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I noticed that she was wearing her Garmin 235, and the face was visible. So I purchased the pictures to get a look in high resolution, and zoomed in.

 

11.65 Total Miles


1:22:07 Total Time

This shows about 1-1/2 miles were cut. Her total time on the watch is 22 seconds longer than her initial finishing time – showing that she did indeed start the watch when she crossed the starting line.

It was warm and humid. This would have affected her running. These were not conditions that were conducive to a P.R.

Piecing together her actual paces, here is a clearer picture of what happened on the course.

10K Split  – 44:22  7:16 per mile pace.

11.6 Miles –  1:21:46 6:58 per mile pace

She cut the course about 3/4 of a mile from the turnaround – cutting a total of 1-1/2 miles.

As anyone that has used GPS technology during a race can attest – typically over a long distance the Garmin data will show a bit longer distance than the actual course distance. This is mainly due to the fact that most don’t run perfect lines and tangents. However, it is clear that the 2nd half of her run was faster than the first 10k.

Late last evening, she did post this on Instagram.

While I am glad that she eventually admitted to cutting the course and trying to cover her tracks, she only posted this after information was relayed to her regarding the extent of the evidence against her.

 
She had the opportunity to come clean after crossing the finish line. Instead, she doubled down with the deceit. She approached race officials and other runners defending her time. They did not approach her. She proactively went to them. She did attend the awards ceremony to collect her 2nd place award. 

 

She was disqualified later on Sunday once the additional evidence was presented to race officials.

She says that she was not feeling well, that she was nauseous.  The facts don’t support this.

  • She ran faster in the latter part of her run than she did in the beginning.
  • She had the energy to bike 13.1 miles that afternoon.
  • She looks to be in good form in the photo at the top of the article, taken with 1-1/2 miles to go.
  • She does not look distressed in any way in her finish line or medal photos.

I was impressed by the quick action taken by the race officials and timing company in making the correct decision to disqualify this runner, and in taking steps to make sure the rightful runners receive their awards.


New York Road Runners

What was her motivation? Here is one possibility.

She is a member of The Dashing Whippets – A Member Group of The NYRR.

The Dashing Whippets have a subgroup  – The Performance Team.

Their requirements for membership to The Performance Team include a 1/2 marathon time of 1:24:00. Had her time stood, she would have qualified for The Performance Team.

Update:

She has been removed from the Dashing Whippets. 

Update: Comment From The Timer shortly after the story broke.




Hello Sunny!

She wrote a blog post that read like a tourism commercial for Fort Lauderdale. I have confirmed that her trip was sponsored and that at least a portion of her trip and activities were comped.

Update: 

The blog post has been removed.


Other Runs

All of this led me to look deeper into her other runs. She does seem to be a talented runner. Her only marathon time is just over 3 hours in the 2016 NYC Marathon and appears to be legitimate.

However, there were some other items of interest.

2016 NYC Half marathon

Compared to her 3 hour marathon, nothing about this time stands out…except for the photographs of the runner wearing her bib #.

Not Jane

 

One other odd entry – This post specifically mentioned that she sped up the last few miles since she had to go to the bathroom. Her cadence and heart rate both decreased while she ran her fastest pace.

I’m not sure what benefit she would have had by misstating the details of this particular run.  It looks like this is a course set up by NYRR for some sort of virtual runs. It does appear that she has scrubbed her Strava account of this run and removed cadence data altogether since I grabbed this data.

In Conclusion

This is yet another case of a runner making bad decisions. Whether the decision was pre-planned or spur of the moment, her actions after she crossed the finish line are what cannot be justified. This wasn’t  a case of getting tired and calling it a day. This was an intentional act of deception as evidenced by her admission that she biked the course to try to cover her tracks.

Had she just gone straight back to her hotel, she would have been initially disqualified and the correct runners would have received the awards.

In this day of age, it is nearly possible to get away with cheating at a race – if anyone is looking. It is 100% impossible to get away with it when you resort to circus like attempts to cover it up.

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330 COMMENTS

  2. Have you contacted NYRR in regards to her having someone else run with her bib previously? Even if they ran a slower time.. NYRR doesn't take well to bib swapping.

  11. "As a team, DWRT has always prided itself in encouraging fair play on and off the race course, and as the DWRT Code of Conduct clearly states, 'Members are expected to adhere to all of the rules of competition in races in which they participate. Members found to be in violation may face reprimand, suspension or other action.'

    In this specific instance, the DWRT Board has decided we have no other option than to expel the member in question from the team, with immediate effect. This afternoon at 2pm ET, the Board of Directors met via teleconference, and terminated the runner’s membership."

  17. Nice work. I donated to the cause.

    Question: If I cut the course at my next race, and you purchase my race photos to prove I cheated, will you email me my race photos?

  18. She was turned in immediately after the race to the timing company by one the guys I train with and a member of my Racing Team who saw her speed by and knew something was up. Glad that she was ultimately stripped of 2nd place.

  22. further you have never run a decent race and a decent pace, so you have no idea what you are talking about when you said she must have been lying when she said she wasn't feeling well. You have NONE. you aren't a real runner.

  25. I'm a real runner… A runner in distress on a negative split rarely (if ever?) turns back and smiles like that for the camera with 1.5 left to go. There's no reason to believe her over our lying eyes at this point.

    Plus, her deception isn't just the Ft. Lauderdale race, so she needs to come clean at the mule, at the very least.

  29. Derek, I also noticed some BQ's that were highly suspect, as well on the Fort Lauderdale results page. Are you perusing and then pursuing that, too? Thanks for your effort.

  31. I seem to be in the minority here, but it's pretty f*$&ed up that you're releasing her personal information and personal instagram account unredacted. She's already facing punishment from her team and probably friends, publishing her info is straight up encouraging harassment from strangers.

    I feel like we're seeing the real you here, what used to be a mission to catch cheaters for the good of the community has evolved into a platform for bullying, vitriol, and of course to make you some money.

    The girl messed up, got caught, apologized, and is accepting her personal consequences. Her interaction with the public should end there.

  32. I agree with this. You can teach the lesson to "not cheat" without posting all her public information from Strava and Instagram.

  33. She has over 30,000 instagram followers. She posted her admission publicly. She was receiving negative comments to her Instagram before I published the story. This goes beyond an anonymous runner cutting a course.

  35. Agreed with above comments (It's sort of pointless keeping this post up). The race did what it needed to do. I'm sure she has learned her lesson. The team terminated her. Social media scrutiny is easy because you can hide behind a monitor but there's truly no need for schadenfreude. We all do things that we regret at some point or the other. However, disclosing personal info is considered cyberbullying despite her public platform of followers. Oh and well, someone did bring this up: usually races have cyclists following the lead so this shouldn't have happened.

  36. Um, "public" information is, um, public. You are confusing "public" with something called "private"…not the same. In regards to the money…no one is required to donate. You are confusing "donate" with something called "garnish"…also not the same.

  37. Some folks are missing the main point here:

    DON'T CHEAT IN RACES unless you are willing to be called out and have to deal with all that may come with it.

    It's pretty simple. Stop making it complex with all the jibber-jabber. #whatihear

  38. There's a difference between public info and doxxing people with it. No one would have any reason to find her personal accounts if it weren't for this blog post. Pasting her name and instagram username is encouraging people to harass her, there's literally no other reason to do it.

    What is the point of MI? To find and catch cheaters, so that they disqualified, and in the process show what methods were used? Or to encourage everyone who comes here to go harass a stranger by providing easy access to their personal information, that they wouldn't otherwise have without some due effort? Which community do you want to be a part of?

  39. Doubt people are missing the point.

    Derek, you're going out of your way to purchase hi-res Marathon Foto pictures for a blog entry and asking for donations.
    I'd have to admire your shtick/content creation/entertainment journalism if the race directors already had it handled.

  41. Keep the post up! Cheaters suck! It totally makes my day when I see in my email that Derek has posted another cheater story. Why does society all of a sudden need to tolerate this kind of behavior? She ruined her own reputation, not the other way around.

