Marathon runner disqualified over performance enhancing iPod
A marathon runner was disqualified from her victory after it was discovered she listened to music on her iPod for a portion of the race. According to the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel, 27-year-old Jennifer Goebel was stripped of her victory time of just over three hours. She said she believes it was unfair.
"If they're going to disqualify me for having an iPod they should disqualify everyone who had one," Goebel said. "It's just a little ridiculous. I went there to have a fun race with my friends."
The race apparently had its share of problems: The first declared winner, 23-year-old Cassie Peller, had her run disqualified after it was revealed she accepted a water bottle from a friend outside the official water stations.
The Lakefront Marathon is the Wisconsin USA Track and Field marathon championship. USATF championship rules do not allow the use of electronic devices, though the rule was reportedly relaxed last year, giving individual events the opportunity to decide their stance on the rule.
Goebel said she put on her iPod in the latter part of the race to give her a boost.
"If you're bored, it pumps you up a little bit," she said. "Sometimes, on a long training run, I'll bring it along for the last half hour. When I run marathons sometimes I carry it and never put it on."
"If they're going to disqualify me for having an iPod they should disqualify everyone who had one," Goebel said. "It's just a little ridiculous. I went there to have a fun race with my friends."
The race apparently had its share of problems: The first declared winner, 23-year-old Cassie Peller, had her run disqualified after it was revealed she accepted a water bottle from a friend outside the official water stations.
The Lakefront Marathon is the Wisconsin USA Track and Field marathon championship. USATF championship rules do not allow the use of electronic devices, though the rule was reportedly relaxed last year, giving individual events the opportunity to decide their stance on the rule.
Goebel said she put on her iPod in the latter part of the race to give her a boost.
"If you're bored, it pumps you up a little bit," she said. "Sometimes, on a long training run, I'll bring it along for the last half hour. When I run marathons sometimes I carry it and never put it on."
Comments
If the rules are clear, then follow them. If they aren't--which seems to be the case--then that's a problem and she has a right to be mad!
Could not have said it better myself.