Brighton Marathon organisers apologise after course was 568m too long
One runner who ran the Brighton Marathon in a spandex Elvis costume is even more proud of his achievement after the discovery that the course was 568 metres longer than planned, ITV News Correspondent Dan Rivers reports
Running 26.2 miles is not everybody's idea of fun, so making the Brighton Marathon 568 metres longer is even less desirable.
It might not seem like a huge addition but going an extra half kilometre or so in the heat as temperatures hit around 20C is a serious drain on anyone's resources.
Organisers admitted human error was the reason behind runners going beyond the 27-mile mark.
A number of runners took to social media to bemoan the heat on the course as they only realised when they had completed their run that the route had been measured incorrectly, meaning many had disappointing times.
Many of the runners utilise apps to collate data to keep track of their efforts, which subsequently confirmed the extra distance run by participants.
Runners joked the extra exertion made them a "ultra-marathon runners" on social media.
Beth Bartlam tweeted: "Brighton marathon you were a toughie today, hot with a rogue extra half mile added in. Just for fun maybe?!"
From serious athletes to Elvis impersonators, everyone had to dig deep to get over the line.
In a statement on Facebook, the organisers said: “We would like to apologise to our marathon participants that the course today has measured 568m too long.
“We are wholly disappointed that this has affected our runners & hope that it hasn’t marred the experience, at what has been a fantastic comeback event after 18 months.”
An estimated 11,500 people took part in the event, the first in the city for 29 months.
Verity Hopkins won the women's race in her first-ever marathon, while Neil McClements from Tonbridge was first in the men's race.
Controversially, the men's race was decided in the additional distance as McClements passed Ollie Garrod 200 metres before the finish line to take victory.
On the upside, those who took part raised £3,484,911.02 for charitable causes.
Brighton is not the first marathon to get its sums wrong. Here is a look at some of the others where runners have done an incorrect distance.
Milwaukee, 2017
In 2017 the Milwauke Marathon was eight-tenths of a mile too short.
Manchester, 2013, 2014 and 2015
The supposed marathon was 380m too short for three consecutive years.
Belfast 2019
Organisers were forced to apologise after 18,000 runners went the wrong way, meaning they did not technically finish the race.
Sunderland, 2013
Thousands were pointed to an inaccurate route by marshals, leaving them 264 metres of completing the distance.