Atlanta Marathon Course Controversy
Controversy marred the USATF Half Marathon Championships in Atlanta as the lead vehicle mistakenly left the course, taking the top three women off-route. As a result, Molly Born, who was not among the original leaders, won the race. The incident raises serious questions about race management and fairness in championship events.
The three runners who were led off course were Jess McClain, Emma Grace Hurley, and Ednah Kurgat. The incident happened at approximately the 12.1-mile mark, with less than two miles remaining in the race. The detour is estimated to have cost the leaders around two minutes, as they ran an extra 400 meters off course and then had to retrace their steps. Rich Kenah, the CEO of the Atlanta Track Club and race director, took full responsibility for the error. He stated, "Athletes should never have to make a split-second decision between following a pace vehicle or trusting the official course." The Atlanta Track Club has said it will conduct a full review of what happened. An appeal was filed by the affected athletes but was ultimately denied by a jury of appeals. The jury found that while the course was not adequately marked, there was "no recourse within the USATF rulebook to alter the results order of finish." The final race results will stand. The winner, Molly Born, finished with a time of 1:09:42 and earned $20,000 in prize money. In a display of sportsmanship, Born initially said she shouldn't go to the World Championships and would not fight for her spot if officials decided to "fix it." The top three finishers are eligible to represent Team USA at the World Athletics Road Running Championships, but the team is not officially selected until May. This is not the first time the Atlanta Marathon has faced issues with its course. In 2025, the marathon course was found to be one-tenth of a mile short, which invalidated some results and cost some runners their Boston Marathon qualifying times. Similar incidents where lead vehicles have taken runners off course have occurred in other races. The 2017 Woodlands Marathon in Texas and the 2025 Seattle Marathon both had instances of runners being misdirected, leading to incorrect race distances and disqualifications. In the 2019 Belfast City Marathon, a lead car error resulted in 18,000 participants running an extra 460 meters.