  46. I would emphasize, if the statement was accurate, that she was comped (in some way) to be here and run this race. I think that adds to cheating and why this goes beyond a normal/regular cheat story.

  47. What I don't get is why they don't verify that runners cross all the points they're supposed to before awarding the top awards. In this case, there was a timing mat just after mile 9, which was on the loop after the split from the marathoners. She would have had to skip that mat. Why didn't they verify that she crossed the start, 10k, 9 mile mark, and finish before awarding her the top prize, because I'm sure the 9 mile mark was blank for her.

  48. Stories like this need to be public, at least for a while.

    Someone else deserved to stand on the podium. Someone else was displaced off the podium and did not have their day in the sun, or photo in the paper.

    Marathon Investigation is doing a good job. If you robbed a bank and got caught you would expect your face to be on TV. We should not have one standard for street crime and another for white collar crime.

    There is a difference between an honest mistake, or even getting caught up in the moment, but going as far as fabricating a cover story, or cover Strava stats, is wild.

    I believe MarathonInvestigation page was originally devoid of her name. Read the early part.

    It seems the sSections with her name in were added after she attempted to disprove the report by deliberately faking data.

    Did wrong, got caught, and then instead of saying sorry, she tried to prove innocence by tampering with the evidence or fabricating data. That deserves a public humiliation.

  51. While I understand what you're saying – posting public indo – in this case, it's called "evidence". Without evidence, there is no case. Derek can hardly say "well, there's data out there that supports my point but I don't wanna make the cheater feel bad themselves so I'm not going to share it and you have to take my word for it."
    Nope, that wouldn't fly. She cheated, she put her info out there and she doubled down when she faked the course again later.

  53. Soooo. U mean to tell me that I moved up a ranking to 3,469 in this race? ???. This is awesome! I hope ur significant other never gets any ideas of deceit. #Matkock

  54. Great work.. We, the hard working and decent athletes appreciate your efforts and investigation. KEEP THE POST UP!

  55. Seems that standing on a podium in public at a public race and accepting public accolades, cheating out all of the other runners racing in a public race, makes the cheating you have done very public and invites public scrutiny, no?

  59. LOL @ everyone coming to her defense. Her results are public. So when she cheats, she's going to have to accept the negative publicity that comes with it. Hopefully this is an example to others who might have similar ideas.

  60. I can't reply to every comment. But the article stays. If she wishes to make another statement, I will publish it. It would send the wrong message to remove the articles that gain the most attention. This article is getting attention because people are upset about not just the cheating..but the lies and cover up.

  62. Dwrt has a bad reputation in nyc. They "pay" their faster runners and alienate they slower ones and make them pay. They have a win at all cost mentality. Kinda like salazar

  63. Poster above says: "Oh and well, someone did bring this up: usually races have cyclists following the lead so this shouldn't have happened."

    Can you elaborate what this means? How would cyclists in front of the lead runner, who finished in 1:14, prevent what happened? Please elaborate.

  67. Derek's doing good work. She should be called out, and thanks to the investigation on this blog, she was removed (appropriately) from a running club. That's where the shame is. This post details what she did, but the consequences of her actions will stick with her regardless of how this blog publicizes them.

  68. Race results are public. So are criminal records, for that matter. I don't get what the problem is here. If you don't want to be shamed, don't cheat.

  69. Seriously, her IG has 34500 followers and it's publicly accessible. MI Facebook page has 1200 likes. She doesn't deserve pity, and shaming is entirely appropriate. What a talent wasted by greed/stupidity. And her food blog is awesome, too.

  72. You're nuts. She brought this upon herself. It should remain as an example to everyone, and IG should drop her followers too.

  73. What she didn't realize she has completely ruined her MBA admission chances now with this cheating. All her paper resume of working in management consulting at Bain and Co. for a two years stint and then a year or two of corporate at her current employer (Verizon) will be pointless for that purposes. All MBA admission officers do search candidates' public information on the internet as one of their many sources to confirm not just their resume claims but more importantly to assess the candidates' characters and ethics.

  75. Whatever is available public as in instagram, strava, Facebook is public domain. If a person doesn't want it that way, they can make it private so people cant see it. However – if you make it public, there it is. Whining about that inviting harassment is stupid. Don't want to be called out for cutting the course and taking a place that wasn't legitimately yours? Don't cut the course and lie. 7:16 is still a pretty good 10k split, if I'm running near you and you cheat, I'm telling everybody.

  78. Derek, keep doing this, you are providing a great service to the running community!

    The people claiming that this article should be removed are clearly related to the cheater.

  79. I ran this race but in no way near her speed, I had my own goals but did not achieve them because of the heat and humidity and I am from Florida! I did manage a 25 second PR but if you look at my race photos I was drenched from head to toe and exhausted! Unacceptable behavior and hope she gets maximum punishment!

  80. Lol at "shaming". She was caught early, and cried to the RD about, falsely claiming 2nd place AND going back with a bike to try to cover it up. Only after the extra evidence did she fess up.

    The only thing she has going for her is that she ultimately admitted it, unlike Rossi, Kip, and Rosie.

  82. The timing official literally did that and wanted to disqualify her, but she cried to the race director and he was the one that let it stand.

  83. The majority of those "30K" instagram followers are fake accounts – many of the likes on her recent photos are spam bots. She 100 percent buys followers/likes.

  88. Fantastic investigative work. HOWEVER. Not sure why you had to do this. You see, I ran the race. And you wouldn't know this because you didn't, but there are four timing mats – start, finish, 10K and turnaround (about 9 miles). If she did what you say she did, there would be no record of her crossing the turnaround mat at about 9 miles. WHY didn't the race organizers notice this? She should never have been permitted to stand on the podium without that, and you shouldn't have had to do this investigative work. If what you say is true, there would be no record of her crossing the turnaround mat!!!!

  89. I am aware of the timing mat at the turnaround. The timer did notice this, and she was initially DQ'd but was added back in until they went through everything. In every race there are missed mats – sometimes they malfunction, or they aren't placed across the entire course and are missed by an honest runner. She kept up her story for quite awhile, only once the evidence was presented did she admit to cutting.

  91. The amount of butt hurt in these comments is sad. She knew what she was doing. AND tried to cover her mistakes. I agree people shouldn't be doxxing her. But finding her social media profiles is extremely easy even without MI posting her information.

  93. Understood. The way they had that mat set up at turnaround, it was almost impossible to miss it. Cones set up on either side.

    Fantastic work! I keep hearing that line from Game of Thrones: "Shame! Shame! Shame!"

  95. Mike the Harrier, I suppose somebody knighted you 'he who knows who is a real runner and who is not.' Well that's it folks. Now we know what a real runner is. A real runner is like Mike, a supreme douche.

  97. WOW I run for fun and to help with the cause in which I run. So sad that people to choose to steal the limelight and funds from the many well organized and charitable running events. Great job investigating!
    Annette Watson-Johnson
    @DynamicParticipators

  99. Great work. This deserves to stay here! She is only mad and apologized because she got caught. I doubt if this never came up she would have kept the award and used the time for her DWRT.

    I'll be honest, the idea of cutting a course is tempting to lower your time when you are so close to a goal (say a BQ)… but half the reason of setting a goal is to push yourself. If you let yourself slip like this I think it's pretty indicative of the mindset the person has.

    I still haven't earned a BQ but I keep it as that goal to keep pushing harder.

    Also if you pay $150 to run 26.2 or in this case 13.1, that equates to paying about $5.72 or 11.45 respectively per mile. I damn well am going to run each mile.

  100. The sanctimonious attitudes of cheater-apologists are hilarious. She cheated and everything written is fact. Her apology/admission of guilt is damage control when she got pinched by marathon investigations.

  103. This is awesome, thank you for your work on this issue… I saw a handful of people cutting the course, most form a certain team with hundreds of participants, all with very distinctive and colorful race shirts. I can't believe these organizations don't instruct their rookie team members on what is considered unacceptable behavior… Thanks again for keeping it honest.

