Pittsburgh Marathon women’s winner disqualified
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A Polish runner who recorded the fastest women’s time in more than a decade in the 2002 UPMC City of Pittsburgh Marathon has been disqualified for doping, officials said. Violetta Kryza, 34, will not receive $10,000 in prize money, which had been held since the May 5 race in lieu of drug test results, according to race organizers. She was also suspended from competition for two years.
Magdalena Lewy, 29, of Berkeley, Calif., was declared the winner of the Pittsburgh Marathon with a finish time of 2 hours, 36 minutes and 48 seconds.
Kryza’s finishing time was 2 hours, 31 minutes and 45 seconds.
“Obviously, we are disappointed with the outcome, but it shows that the system works,” race director Larry Grollman said. “We congratulate Magdalena Lewy on her victory.”
Kryza is the first winner to be disqualified from the Pittsburgh race for doping, Grollman said. Kryza also won the 2001 Pittsburgh Marathon.
Her finish in the 2002 race knocked nearly two minutes off her previous best mark of 2 hours, 33 minutes and 44 seconds, set in Scotland in 1999.
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency did the testing for the race, but results for foreign athletes are passed on to the national athletic federation of their respective countries.
The Polish federation, Polski Zwiazek Lekkiej Atletyki, said last month that Kryza had used banned drugs before the competition. But officials did not say what drug was allegedly used.
Pittsburgh race officials said they have known of the doping charge for some time, but waited to make the announcement until the appeals process was exhausted.
Lewy, who received a bonus for being the top U.S. finisher, will receive a revised total of $10,000.
Other top finishers will also move up in the officials standings and will be awarded additional winnings.