- Kate Carter, 47, is a commissioning editor at Runner’s World magazine.
- She is suspected of having ‘cut the course’ during the London Landmarks Half Marathon in April last year.
A senior editor at a prestigious running magazine has been accused of posting misleading London Marathon times.
Kate Carter, who holds the world record for fastest woman running a marathon wearing a full-body costume, is suspected of posting a fake time at last year’s race.
This comes after Carter, 47, appears to have deactivated both her Instagram and ‘X’ (formerly known as Twitter) accounts.
There is no evidence that Carter ran the entire race, and it is claimed that he may have used software to “manually” create the GPS data based on a four-year-old course map.
The amateur athlete, who is the commissioning editor of Runner’s World magazine, has also come under suspicion for allegedly “cutting the course” at the London Landmarks Half Marathon in April last year.
Although Carter is said to have set excellent official times, there is no record of her competing in nearly half of the 13.1 mile race.
The bombshell statement was made by American blogger Derek Murphy, who has previously exposed a series of scandals in high-profile races around the world.
After being tipped off and reviewing photos, videos and GPS data, he published a large amount of “evidence” on the Marathon investigation website.
Ms Murphy said she launched the investigation after “evidence of Kate’s wrongdoing was meticulously passed to me”.
Mr Carter, who was educated at the University of Oxford, has held a senior role at the magazine, known as the ‘runner’s bible’, since August 2022.
She previously worked as a freelance TV producer for the BBC and Channel 4 and was Life and Style Editor at the Guardian for over 11 years. Her husband Sean still works there as a sports journalist. they have two children.
In 2019, she set a Guinness World Record by running the London Marathon dressed as a panda, finishing 25 minutes faster than any previous woman wearing a full-body costume.
She was photographed with Kenyan legend Eliud Kipchoge at the start of last year’s event.
Ms Murphy wrote on her blog: “Kate is a trusted member of the governing media community and is regularly flown overseas by clothing brands for articles and publicity in her capacity as a journalist.”
“From the photo of Eliud Kipchoge on the start line, it appears that she was also a VIP at the 2023 event.
“This degree of access and privilege in the running community, especially at a coveted event like the London Marathon, should be accompanied by a high degree of respect and integrity.
“If these anomalies are what they appear to be, then Kate’s actions regarding her results are unethical and completely inconsistent with the tenets of journalism and running at every level.”
Carter appears to have run without a bib at last year’s London Marathon, but the bib contains a timing chip that can track runners and record official times.
But she posted her stats on Strava, a training app used by athletes to share their times and performance in races.
Murphy claims to have found evidence that the entry is fake.
He writes: “Without going into excruciating detail, the GPS entry was almost certainly created manually. It was definitely not along the course of the London Marathon.
“This course follows the 2019 course, not the 2023 course.”
He added that Carter was taking “sloppy detours” that were easy to overlook when manually creating runs.
“It is unclear whether she ran all or part of the course, and for how long,” he wrote.
He questioned why Carter would run such a prestigious race without timing and “false his Strava entry.”
According to the London Landmarks Half Marathon record, Carter completed the race in 1 hour, 32 minutes, 12 seconds.
She was fourth fastest in her age division and finished 42nd out of 10,017 women who reached the finish line.
But Ms Murphy stressed there was no evidence to show she had taken part in the 10km section of the 21km race.
The runner did not record a time at the 15km mark, nor was she photographed during that section of the course.
According to records, Carter completed the first 10km in 48 minutes and 6 seconds.
Although she failed to record a time at the 15-kilometer mark, she ran the second 10-kilometer of the race in just over 39 minutes, after clearly increasing her pace dramatically.
This comes after organizers of the London Landmarks Half Marathon said all runners taking part in the event would be expected to complete the course fairly.
The London Landmarks Half Marathon has raised more than £37.5 million for baby charities, Tommy’s and other good causes since its first event in 2018.
A spokesperson said: “The London Landmarks Half Marathon is a not-for-profit event that raises money for Tommy’s and our many charitable partners.”
“Our goal is to provide a fun, inclusive and open event for everyone, regardless of their running ability. Our runners range from competitive runners to fun runners to charity runners. It ranges from runners running to.
“Everyone participates for personal reasons, whether it’s fundraising for a cause close to their heart, a sense of personal accomplishment, or a personal record. And we believe that every runner who crosses the finish line is fully We expect to have completed the course and we hope they know they have completed it legitimately.” ”
Hearst Magazines, the New York-based publishing giant that owns Runner’s World, has been contacted for comment.
It is further alleged that Carter’s running bib was “manipulated” to make it “obscure” in the missing part of the race.
The photo also seemed to contradict claims that she posted someone else’s GPS data because her Garmin watch “malfunctioned” during the race.
Ms Carter declined to comment on the allegations when contacted by MailOnline at her home in Wandsworth, south-west London.
She said inquiries should be made through Runner’s World’s publisher, adding: “I’m not talking to you.”
The publisher did not respond to requests for comment. So did the marathon organizers.
Carter also refused to respond to inquiries about the marathon investigation, prompting fellow runners to post critical posts on her Instagram account, which have since been deleted.
One critic, David Pearson of the British triathlon federation, said: “It’s really shocking that people feel the need to do something like this, especially when journalists in particular should be making an extra effort to seek the truth.” It’s unfortunate,” he said.
“But it’s heartening to see it exposed when it happens.
“Trust me there are people out there who care about the integrity of sports.”