  104. DWRT is all about win win win. They pretend to care about the slower runners – but its all a facade to race competitive and score points and win club points. It looks like the runner in question has also won points for them. I'd love to see DWRT stripped of their ability to compete this year!

  106. This woman deserves absolutely no sympathy, and anyone coming to her defense either lacks any sort of intelligence or is somehow affiliated with this cheater.

    Plain and simple, she cheated. She knew what she was doing, she tried to cover it up, and then took someone else's place on the podium. On top of this, she put all this out in public forums. She choose to make a public spectacle of herself, and deserves every bit of criticism she is receiving.

    As I tell my kids, think before you post anything on social media. Once it is out there, it is out there forever.

  109. The irony is, "all publicity is good publicity," if she's not married, she'll probably meet her spouse online due to this story, lol 😉

  110. If you Google her, her LinkedIn account shows up, which includes a link to her blog, which includes links to her social media accounts. It takes literally no effort to find her instagram on her own. If you google her name + instagram, it's the first result. Don't blame Derek. Anyone with access to Google could find this information on their own without his help.

  111. Have some of you never heard of "Google?" Literally type in her name and you get all the info she WANTS you to see. IG, Strava, her Blogs, etc…

  112. What a hollow life one must lead to do something like this.
    Seo is not someone who loves running. She's someone who loves praise and adulation. She does it for the "likes" that follow the photos she posts of her "accomplishments". This type of deception is endemic among social media narcissists. I am sure that this is not the only thing she "cheats" on.

  113. Thank you for your work investigating these cheats. People who cheat at races deprive everyone else in the race of the opportunity to enjoy the recognition & damage the integrity of the entire event.

    I also would like to have you dig more deeply into her past times, especially the 3:00 marathon. I am skeptical of that performance. Her cheating technique seems pretty advanced for someone who had never done it before & claims just to have made a bad decision because she didn't feel well on race day.

  114. There is an assumption that people called out here are getting harassed. The appeal of this site is, to borrow from Ian Faith, selective. Is there really that much harassment? Is there evidence of this?

  116. So… The vast majority of runners enter their races, and other than maybe getting their name called at the finishing chute, run in complete anonymity. That's the experience for most of us. For those worried about shaming, it's easy to forget that these are races, not runs. They are public, competitive sporting events, and often we share the course (even if for a short time) with professionals.

    There is no reasonable expectation of privacy here. Some people may find this unseemly, and want no part of it, and I sympathize. Until Derek came along, most people had no idea how common this practice was. And other than Derek, there is no one else providing this sort of deterrent.

    Cheat in private, and you got to live with only yourself. Cheat in public, and you're in a whole new realm. Do I feel bad for these people? Absolutely. But not for getting caught, or for having to face some pretty tough music. I pity them their need to cheat, especially for as talented a runner as this girl is.

  117. Thanks for your work Derek, and I've made a contribution. I ran the A1A Half this year (4656), just like I have for the past 3 years, and I'm grateful for your efforts here. This race is an unofficial "season kickoff" for the triathlon club I belong to, and I personally know the woman in Jane's AG that she bumped into 4th place with her bogus finish. I also know women that were running close by and witnessed her cut the course. It would have been fun to get some photos with our friend Natalia and her 3rd place finishers medal, but Jane made sure that was stolen from all of us.

    The reason your work is so important here is that it shuts the door on any/all hearsay surrounding her actions. Others above have valid points when they ask, "Why drive the stake in further? The RD had it under control." Sure, we all get that part, but without the evidence you put forth — who knows how far she would have gone with this? What you unraveled is a window into a troubled persons psyche. This wasn't a first offense, and with your thorough exposé — I'm confident she would have carried it as far as she could take it. You shut this down, my friend… folks are looking at this and thinking, "These runners mean business!" Damn right.

    Lastly, and why I donated, is that this is a nod to the spirit that every serious, non-professional athlete carries with them. Each race we run is one more (or probably one less) opportunity to be as competitive as we can possibly be. We love to be measured. Most know we'll never be getting prize money, or making the Olympics, so this is it for us. These events are the only place we can live out our kooky sports fantasies. And at the core of that — the one thing that makes it so gratifying when you make a podium, or a top 10, etc. — is that you believe you have been able to "better the competition" fair and square. What this young lady did last Sunday was to steal that confidence from all of us. And by "outing" her in the fashion that you did… we get to see the right amount of equal, and opposite, force put things back onto an even keel. You weren't unfair in anything you did, instead, you just did what everyone is craving — to absolutely right an absolute wrong. We even understand her twisted and pathetic motive now. And that's important — VERY important, because everyone reading this knows that it will happen again. But back at the finish line we'll be saying… "Hey, remember that Derek guy? I think I'm gonna see if he can help us out with what happened at the race today." Thanks 🙂

    Dream big, run fast.

  120. Without this blog post being up, I would've had no idea our cheater even posted a half-assed "apology" and admission of guilt. She deleted it, then started shutting down her public accounts. No, if you were truly sorry, you would keep that public apology up for the world to see.

    This blog post needs to stay up, no question. Mad respect to Derek.

  122. Mike the Harrier must've gotten caught cheating before in some race or another. Really can't think of another explanation for this level of saltiness.

  123. Nah, she didn't run 2:07, the guy who took her bib did. If she didn't cut the course, she'd have ended up with about a 1:30 half. Her NYC Full marathon time looks legit, but who knows, of course.

  124. She probably didn't want to run the NYC Half and gave her bib to someone else who ran a much slower time than she's capable of. Not a major deal, really. I know it's not condoned and RDs hate it, but it's not an uncommon thing. Not anywhere what she did last weekend, which is absolutely horrendous. Many people give their bibs out, doesn't mean they also do serious time cheating like course cutting or taking credit for a fast mule to qualify for another race.

  125. I remembered here in our place (CDO, Philippines). A local canine club organized a fun run for dogs and owners. Big dog categories has different and longer tracks than those of the toy dog category. So we started running and I know that fact that I am on the 2nd place while still running… until we reached the finish line, I know that I am the second placer but when we arrived at the finished line the time keeper told me I am 4th placer, the one I am following was only a 3rd placer.

    The 2 of us were looking at each other on disbelief, what the hell happened when all of the time we were running, nobody passed by us to get the lead. Unless they made the short distance track for the toy/small dog category. We didn't complained though because it was just for fun and the prize was just a kilo of dogfood. I just don't like to be cheated because I always play by the rules.

  126. Thank you for your amazing work! Except someone having running with your bib, I'm pretty sure, there would be nearly no way for cheating, when they use electronic systems with mats, the runners have to pass. How could this happen during this race?
    Keep up the good work!
    Kindest from Germany!

  127. Your logical fallacy argument is factually flawed / just wrong.

    Fraud is both against civil law and criminal law.

  128. Post should be deleted. She did something indefensible but not something evil. She apologized and even if you can't accept the apology after the cover up, you can believe she is sincere in regretting it by now.

    She can't go back in time and undo what she did so what is the post accomplishing at this point beyond intensifying the humiliation?

  129. Grow up it's just running. You are no better than her.

    Both you and her think that running is important enough to either cheat at in her case, or that it's important enough that she needs to be made to suffer because she decided to cheat at it in your case.

  130. 1) I am glad you discovered the cheat.

    2) You should not doxx *anyone* like this – the consequences of this doxxing are far beyond what a person who cheated once on a 12 mile run deserve.

    3) Doxxing is not necessary to make the case about how the cheating action was discovered.

    4) You know nothing about her or how she conducts herself normally.

    5) I am not a runner – and probably never will be.

    People have lost jobs, been harassed over things that are more minor than this.

    I hate internet shaming. We don't need internet shaming.

  131. Well in fact Heartrate data sometimes lie. My heartrate captor is bugging when the hearth rate is too high, indicating a very low hearth rate (like some kind of type overflow). So hearth rate cannot really be taken as perfect proof.

