Influencer is banned from future NYC marathons for bringing a camera crew to last weekend's race
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A social media influencer from Texas was disqualified from last weekend's New York City Marathon and banned from future competitions after he ran the race with a camera crew on e-bikes in tow.
A social media influencer from Texas was disqualified from last weekend's New York City Marathon and banned from future competitions after he ran the race with a camera crew on e-bikes in tow.
New York Road Runners, which organizes the venerable race, said in a statement Tuesday that Matthew Choi violated the group’s code of conduct and competition rules, not to mention those of World Athletics, running’s international governing body.
“One of the incidents brought to NYRR’s attention was that Choi ran with the assistance of two unauthorized people riding the course on electric bicycles, obstructing runners,” the group said.
Choi, 29, finished the 26.2-mile (42.2-kilometre) course with a time of 2:57:15, or about 50 minutes behind Abdi Nageeye, the winner of the men’s race.
The former football player for Monmouth University in New Jersey posted several videos of him running the marathon on his social media accounts that immediately drew scorn.
“As a runner, seeing him was amazing. Gave me extra motivation to pass him and make sure I never had to see him and his dumb crew for the rest of the race,” wrote one user on Reddit.
Choi, of Austin, Texas, didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment Tuesday. He was apologetic on his Instagram account, where he posts videos about running and fitness to his more than 400,000 followers.
