An influencer was disqualified from the NYC Marathon for bringing a filming crew onto the course

Influencers run marathons. Or maybe marathon runners become influencers? It’s a chicken and the egg kind of question, but it’s a scenario that has been a constant since the dawn of running culture online — especially on TikTok — and one that has only picked up since the pandemic. This is normally not a problem — in fact it’s a benefit. Marathons have gotten more popular, in part, because of influencers, which most people see as an overall positive addition to the sport. But something hit the fan over the weekend when one influencer was disqualified from the New York City Marathon after running the course with what was basically a team of folks filming him.”After a review and due to violations of World Athletics rules, and New York Road Runners’ Code of Conduct and Rules of Competition, NYRR has disqualified Matt Choi from the 2024 TCS New York City Marathon and removed him from the results,” the New York Road Runners, which organizes the marathon, said in a statement, according to Runner’s World. “He has been banned from any future NYRR races.”Choi is a Texas-based influencer who finished the marathon in under three hours — 2:57:15, to be exact. It’s a pretty killer time, but not one that will be reflected in official results because the 29-year-old “ran with the assistance of two unauthorized people riding the course on electric bicycles, obstructing runners,” the statement said, Runner’s World reported.There has been mixed reactions from social media. In one video…An influencer was disqualified from the NYC Marathon for bringing a filming crew onto the course