  132. This is amazing work but I can't help but to feel sorry for the poor girl. Yes, she cheated and tried to cover up her lies. That's indefensible but did you really have to publish this to the public? What motivation did you have to do so? Couldn't you just have alerted the tournament officials?

  133. Hi Jane.
    You regret that you are caught, not that you cheated.
    By the way, your story is all over the internet, so no need to remove this.
    Great work Derek!

  134. No one has been "doxxed", posting her IG isn't doxxing her. IMO she deserves it anyway, she would happily claim she came second if she hadn't been busted, she is a cheat and one that tried her very best to cover it up with fake evidence. People like her are disgusting and I hope she her personal life is affected by this.

  136. Because she cheated and deserves to be outed. Just like any other athlete caught doping at cycling, the Olympics, etc. When you are in a public race, everything you do is public. If you win, you get the adulation that comes with winning or placing. If you cheat and are caught, be prepared to accept the consequences.

    If putting this out there makes others think twice about cutting a course or cheating, then that's a job well done.

  139. LIARS ARE THE WORST (WORKED WITH ONE–JUST TERRIBLE PEOPLE)

    BUT THEY SEEM TO MAKE THE BEST STORIES TO READ WHEN THEY GET CAUGHT–

    GREAT INVESTIGATION….
    (SORRY FOR THE ANONYMOUS POST–@WORK…)

  140. DWRT isn't all about winning. Yes, there is a highly competitive section of the club but they're something like 500+ runners. There are also some runners who are recreational/social types who see it as a social organization. Don't let the few bad apples spoilt the lot (I'm not a member of DWRT).

    DWRT did the right thing by expelling Jane from the club.

  142. She's confessed to her deceitful ways. It's just so unfortunate that's she now branded for life as a cheater because of social media and this guy's investigation. He could have just reported his findings to the race officials and even maybe to DWRT. He did not have to plaster all of her personal info and entire history on his blog site. Will he take full responsibility if this girl decides to harm or kill herself? We all make mistakes and sometimes very bad ones. Cyber shaming needs to be shamed!

  143. All of her social media accounts are gone now (for those of you that cared)
    All actions have consequences. You just don't run 11.65 of a half marathon and say..Ok I'm done..I'm sick. Especially not at a 7:05 pace!! She only apologized because she was caught.

  145. Wrong. I love running and I actually understand the anger people feel.

    But everyone is underestimating how much online hatred hurts people and they are forgetting she is a human being.

    How many here are Christians? Now is the time to show it. She needs forgiveness not more hatred.

  147. I'm cleaning up the comments and turning on moderation. Keep it civil. I won't remove comments just because they are critical of the post. Also, I have deleted posts that I believe cross the line in regards to this runner. This post is about her running – I'm not investigating her academic career, or anything else. If you have something that's relevant that – feel free to e-mail me.

  148. Again showing that the cover up is much worse than the actual cheating!! Why don't people learn? How do people live with themselves after cheating to BQ or place, or even finish a race?

  149. This is an awesome investigation. If you think you can lie or cheat in a modern world, you can't. Especially if you have a phone in your pocket, or some other kind of GPS tracker.

    As far as those defending her, well… you're entitled to your opinion. It's tough, she's learning a tough lesson, but it will get easier over time… maybe she will become an evangelist for honesty? (certainly she will think harder next time).

    Generally my advice; Think hard before you do anything you don't want to see on a website somewhere at some point in the future, and don't try to cheat someone else out of their well-deserved prize.

  151. For those who are telling Derek to take this down and why did he have to publish all of this… wah wah wah…..
    She stole podium spots from people !

    MANY women didn't get to stand rightfully on the podium and get their awards because of this girl !
    YOu don't think they should know ???? WRONG !!!
    She was dq'd which means someone else got 2nd overall and then EVERY female was bumped up in the age groups, Maters, etc "runenomincs" as some call it.
    ALL of these newly bumped up females got the WRONG awards.
    So this statement "He could have just reported his findings to the race officials and even maybe to DWRT"
    NO !

    And this one from "Alex": "That's indefensible but did you really have to publish this to the public? What motivation did you have to do so?" Really ?? You need to ask that question ?????? Cheating defines one's character among other things, and now the "public" gets to see this. And SHE made her results public on her IG, etc…..

    I can't believe people are defending her…………

    And lastly many of MY FRIENDS are the ones who got DENIED podium spots because of her !

  152. I ran this race and remember that mat. Yet missing a mat does not necessarily mean you are cheating. I did Chicago in 2012 and to my surprise my chip only worked at the start, 5k and finish line.I was DQ. I called the organizers and they asked for my gps splits. I luckily had them that day, my first time racing with a GPS. I also pointed out I had done a similar time 6 months before. My time was good enough for Boston so I am sure that also raised a red flag. Nevertheless I had already qualified in a previous race (I wasn't interested in Boston though) All in all I was reinstated but it made me realize mistakes happen.First time in 30 years of racing that a chip malfunctioned but it did! So missing a mat can be a red flag but we definitely need more evidence than that to catch a cheat.

  153. Nobody is defending her actions we are defending the fact that she's a human being.

    She has been disqualified. She has been kicked off her team. Those are valid consequences for her actions. Justice has been done.

    Now she needs forgiveness and mercy. She does not deserve the hatred she is receiving and she doesn't deserve to be defined by her worst moments.

  154. I agree. First she needs to truly apologize to those her cheating affected. The runners that were bumped, her sponsor, the race officials. If she does that, people would move on. I pleaded with her to be truthful before I published this. I've encouraged her to come clean – and my offer to post any statement she wishes to make stands.

  155. ^^^exactly. Deleting all of your social media accounts and hiding won't get you anywhere.
    Issue a HEARTFELT apology to everyone you affected !! (not one only because you were caught)

    Maybe even do some type of community service (volunteer at races…whatever to SHOW that you mean what you SAY ) !

  157. "…reported his findings to the race officials and even maybe to DWRT…" is not what Derek has ever done with this blog. If you tuned in late and haven't gone back to read his previous posts, what this blog has done from Day 1 has been to out runners who cheat in races. As an RD, and someone who is responsible for the official results for the races my company produces, I am glad for the service Derek provides. He's keeping a lot of races on their toes, and he's putting all of us in a situation where we know what to be watching out for – if we care to produce accurate results.

  158. I agree with posters who say she needs mercy and forgiveness. Her act is indefensible, and she denied other women their rightful podium spots. She is already dealing with the consequences. I don't think she needs more hatred and vitriol directed towards her. She probably already feels like scum. Her apology on Instagram appeared genuine, but I'm guessing it was taken down because of all the ugly comments that followed.

    Let's not forget Paul Ryan also lied about his marathon time. It seems like he only received a fraction of the hate and negativity that this girl received and continues to receive. There were no real world repercussions to his lie. Why do we care so much when some young woman no one has heard of cheats but we only laugh and joke when the Speaker of the House lies about the same subject?

    Look, I'm not defending her cheating. I'm just arguing for more compassion and forgiveness in this cruel world.

    Derek, I applaud the work that you do and the singularity of your pursuit to keep running honest. We need people like you to keep the infinitesimal percentage of dishonest runners in line. I do hope that your heart's ability for compassion and forgiveness can match your brain's ability for analytics.

    J, if you read this, don't let this define you. We are all more than our lowest moments. Whatever has happened is in the past, and you can only move on and do better.

  159. I am glad she was outed. She apologized only after she was stone cold busted. She wanted recognition (podium, etc.) , she got it !!! I didn't go to Harvard but I'm alot smarter than this chick. She's young, I hope she gets enlightened by this mistake.

  162. So just because she's a human eh? You're a fucking idiot. Go tell some people who were raped that their attackers are human too and don't need to get in trouble. All actions have consequences you moron. Nah, I take it back… let's get rid of all governments, law, and consequences, because we're all human after-all.

