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A Paralympic marathon runner has been left ‘devastated’ after being disqualified and deprived of a bronze medal for a mistake just metres from the finish line.
Elena Congost let go of her rope momentarily after her guide, Mia Carol, suffered cramps at the end of the race on Sunday, the final day of the The Paris Games.
The Spaniard was left in tears after officials ruled she had broken the rules, with the bronze medal going to Japan’s Misato Michishita. Runners in the T12 race for visually impaired athletes must be tied to their guide throughout the race.
“I’m devastated, to be honest, because I had the medal,” said Congost, who was born with a hereditary degenerative eye disease.
“I am super proud of everything I have done and in the end I was disqualified because 10 meters from the finish line I let go of the rope for a second.
“It was a reflex action for any human being, to grab onto a person who is falling next to you. But they say that I let go of the rope for a second and once I let go, that’s it, there’s no turning back. I don’t understand that.”
“It’s not about cheating, it’s not about ruining an athlete. I was left with nothing. I can’t find any explanation for this and it seems so unfair and so surreal to me, honestly.”
Elena Congost returned a few months ago after a break during which she was the mother of four children.
Today she finished third, but was disqualified.
She has prioritized helping her guide when she reaches the finish line.
We are immensely proud of Elena and Mia. #teamSpain image.twitter.com/7z3WtGeZig
— Pilar Alegria (@Pilar_Alegria) September 8, 2024
Congost, 36, won gold in the marathon at the Rio Games and took silver in the 1,500 metres at London 2012.
Fatima El Idrissi set a world record of 2:48.36 to win gold, while fellow Moroccan Meryem En-Nourhi took silver. El Idrissi broke Michishita’s previous record in the city of Hofu in December 2020 by almost six minutes.
“I didn’t run for a while, just for a medal,” El Idrssi said. “I wasn’t aiming for the world record, just for gold, and now I have both.”