When it comes to long-distance running, the rules can be quite strict to ensure fairness amongst all of the athletes. Marathons can be extremely taxing on the body and in order to come through with a win, you have to be able to perform at your highest level for a few hours at a time. With this in mind, the people who oversee these events can be sticklers for enforcing the rules, even if those rules don't make all that much sense.
In recent years, we have seen numerous crackdowns on footwear, and that is exactly what happened to Ethiopian runner Derara Hurisa yesterday. Hurisa came in first at the Vienna City Marathon, although he was eventually disqualified as Leonard Langat was given the victory.
Adidas Sneaker Disqualifies Vienna City Marathon Winner">ALEX HALADA/APA/AFP via Getty Images
According to a statement from the marathon's Twitter account, Hurisa' Adidas shoes were not permissible for the event. As reported by Complex Sneakers, Hurisa was wearing the Adidas Adizero Prime X, which has a midsole thickness of 5cm. The legal limit is only 4cm, which means Hurisa's shoe was 1cm over the allowed limit. It's curious as to why the shoes weren't checked before the race, as this whole mess could have been sorted out much earlier.
The Adizero Prime X was launched earlier this year and so far, it has been a huge hit amongst both professional and casual runners. Perhaps the most ironic thing to come out of this is that the eventual winner was also wearing a pair of Adidas shoes, although they had the more legal Adizero Adios Pro 2.
Image via Adidas
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