  163. So bizarre people do this. Anyone who has run with her would know the time is BS. Was she planning to "retire" from running races at 24 since she wouldn't be able to repeat the pace? Her time was faster than all the women who made that special group last year. Nuts. Hope she gets help because this is a character issue.

  164. I disagree with attempts to play down the "not feeling well". Please don't try to assume you know how/what somebody else feels. This has no part in the cheating and gross misconduct going on. Thanks.

  165. I agree with the Internet shaming being too much. Posting direct links is like walking next to a person continuously pointing at them for flaws. Internet bullying is still bullying.

  166. Donated. Great analytics and good deep diving. This really sucks for anyone who did an honest run regardless of time.

  167. I feel bad for her too. But when people know all of your business, you tend to do better business. We seem to have forgotten the potent efficacy of shame as a deterrent.

  168. NYRR acted fast, they removed the result from the NYC Half list, presumably based on Derek's post showing someone else ran with her bib.

  171. Are you really comparing what she has done to Paul Ryan????
    This was some THOUGHT OUT premeditated insanity. She rode the bike course the DAY BEFORE so she KNEW WHERE to exit and then return the day of the race and then BIKE the course again AFTER the race to produce FAKE data on her Garmin. And TOOK away podium spots for those who earned them, and oh, yeah, then there's this (since I live here in FL & know the owner of this race):
    From the head timer: (Derek, I'm not sure if you've seen this ?)

    From the rd:
    I knew right away she was lying. I'm in a tough position when I tell the event owner one thing and he makes the call to keep her in the results. When I questioned her pace jumping from a 6:40 pace at the 10k to 5:25 pace (faster than Huberty ran his last 10k) in 86 degree weather she out right lied to my face. I could tell by her demeanor she way lying and I could tell she didn't go to the turn around because when I asked her where it was she couldn't identify it. She said, "I turned around where everyone else did" …I said "what and where was that?" ….she said, " it was a sign that said turn around" … I said (to her face) , "You are lying to me and you didn't run the entire course- that's why I'm taking you out"… then she went and cried to the event owner and being the nice guy he is; he told me to put her back in the results.
    She is not sorry she did this, she is only sorry she got caught. She would have never come clean unless she was caught like this. The only reason she made an apology is because we found out she did this to qualify for the dashing whippets elite team time standards. She came to this race with the intention of cheating. It was pre planned because she needed to run a sub 1:24:00 to make the elite standards for the racing team.
    I confronted her about this via private message on Facebook and let her know the dashing whippets would be notified… immediately after this she came clean of her intentions and what she did.

  172. From what I understand, she deleted her apology for her misconduct at the race, but has more to answer for. I am glad the messages and photos were captured, as it shows the full story.

  173. Thank you for posting this and thank you for creating the article. It's refreshing to see someone take responsibility for their public posts (:

  177. Derek- I made a contribution and I wish I could also give you a hearty handshake and a smile. Keep up the good work!

    My husband is not a fast runner and he completed his first marathon last year with an even slower time than he would have due to stopping to assist other runners in distress- I couldn't be more proud!

    As to the apologists in the comments who think that the public record of what she did and how Derek clearly described it amounts to bullying, it's not- it's OSINT. Maybe if people get a clue about the fact that the timing mats aren't the only thing watching your footprint they will be more careful, not only of the tracks they leave- but the path they choose. It's just investigation, no different than any article that describes any other twists and turns of someone's wrongdoing. Rather than assuming that her status as a semi-public figure should insulate her from the grand scale embarrassment of this story- morality aside, that status should have prevented her from taking such an absurd risk with her reputation in the first place!

    I do feel bad for her, imagining how she would feel- but that's just me projecting my own emotional map as if I was in her situation- it's possible that she's as fine with this emotionally as she was when she turned off the course with the full intention of crossing the finish line.

    I was once a competitive cyclist and missed the regional high school title to a cheater (my season long rival) who had at the staggered start, snuck up into the boy's A pack when the very small girls pack was stuck behind the boy's B pack. Over thirty years later the thought of it still burns and that heartbreak was a major factor in my giving up racing. These far reaching harms of cheating to other honest sportsmen can not be quantified or corrected.

  178. Calling out a cheat is not bullying. Listing her many forms of cheating is not bullying. Neither is commenting that she behaves like a sociopath – narcissistic, callous to the injurious nature of her deceptiveness, false penitence ex posto facto…sounds like a Clinton, or any of that band of desperate, self-esteemless charlatans in the public forum. Leveling hurtful labels on her unwarranted and baseless is bullying. No one has said shes a dumb ugly waste of life. That would be bullying. Shes just sick.

  179. Is it worth it is not a legitimate question. Is it worth it to whom for what would begin a reasonable inquiry along that line. To readers of Huffington, runners in that race and followers of her public blogging, yes, the value of the truth is worth these postings.

  180. I do not know her but there is no reason to believe she is fine. She posted a long apology explaining how embarrassed she is and now has deleted all her social media accounts. Those are not the actions of someone who is fine.

  181. What's all this about doxxing and posting her personal information? I haven't seen her address, phone number, email address, etc. posted anywhere. Everything I've seen is available just by typing her name into Google.

    If you can't handle the repercussions of your actions, here's a simple life pro tip: Don't do stupid shit.

  182. Oh my gosh Derrick, you are my new favorite person. Seriously warms my heart to know that there are people out there taking time out of their own lives to make sure that cheaters don't prosper – at least not in marathons.
    Good on you mate, donating for sure. 🙂
    (found you from the Phillip DeFranco show on youtube, btw)

  183. Let's not absolve Paul Ryan either. He's a total POS for lying about his time, and he totally knew he was lying. Sub-3 our my A@@..

    And holy crap, the RDs notes here make it even worse for this runner. She'll have a long way to climb out of this hole she dug for herself. Probably wise to stay off social media and lay low for a long while.

  185. Derek, I have tons of cases for you for those despicable characters and also indifferent race directors. Great job making the case. Jane sucks, all cheaters, bandits, and Lance Armstrong suck!

  188. Ooooo, the 'I pity you, sir' response.

    Always a good one.

    I'm sure your thoughts on how he spends his free time are at the top of his list of concerns.

  191. The inference is reasonable that if a person is not feeling well it is very unlikely they would proceed to bike a course at a very precise pace afterwards. No doubt you will claim that this feeling unwell could have been temporary – how very "post-truth" of you. I'm sorry but especially in this day and age we have a duty to call out "alternative facts" as BS.

  193. Cheating for the moment, OK maybe. Cheating like Lance Armstrong, not OK. Jane SEO is now with Lance Armstrong. Rehabilitated? It's a mental illness or moral shameass, unfortunately permanent.

  194. And most of those are probably fake account and runners. This would have been dealt with more maturely if it was just been in just the runner community. She would have been reviewed and then a punishment issued of probably being banned. It would have all been on the race side which is where the issue happen. This blog brought it to the next level and you have an eager audience waiting to destroy someones life for any reason. However now you will probably never have to worry about her ever trying to be apart of the race community again. Justice!

  196. Anyone could Google and find what Derek found, but even if they couldn't, this runner fashioned an Instagram identity and had a gazillion followers. Very public with her successes.

  197. Any "real runner" who works hard for their times, no matter what they are, should be angry at someone who not only cuts the course but then tries to cover it up, taking an honor from someone who earned it. You know, a "real runner".

  198. Some clubs are more social, and some are more competitive. But the motive to cheat comes from the individual.

  200. Yes, Great work Derek! You now have a site full of Internet Justice trolls that you can hive mind into attacking anyone you have an issue with.
    Cause you see the Internet Justice horde that is attracted to your site is not looking for justice, they want to destroy someone and you gave them the info and the reason.

  201. Here is my problem with her apology as of today.

    In her apology she is not apologizing to ladies she stole spot-light from. As a middle of the pack runner I do not need her to apologize to the running community. We will be fine with or without her, with or without other cheaters. 95% of us won't contend to win the race anyway.

