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Hong Kong Marathon issues warning after man pictured running with woman’s bib

Photos posted on social media suggest cheating in Sunday’s race. Four elite runners had already been disqualified for having the wrong bibs

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The winner and runner-up of the half-marathon on Sunday were disqualified for wearing the wrong bibs. Photo: Dickson Lee

More controversy hit the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon on Wednesday after pictures posted online showed a man wearing a bib assigned to a woman.

Immediately after Sunday’s race, four elite runners from mainland China were disqualified for wearing the wrong bibs.

The latest photographs, posted on a social media group for runners in Hong Kong, showed a middle-aged man running wearing bib number 33150, which was registered to a woman with a mainland Chinese name, Cao Youxuan.

A screenshot of information on the Hong Kong Marathon website suggested that Cao was registered as competing in the Women’s Master 3 category and completed the 42.2km (26.2-mile) race in three hours, 18 minutes and 55 seconds.

That time earned a ranking of 75th out of all female marathon runners and 10th in the category, but the event’s official race photos show a man wearing her race bib.

When the Post later checked the information of runner 33150 on the Hong Kong Marathon website, the name and bib number could not be found, suggesting the runner had been disqualified.

A male runner wearing bib 33150, which was registered to a woman. Photo: Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon
A male runner wearing bib 33150, which was registered to a woman. Photo: Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon
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