Amateur taking water bottles from spectator at marathon

Rules are rules. Competitors don’t decide which ones matter. You should be DQ’ed.

I have done the same at the Chicago marathon. I asked race officials prior and they said it didnt break any rules.

What you did obviously broke the rules. You can and should be forgiven as it was an innocent mistake. However, if you have any integrity at all, you must self DQ yourself and NOT use your rule-breaking race for any qualifying purposes. Good luck for next time.

You seem to be missing the point. What happened was not against USATF rules.

Of course, races are free to have their own rules in addition to the USATF rulebook, and they can DQ people for violating those. Races are free to say you can only take fluids the race provides, or they can say that nobody who isn't a volunteer is allowed within an official aid station.

As an aside, I always used to ask RDs in advance if I can pick up bottles from a friend at an aid station. Usually they say yes. One guy said it was against the rules. I politely pointed out the actual text of the USATF rulebook, but said that of course it's his race. He said, "oh, well if it's not against USATF rules then I don't care; do what you want."

I think asking is the way to go, but if you got DQ'ed and there was nothing in writing saying you can't do it, then absolutely you should protest.

In the Tour de France competitors only take things like coke in cans (coca-cola, that is) with the cans still sealed to avoid being poisoned (or doped) by fans from other countries.

In Boston never take anything from a person with New York anywhere on their clothing.

If you're going to run under 2:30, depending on the size of the race, you can probably get at least your entry comped. Obviously not at a world major, but definitely possible at local/regional races.

Who cares. The runners referred to are not elites. They are general, mid pack runners. Their assistance from family and friends means nothing.

I ran Cape Cod marathon several times. Guess what? a large portion of the runners were getting water/gatorade etc from friends along the course. Whoopppeee

I agree. I don't know whether you technically broke a rule, but unless you were in contention for a podium finish I can't imagine anyone bothering you about it. Enjoy your BQ. If you're worried about it, in the future you can ask the race director whether this is allowed.

It's disgusting to see the blatant disregard for the rules on this thread.

I guess EPO is fine, too. Whatevs, right?!

Idk if it's still on the rules but also any aid given to a runner has to be given to all... So theoretically elites should be DQ'd for getting bottles the rest of the field doesn't.

You shouldn't feel bad about it OP. Nutrition is so important in a marathon and a lot of people bonk because little half cups of water aren't enough for 26.2 miles. I think it's a rule most races try to abide by because they don't want people littering in places where they don't have aid stations. As long as you're tossing your bottles at an aid station/in the trash then you're not doing anything different from any elite marathoner. The Berlin Marathon allows amateurs to use fluid tables. If you're complaining about somebody taking in fluids in a distance race, you should probably be more concerned about much more important things.

I saw someone do this in a race where they OTQ’d and debated if I should say something or not. Decided it didn’t really matter and they still ran 26.2 miles in the necessary time, so didn’t do anything

The rules prohibit a friend handing you a Gatorade or water bottle along the course. You can carry it the whole way, or you can stop and take 17 cups at the drink station, but you can't have someone hand you a larger version of whatever they're giving out in tiny quantities.

The rules should be changed.

Putting your own (unauthorized) liquids near the aid station is not the same as getting "water/refreshments from official aid stations". I don't think it's that major a violation because you could have carried the same stuff yourself in a hydration belt or camelbak. As long as you didn't set a WR or win serious prize money, I wouldn't cry foul on this one.

So DQ Kipchoge for having bottle claus hand him bottles

Short answer is not an issue for non competitive runners.

The idea you can't take any fluids other than those at official aid stations is not exactly correct. Usatf has made statements about runners not in the competitive field are fine taking fluids from spectators.

What isn't allowed for competitive runners is what's referred to as 'targetted assistance' any aid intended solely for you.

Races get around this by having elites start at different times. Technically it's not the same race in the eyes of USATF.

First off - Congratulations!! A BQ, with a little extra sugar in your bottle, or not, is impressive.

Second, it seems you have a mild moral dilemma. It was by mistake, and honestly a pretty harmless one. You could take the black-and-white rule follower version if it’ll help you sleep at night, but if just recognizing you won’t do it again and committing to it is enough…do that.

Also, just take some pride in what you accomplished.

Did it maybe give you a little push in the positive direction? Sure. There are a million different things that affect your race (what shoe/watch you wear, wind direction, weather, what time you had to warm up, the company you kept over the miles, who you passed on the contrast.

So I think you ought to knock off of here and write down your own thoughts somewhere, away from this crowd. And also…don’t stress about the water bottles.