    Nobody even is talking about who won the race. If I was winner of the race I cannot imagine how I would feel about all this now. This was supposed to be my time to shine but all attention is on Jane.

    Also her apology to the ladies she stole spotlight from should have been in person or at least via phone.

    Maybe she will reach out to them in the future maybe she won't. Maybe she already did and if she did – good for her. However if her only apology is to running community it feels to me that she is more apologizing for being caught and not being remorseful to the ladies she stole spot-light from.

  203. Timer had at least one cheater mats placed on the course and Jane did not have a reading on one of them. However it's not uncommon to miss a read or two at intermediate timing check-points even if runner is not cheating.

    Intermediate timing points are not set up the same way as finish line due to cost. Finish line timing points have different provisions with back-up timing mats or antennas to maximize the chance to get every chip read. Cost of equipment at the finish line is at least double if not triple compared to intermediate timing points. I am sure that timers would not mind installing bullet-proof intermediate timing points as often as needed but they would have to charge accordingly.

    Also often runners are still bunched up at intermediate timing points increasing chance of missed reads. So missed reads are easily disputable.

  204. Did you read? They had one and disqualified her initially, but then she insisted that her time was legit and collected the award she didn't deserve.

  205. People determined to cut a course will often claim some kind of chip malfunction to explain missing splits, the really determined (Kip) would simply bike between the mats, get off, walk past the mat then get back on the bike.

  207. I'm no Paul Ryan defender… but calling any one a "total POS" for claiming they ran a sub 3 hr marathon when asked on the spot? That's just silly.

    It was a lie… but let's not get into hyperbole. There are real, honest-to-goodness POSs in this world. Don't go overboard here.

  209. I don't know what point do we label as bullying her if she committed suicide? We want to shame her and embarrass her only to teach her a lesson that cheating is not permitted but at the same time I don't want her to kill herself because of her wrong interpretation that we are bullying her. At the same time, I don't want her to get death threats or anyone to hire a hitman to kill her. I understand people that ran the marathon are upset that she cheated and want revenge but I think it's best to let the police handle it by taking her to jail instead of taking the law into your own hands. You're just as bad as her if you try to take her life for cheating just let the police handle her.

  213. I see cheaters no different than thieves and pyramid schemers. They deserve any retribution from what they have done. She tried to cheat to get social media attention and personal glorification, then she gets the yin-yen back.

  214. So many "REAL" runners here. Remember something though, if you feel the need to put others down to make yourself look better, you aren't. So look in the mirror and stop trying to claim you are better than anyone else. All these self-righteous, self-absorbed people here… SMH

  218. So you think she can't be rehabilitated? Are you 100% sure she will always cheat? She's a lost cause? Are you generalizing?

  221. Yes. His next gig will be going after third rate Motorcyclists, Massage Therapists and future van dwellers like you. Obviously you don't have anything better to do than respond to this website so look in the mirror and ask the question again. Yikes.

  222. I can't believe all the snowflakes crying about this "poor girl!" She cheated! She has shown a pattern of cheating (did you miss her NY Marathon pic?) If this exposes her as a cheat and this allows even one runner to enter a race, because the cheat isn't allowed to enter, this is more than worth it!

    I'm tried of people cheating to qualify for races, to medal, to finish, to get earlier corrals. Glad somebody to actively finding these cheaters!

  227. Your articles are super motivating, thanks for posting. I'm trying to become a serious runner, I run 3 times a week with SportMe marathon training app, which calculates distance, pace, time and calories and adjusts running plans to my progress. More the old type girl, running without wearables.

  228. Ditto here-her 10k,hm, and running experience don't add up to 3hr marathon. Also her sub 18min 5k was questionable. There is such thing as "banditing".

  230. Tremendously unfortunate to think that someone who holds themselves out as an "avid runner" would got through such extreme lengths (trying to cover up by riding the course on her bike) to turn a cheat into a attempted masterful deception. That is pretty low. I guess the question of should we really care? Is it our business? That is for each individual to decide.

    How sad. Not only tarnishing her own reputation, but all who put their trust in the validity of what she wrote and said online. As an Harvard University graduate, The Huffington Post writer and as a Dashing Whippets, I can only assume how betrayed and embarrased they must feel.

    As a qualified runner for the 2017 TCSNYC Marathon, out of all of my races on the schedule for this year (including Boston), I was excited to have earned a spot to run there. Sad to think, she talked about, got to run it, but most likely never did.

    The more they dig in to her past athletic and social media, the more they seem to find out. While she has closed off her instagram and twitter, yesterday you could easily see, when searching through her 34.5K followers on instagram, they must have been bought as they were bots. Having someone else run her qualifiers so she could run arace also appears to have come up. There mostly likely will be more to come.

    I think that it shows a real cry for help and hopefully she gets the help she needs.

    Why do we care? I guess some of us train everyday to get that little bit faster, and a little bit closer to the moving goals which we all internally have, and it is difficult when those who hold themselves out to be our peers, cheat to get there.

    The only good that can come from this is @janeseo14 getting the help she needs and races utilitizing more technology to monitor for these types of incidents.

  232. Mike, you seem a bit wound up. Running is supposed to chill you out, mate.

    Also, it's *shaming* not *shamming*.

  233. Latest from the RD:
    Here are our final thoughts regarding this cheating scandal… I have spoken with Jane Seo and she apologized to me, which I gladly accepted. I took the time to talk and console her. She is hurting. She accepts the consequences, and I finally got her to laugh after a few minutes. Life is about second chances. I have moved on, and suggest the same for everyone. With Second Chances in mind, we will be offering a $10 discount starting at midnight tonight and running through the weekend in case anyone missed the Early Bird pricing! Use the following code when registering: SECONDCHANCE

  234. Thank you for:

    1. Your passion for the sport.
    2. Helping keep the sport honest.
    3. Spending so much of your time and effort.
    4. Posting to deter the other cheaters.
    5. Keeping this posting alive as a reminder to everyone to not cheat and that there are cheaters out there.
    6. Using the tools and resources that are open for public use.
    7. Using a thorough and proper process.
    8. Only sharing public information regarding the cheater.
    9. Putting up with the cheaters, snowflakes, bleeding hearts, and the everybody gets a trophy day/anti-competition people and their complaints.
    10. Allowing us to donate and probably only put a small dent into your overall costs in doing all that you do here.

    From a runner.

  236. Really Gina? You start off with a heart warming paragraph about how you consoled Jane and then you end with a thinly disguised race promotion? Stay classy Florida.

  239. Categorizing her active decision to cheat, and the on-going cover up, as 'misfortune' is just as ingenuous as her deception. A cheater got caught red handed (red Garmin?) and received justice. That deserves a solid LOL.

  244. No one violated her privacy – she promotes herself as an "Avid Runner/Cyclist" as part of her byline on HuffPo and PUBLIC profile, any PUBLIC criticism is justified. Yes, it may be schadenfreude to gloat about the failings of another. However, her apology came after she was caught and indicated she has no conscience. Be thankful to the people with the guts to call out cheaters.

  246. Derek – keep up the great work. It's funny, actually troubling, to read from the few detractors who also post on this site, hopefully you have thicker skin than I would. I just donated to your site to continue the work of exposing frauds who make conscious decisions to cheat. I mean… I make sure not to even cut a curb during a race!

  247. Her peculiar actions show intent to deceive and undeniable consciousness of guilt — especially the cover-up with post race generated GPS data. She *should* feel ashamed, but it shouldn't have taken THIS much data to cause a person admit things and magically become 'ashamed.' (BTW the, 'I am ashamed,' statement is nothing more than a tactic to gain sympathy, IMHO. It is not the genuine shame that most readers might associate with doing wrong, it is but another tactic of a cheater who has been caught). She says she 'felt nauseous' — apparently NOT nauseous enough to prevent her from cycling over the route later.

    If she would engage in this behavior ask yourself what else she would do. Would she take money out of your purse or wallet? She would probably do the calculations in terms of, 'can I get away with this?' That's bad. I wouldn't trust her.

