Influencer banned for life from NYC Marathon for 'obstructing' runners with e-bikes, camera person
NEW YORK (AP) — 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, as well as those of World Athletics, the international governing body in charge of standards and regulations for running events.
“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-kilometer) 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 himself 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.
Choi acknowledged that the filming endangered other competitors, prevented some from possibly reaching personal best race times, and even blocked some from getting a drink at designated water stations. More than 55,000 runners completed the race, which wound through all five of New York City's boroughs.
“I have no excuses, full-stop,” Choi said on camera in the Tuesday post. “I was selfish on Sunday to have my brother and my videographer follow me around on e-bikes, and it had serious consequences.”
“With the New York City Marathon being about everyone else and the community, I made it about myself,” he continued. “And for anyone I impacted, I’m sorry. To be clear, this was 100% on me.”
New York Road Runners said Choi has the right to appeal, but the influencer said he is resigned to his fate.
“I made my bed, so I’m gonna lay in it,” Choi said, acknowledging he’s been criticized before for using e-bike film crews to shoot content during major competitions. “It won’t happen again. My word is my bond.”