Madrazo denies cheating in marathon

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Roberto Madrazo, the third-place candidate in Mexico’s presidential election last year, has finally responded to the controversy surrounding his first-place finish in the 55-and-over category of the Berlin Marathon on Sept. 30.

A computer chip in his shoe showed he had taken a shortcut and skipped several miles of the course, making him the butt of jokes in the Mexican and German press. On Monday, race officials stripped him of his apparent ‘victory’ in the senior category.

In a seven-page letter Wednesday to ‘Mexico’s Sporting Community,’ Madrazo said he never intended to run the entire course in Berlin. Before the race, his doctors told him to rest, but he went to Berlin anyway, he says. ‘The result: I had to stop at kilometer 21 [about halfway] and I went directly to the finish line to get my clothes and my participant’s medal, which is given to all runners, without exception.’

Madrazo didn’t explain why he opened his arms wide in the victory pose captured by a wire service photographer, or why he allowed the controversy to fester on the front pages of Mexico’s newspapers for more than a week before responding.

Posted by Héctor Tobar in Mexico City

Photo: Roberto Madrazo crosses the finish line at the Berlin Marathon on Sept. 30; Credit: AP