    She has probably cheated on many things (possibly some BIG things) but simply not been caught. *Repeatedly* cheating and not getting caught is what gives you the confidence to try to pull off something like this marathon scam.

  248. NYRR doesn't always act fast. They have ignored cheaters when presented with the evidence. It's good that they did here and hopefully it's a trend forward for them.

  251. Just donated. Keep up the great work, and don't let those who call this internet shaming or bullying get you down.

  253. Figures she'd be a Huff Po writer. Goes to show you what kind of people they employ. Glad she's been publicly outed as a cheat.

  254. Fascinating story!! I was intrigued and impressed by your investigative work and follow-through. I've had the reverse happen to me. I've been a life-long Master Swimmer. A few years back I was in a near fatal auto accident, I returned to swimming for PT and after more years passed, with the help of our new coach, have returned to competitive swimming. I've spent hours reading USMS chapters on rules and regulations for the handicapped swimmer, reviewing them with my coach and putting in many hours training. Despite that I got a DQ from the deck official for a breast stroke start last summer at a small local meet. The national office supported my stand. However, I never got the DQ removed and it hurts. My coach and I have accepted it as a learning lesson. My coach wants to be familiar with all the updates in rules for his aging babyboomers. And I now carry the chapter on handicap swimmers laminated in my bag for meets. All of us, swimmers, runners triathletes make sacrifices to prepare for meets, keeping not only our bodies healthy but our lives and souls. I appreciated the national official who helped us understand my DQ. I am sure runners in this meet appreciate the work you did for this event. This incident is sad.

  257. It said the cheater was on a bike. Bike itself is a cheating machine on triathlon: whoever spends more than $10k on a bike is simply nuts. I can outrun those on foot anytime.

  261. She apologized (after a fashion/with multiple excuses) to the few who were quick enough to catch it before she took it down. So, she's no longer apologizing.

  262. Just found this post after seeing article on CNN. Great job on the investigative work! I do feel bad that this girl felt compelled to cheat under some internal pressure to be recognized by her running club and peers. I'm glad there are people out there looking after even these "small" venue races. I've missed the BQ by a few minutes, but I can't imagine ever cheating to make up a qualifying time!

  263. The bib swapping could possibly be NYRR's mistake. I was registered for the NYC Marathon one year and was not able to attend. I went theough the cancellation procedures. They gave my # to another runner but did not update the name. Now there are pics of someone else under my name running the marathon.

  265. Usually because the RD wants to do the prize giving before everyone who hasn't won has gone home, so that there are people there to witness the prize-giving, which keeps the sponsors happy. No sponsors, no prizes, no races. However, the balance is, if you hassle the timers too much they can make mistakes, or make minimal checks, and then this happens. Which creates loads of negative publicity for the race, sponsors and RD.

    The message is, there needs to be a balance between exhaustive checks, and keeping the flow of the race going and getting prizes out on time. The message to people who cheat is, you make get your podium time, but after the race, the pressure is off and there is plenty of time to check data and photos, and you will get caught.

  267. "A teachable moment" ignored. – As a 2014 Harvard graduate, she would have been a sophomore in 2012 with a front row seat to the largest cheating scandal in Harvard University's history. Dozens of students were forced to leave the school for cheating on a final exam.

  270. Excellent work, Derek. I just donated to your project. Now please turn your prodigious talents to that other fraudster, President Donald Trump.

    • Now THAT would be something worthwhile. Something that actually IMPACTS society, and the world, given that he is the leader of the free world. All that obsessive and fixation on something so childish, when he does have great analytical talent. Derek, DO SOMETHING worthwhile with your talent. Help to take down Trump. You’ll have the entire planet wanting to reward you then.

  272. While it is a good thing that people who cheat at sports are caught and called out, I can't help but wonder if her ethnicity had something to do with the amount of effort that was put into catching her. I'm not defending her actions, they were wrong. Just wondering if the same amount of effort would have been spent on a white runner under the same circumstances. Maybe so. Maybe not.

  275. The one and only Half Marathon I ran, I finished behind all but 100 of 6000+ competitors. I am prouder of that than any academic or professional accomplishment, because I EARNED every step through hard work and determination. Sad that Ms. Seo, for all her accomplishments, may never feel the reward of honest effort.

  277. Her ethnicity has nothing to do with it. Read my other articles. I am extremely thorough with all the cases. I didn't put any more time into this than I do the others. This was a story because she cheated other runners. And I have NEVER see this level of cover up. I look at photos in all cases, I look at splits, I look at paces, I check social media.

    • You look at stats, at paces, at social media, at watches – dude. O-o I don’t know whether to laugh at the absurdity of you, or cry for how sad this whole thing is. You are REALLY messed up and need hobby. Seriously, maybe you have Aspergers or something, I don’t know. But I can’t recall anyone being as FIXATED on trivial bs like cheating in some dumb little run run since Dustin Hoffman in Rain man. There are serious issues in society, and your hobby is to spend hours wasting your time analysing all this petty bullshit? I know it takes all types to make the world go round but seriously, you are pitiful. Anyone that even cares *this much* about some running race has really a pathetic and trivial but sad life. Get yourself a job. Get yourself a *real* hobby. Get a life! Or at least get therapy. There is something no wired right in you if you think some stupid little running race is even a microfraction important. Quite frankly, you seem like you have very serious mental and developmental issues and no life at all whatsoever. It’s sad.

      • “Sally,” if Derek’s investigative work (which I and many others feel is awesome) bothers you so much, then go. And while I have no knowledge of whether or not Derek is on the autism spectrum, so what? He might be gay or Muslim…so what?

  278. Not a big deal, but that's the Garmin 225, not the 235. The 225 has the red circle around it and does NOT track wrist-based HR data. So she is either wearing a strap, or the HR data is BS, too. Great detective work…

  280. Congrats first and third anons, these are the least intelligent comments in this comment section. What's equitable about cheating and exposing a cheater? She made the deal to suffer when she entered into a public competition (even more-so with her willingness to promote herself publicly on social media) and deceived the public. Do the crime and plaster yourself all over the public media and do the time.
    Exhaustive work to incriminate and expose cheaters and their methods is a wholly separate process from forgiveness. They could not have less to do with each other. Forgive her someplace other than at the marathoninvestigation.com website.

  281. Good work, man! I have to wonder what motivates someone like her to do this: she's attractive, well-educated, and has a good career and apparently does love running. I expect she could place decently were she to run honestly, yet she stoops to this. And she's a journalist, which all jokes aside is seriously a profession where honesty is paramount. It concerns me much more to see a journalist or blogger behave this way than say, an architect or software designer because she's in the business of narratives and seems fine with making up what should be purely factual truth.

  282. Um, no one detests cheaters more than I. I raised my kids to accomplish things in life fairly or not at all. However Derek, it seems to me that you spent an inordinate amount of time researching this situation and uncovered the cheating. Now you are using the situation like a coat oh honor, presenting yourself like some caped super hero. My God, you caught your prey, she has been punished and has been publicly shamed. Are you satisfied yet? Yes, she brought it on herself, including the humiliation and criticism. But you are just gloating like a Cheshire cat about sticking it to her. You remind me of the annoying, know-it-all kid in school who ran to the teacher with whiny tattle tales. Move on and do something useful with your time.

  283. How is he gloating? The amount of research done here is necessary to discern she in fact did cheat and make that resoundingly clear. Had he just surmised she cheated and not furnished all this proof I'd have an issue with that. If you're going to accuse someone of something, you need to furnish the proof. And he has.

  284. There's a saying … The way we do one thing, is the way we do many things.

    'Would perhaps be fascinating (in a somewhat clinical and perhaps intrusive way) to take a long hard look at the papers she wrote during her time at Harvard.

  285. He could have compiled all the evidence, turned it in and walked away quietly. No, it is all over the web and he is getting all this adulation. Give me a break. Yes, she did the wrong thing but with all the crap going on in this country right now maybe he could spend his time doing something constructive. I do't expect you to agree with me. There are enough internet bullies out there to keep this going for quite some time.

