Agent: Racer not guilty of elbowing

Tadese Tola, the first person ever disqualified from the AJC Peachtree Road Race, wasn’t trying to elbow anyone. He was merely running inefficiently.

Tola’s agent, Hussein Makke, on Monday disputed claims that Tola deliberately elbowed Boaz Cheboiywo in a battle for fourth place in Sunday’s race. He also said the Atlanta Track Club did not allow enough time for Tola to appeal.

Tola was officially disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct for the incident, which occurred during a sprint about 100 feet from the finish. The disqualification cost Tola a $2,500 prize. The ATC’s ruling on Sunday that his appeal missed a deadline essentially finalized the results before his protest could be heard.

Three master-level USA Track & Field race officials at the finish line signed a written statement saying they witnessed the incident, which was confirmed by photos and video, said ATC spokeswoman Tracy Lott.

But Makke said the incident was an issue of inefficient running mechanics and that Tola, a 21-year-old Ethiopian, did not deliberately elbow Cheboiywo, a 31-year-old Kenyan.

“When you go to full sprint after 28 minutes of running, you’re fatigued, you’re tired,” Makke said. “Especially if you’re not efficient in the mechanics, your arms spin left and right.”

The USATF rule book states that “any competitor or participant jostling, running across, or obstructing another competitor or participant so as to impede his or her progress shall be liable to disqualification in that event.”

Tola has never been disqualified before, Makke said, and has no rivalry with Cheboiywo.

“They have raced before,” Makke said. “They are friendly.”

Makke also said he was not given his full allotted 24 hours to file an appeal.

Makke received a call informing him of the protest at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, he said, and asked to see evidence of the disputed incident. A copy of a video arrived at 11:30 a.m., he said, but Makke said it malfunctioned and he did not receive a working copy until 2:20 p.m.

Makke said he believed the 24-hour period would begin when he first had a chance to review the evidence —- giving him until Sunday afternoon to file an appeal. The USATF rules book states that appeals must be submitted in writing within 24 hours after the action by the referee has been officially announced.

Makke said he sent an appeal at 11:15 a.m. Sunday, but was too late. The ATC sent notice of Makke’s disqualification to the media at 11 a.m.

“They made their decision by themselves before they received our statement,” Makke said. “They were not patient enough and did not understand the rules enough to wait the 24-hour period.”

Lott said the Track Club’s communication with Makke stated that the 24-hour protest period began when the protest was filed at 9:30 a.m.