The trail was too short. It was much shorter than initially stated. The runners should have walked 20 kilometres, but the course was only 17 kilometres. – I wonder how in heaven’s name they managed this, says Kjersti Tysse Plätzer to news. Beat the world record by ten minutes The Pan American Championship is held in Santiago, Chile. The conditions were perfect, and very good times were expected. But not so good. The current world record is 1:23:49. Kimberly García Leon won in 1:12:26, over 11 minutes faster. – A “de luxe” organizer error, a scandal, says Tysse Plätzer. Eleven other athletes entered a time below the current world record. – We check the speed carefully, and the first round went very fast. We saw that the speed was too high, it went faster than the men’s race, says Viviane Lyra from Brazil, who came in fourth place. – We knew it was something strange, so we didn’t think about the time, says Lyra according to ESPN. STROKE: They all got medals, but none of the times stood. Glenda Estefania Morejon (from left), Kimberly García Leon and Evelyn Carla Inga from Peru. Photo: MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP After the course was timed, the times were deleted and the result cancelled. – We realized it in the first kilometre, the time did not match the distance. It was more about controlling the feelings and not losing control, says Leon according to ESPN. OLYMPIC SILVER: Kjersti Tysse Plätzer takes a good bite of the silver medal she won in the 2000 Olympics. Photo: Bjørn Sigurdsøn / NTB Kjersti Tysse Plätzer has herself helped organize races with Olympic qualification status. Then the requirement for trail measurement is extra high. – We had to fly in a certified trail surveyor from Copenhagen, says Kjersti Tysse-Plätzer to news. – Enormous consequences Kjersti Tysse Plätzer herself has two Olympic silver medals in the distance. She believes this has enormous consequences for the runners. The Pan American Championship attracts strong runners, which raises the quality. Thus, this is a rare opportunity to secure a good time. – If you qualify today, you can prepare as much as possible for the Olympics. Instead, they must qualify again. In this championship there were also many at a high level. Now the others have to look for new races, and it is not certain that many of them are really good, says Tysse Plätzer. IS IT TRUE!?: Kimberly García Leon looks down at her watch as she crosses the finish line. The time was over ten minutes faster than the world record. Photo: DYLAN MARTINEZ / Reuters Furthermore, the runners are naturally exhausted after the test of strength in Santiago. – A racegoer cannot prepare optimally for very many races. Those who were here have planned that this is their chance, they are in top form. And it’s not just about doing it when you have to compete for an hour and a half, she says. – Have you seen anything similar? And yes, she actually has. It was not as serious, but must have happened during the European Cup for the national team in 1998. – Stephan (Plätzer) was the national team coach and ran a couple of laps on the course himself. He has a fairly good sense of speed, and could not understand that the track was one kilometer long. So he went to the organizer and told him to measure again. – It turned out that he was 70 meters too short per round. This means that the entire trail was 700 meters too short. It was discovered by luck, says Kjersti Tysse Plätzer to news.
ttn-69
Set a world record by more than ten minutes – stopped by an incredible error by the organizers – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