  288. Not sure what your purpose on putting on a mom hat and kids. Mind your own mom business and make sure your kids don't become like yourself. It's not just a cheat on a race, it's a cheater and all that had happened before and after from her own character and action. People she has cheated, articles that she possibly fabricated and affected readers, the subsequent effect of her morality has profound effect on others, on and on. Exposing her fair and square is like avoiding a rat's dropping that could ruin a pot of good soup, got it? Put it in a way to teach your kids: eradicate the shit so it doesn't keep stinking. Face reality if you will.

  290. You are possibly an ignorant who kills time reading what you write….

    It's a lesson taught and would hopefully remind people to have integrity.

    Your comments help no one, so shut the fuck up.

  292. I think it is good to expose cheaters, especially those that go out to incredible lengths to cover up – But I also feel bad for them when they are caught. They had poor judgement but now have to live with this embarrassment and shame for the rest of their lives – i hope that she gets back on her feet and is able to have a second chance in running.

  295. her log via Strava showed she used a 235 for the bike ride. I'll check my wording, if I referenced her watch in the photo as a 235, I will correct that. Thanks

  298. You are possibly an ignorant who kills time reading what you write….

    It's a lesson taught and would hopefully remind people to have integrity.

    Your comments help no one, so shut the fuck up.

  299. Nice mouth there. It's sad that you can't make a point without using filthy words or hurling insults. Quite hilarious that you talk about integrity. That really made me laugh. I think ignorant is a badge you wear proudly. And no, I won't shut-up just because a trolling bully tells me too.

  300. Nice mouth there. It's sad that you can't make a point without using filthy words or hurling insults. Quite hilarious that you talk about integrity. That really made me laugh. I think ignorant is a badge you wear proudly. And no, I won't shut-up just because a trolling bully tells me too

  301. Great work and an interesting article on a topic on which I know nothing. Nevertheless, the truth will out.

    What seems oddest to me is that no official thought to ask for a look at her watch…

  303. People without private accounts are just looking for attention and publicity. Many people don't get jobs that they apply for, since employers 'google' their names and find out what they are really like.

  307. Derek is "using the situation like a coat of honor" and "presenting himself like a caped super hero?" How so, specifically? What has he said or done that could be accurately categorized as such things?

    As for an "inordinate amount of time" spent doing anything whatsoever, the man's time is his own, and he may spend it how he chooses. And in this case, he has spent his time constructively, for the betterment of our society, as a whole.

    • Are you serious? Or are you trolling? How is exposing some cheat in a dumb RUNNING RACE, for the betterment of society? Are you really this immature and backward? I pray you are just trolling, because if not and if you think that cheating in some fun run will change society, you have very serious developmental and moral issues.

  308. Dear Unknown, I will not mind my own "mom business" whatever that means. My kids are awesome through their own doing and are thankfully not like you with all of your ridiculous rat dropping comparison hooey. Do you write fables or morality plays n your spare time lol?

    • Well said, CTmom. Derek, Jesse and these other obsessives have clearly lost sight of what is important in life. Its a childish little race. NO ONE CARES! These people need to get lives and hobbies. If you are obsessing over little running races like this to the extent you create a website and analyse watches, you’ve fuq.king lost your mind.

  309. Jesse Berry,
    I have a sincere question. How is society better, as a whole for all of the effort Derek put into this? Is the water cleaner in Flint, Michigan? Has construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline been halted? Has the harassment of Muslims, Jews and African Americans dissipated recently? Has Congress decided to uncover the seamy relationship between our so called President and Putin? Has the indiscriminate round-up of immigrants been halted? If so, then society as a whole will have benefited from this "investigation".

  310. Ctmom, if writings can solve "problem", then no one will act to solve, right?

    Jane could be the next Murdoch who cheats out your pity sentiment and clean out you and your family's retirement savings.

    Cheaters are symptoms of white collar criminals.

    So what's your solution? If you got none, then you are the problem.

    • Wow. Comparing Murdoch and even white collar CRIMINALS, to some DUMB RUNNING RACE?

      I see you are as mentally unhinged as you. Some things are simply not worth the effort. If you obsess over such little things, I shudder to think how you would deal with something major. I think you and Derek need to get a life. You’re really looking petty and immature.

  311. My husband use to be a big time cheat,and i was curious of getting proofs about it for real then i saw recommendations about mastershield55@gmail.com online and never hesitated to contact him,He asked me for some few information about my husband mobile device no personal info was asked for also,i provided it all to him and in less than 24 hours i was getting too see my husband text messages,call logs and as well as whats app messages as they come into his phone,i was able to get good and solid proof for my Antony to file a divorce,if you are having similar issues i would advice you contact mastershield55@gmail.com , just tell him Donna Jean referred you for quick reply.

  315. Derek, you didn't have to do this had the Timer and Race Organizer done their jobs. There was ample time between the awarding ceremony and Jane crossing the finish line to thoroughly investigate Jane. I'm a podium finisher myself in the 5k and 10k distance and it takes more than an hour sometimes 2 hours before medals are awarded.

    There was a half marathon when I did my own sleuthing too. I had a good idea how many women were ahead of me because the route had 4 turnarounds. I was surprised I placed lower than my estimate when the Official Race Results came out. So I checked the time of the women ahead of me. Some DNFs were staring at my face:  no chip times at some segments of the race. The others I Googled their previous race times and they were much slower. So I looked up their photos at the finish line with their bib numbers as reference and voila:  swapped bibs with men.

    I wrote the Race Organizer who did a half-assed job. He scrubbed a few of them but not all. I should have placed 5 or 6 spots higher.

    It's so frustrating when a Race Organizer doesn't appreciate why having a correct ranking matters to runners.

  317. Looking at the final results from the fort lauderdale marathon it seems most hit the mats. There's one glaring result: bib # 1019, Male 55, who bq'd but didn't touch any mats except for the 1/2 in 37.09. Come on! I wonder why this person wasn't automatically dq'd?

  318. I have read many comments where the need to keep this post online is debated. As a runner/racer from far away (geographically), keeping this post on (as well as others), serves mainly the purpose of discourage "wannabe cheaters".

    The single fact that she went to claim an undeserved prize, get pictures of it, etc. etc. cannot be labeled simply as "bad decisions". It is also worrying that cheating has come down from pros to enthusiasts. Keep the good work!

  320. Ironically I have a mate who approached a race official after his garmin told him the marathon run was short at a recent Ironman. It was discovered that the on course official had sent him the wrong way (and admitted it) but as he had not completed the full marathon he dq’d himself.

    Worse was that his placing had qualified for him for Kona and this was his 3rd near miss.

    My respect for him went through the roof. He said that he wanted to be an example to his kids, that sometimes stuff happens and it makes you stronger.

  321. Wow. Are you serious? My goodness, what is wrong with you? It is a stupid beeping half marathon. Not curing cancer. Not operating on a child. Not vote-tampering or interfering in democracy. Not child abuse or animal cruelty. It is cheating in a stupid dumb running race. To even care about marathons, let alone even set up a webpage – seek therapy! WHO CARES?!?? Of all the stupid, pointless things to be fixated on.

    Yes cheating is wrong, but do you know all the abuse you’ve unleashed on her? A fuqking RUNNING RACE!

    You need to get yourself a life and a job if you care soooooo much about running people cheating so much that you create a blog and analyse watches and algorithms and god knows what else. I mean, who DOES THAT??!??? Who is that OBSESSED to go to all these lengths? And for what? At the end, it is just some stupid race, it is meaningless. Who cares? I feel sorry for you. She is a cheater, but let’s be honest: you’re pathetic!! You need a job, a hobby and a life. Preferably get laid as well. wtf?! 0-o Anyone who makes a ‘hobby’ out of analysing meaningless rubbish like this has very very serious issues. I actually feel sorry for you. smh

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