United States
United Kingdom
Summary
- Joasia Zakrzewski won 3rd place at the 2023 GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool
- Race data revealed that Zakrzewski used a car during the race for 2.5 miles
- Zakrzewski was disqualified for cheating as her excuse did not make sense
The 2023 GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool ultra-marathon took place earlier this month and a number of professional and amateur runners from all over the United Kingdom (UK) took part. One of those participants was 47 year old Scottish woman Joasia Zakrzewski.
Zakrzewski Takes Car Ride To Complete Race
Zakrzewski is an accomplished ultra-marathon runner who ended up finishing the race in 3rd place and was soon after recognized for her third place finish. However, a few days later when race organizers were looking at the data of the athletes who took part in the GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool race, they found something strange with Zakrzewski’s data.
Race data for Zakrzewski which was downloaded from the Strava app showed that the Scottish runner ended up completing one of her miles in just one minute and 40 seconds which raised suspicions.
Wayne Drinkwater who served as the director for the GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool found that Zakrzewski had ended up using a friend’s car during the 50 mile race and got a car ride for 2.5 miles. She then got down from the car and continued her race to win third place.
When Zakrzewski was confronted with the data she admitted to using a car and was immediately disqualified for cheating from the race and the fourth place finisher was bumped up to third place.
Zakrzewski Says Did Not Cheat, Just Miscommunication
Zakrzewski told media that once she got down from the car, she wanted to run the race non-competitively as her friends encouraged her to finish the race and not give up.
In a statement, Zakrzewski said
I made a massive error accepting the trophy and should have handed it back. I was tired and jetlagged and felt sick. I hold my hands up, I should have handed them back and not had pictures done but I was feeling unwell and spaced out and not thinking clearly
However, Drinkwater did not agree with her explanation and excuse! He said UK sports star Zakrzewski did not reach out to them even days after the event to explain what she had done and only found out because another competitor brought it to their attention.
