Rosie Ruiz fakes Boston Marathon win
Rosie Ruiz age 26 finishes first in the womens division of the Boston Marathon with a time of 23156 on April 21 1980.She was rewarded with a medal a laurel wreath and a silver bowl however eight days later Ruiz is stripped of her victory after race officials learned she jumped into the race about a mile before the finish line.The Cuban-born Ruiz an administrative assistant from New York City qualified for the 84th Boston Marathon by submitting her time for running the 1979 New York City Marathon.Although Ruiz never explained why she cheated it has been suggested her boss was so impressed she qualified for the prestigious Boston race that he offered to pay her way.
Its believed that Ruiz intended to jump into the middle of the pack of runners but miscalculated when she joined the marathon one mile from the end not realizing she was ahead of the other 448 female competitors.Ruiz was unknown in the running world and her victory raised suspicions because it was a 25-minute improvement over her New York City Marathon time.Additionally her winning time was then the third-fastest marathon time in history for a woman.After studying race photographsRuiz didnt appear in any of them until the very endand conducting interviews Boston Marathon officials stripped Ruiz of her title on April 29 1980 and named Jacqueline Gareau of Canada the womens division champion with a time of 23428.
Ruizs New York time was later invalidated when officials discovered she had taken the subway during part of the race.The controversy surrounding Ruiz overshadowed Bill Rogers who won the mens division of the 1980 Boston Marathon for a record fourth year in a row.At the 2005 Boston Marathon Jacqueline Gareau served as grand marshal and re-enacted her 1980 marathon performance by breaking the tape.After her cheating was revealed Ruiz who maintained she had won the Boston Marathon fairly lost her job in New York.
She encountered further trouble in 1982 when she was accused of stealing money from an employer.The following year she was caught selling drugs to undercover officers in Florida.In both cases Ruiz served brief stints in jail.The first Boston Marathon was run on April 19 1897.
Women were officially allowed to compete in the race starting in 1972.Following the Ruiz incident race officials instituted tighter security measures to prevent future episodes of cheating.
