This week in athletics gave us plenty to gossip about. On the track, off the track, off-track, even. Apparently three half marathons make a whole. A whole lot of drama, that is. You can whip up a scandal out of anything, but like with cooking, some things are better ready-made. And these five stories are ripe for the picking.

1. US Half Marathon Trials- halfway to a solution

You might remember this story from last week’s run through. Or if not from there, then because it’s been appearing in almost every news outlet since. Three women, on their way to a US half marathon podium finish, until they weren’t. The story sounds simple, but the solution is far from it. While Jess Mcclain, Emma Hurley and Ednah Kurgat did eventually find their back onto the course, the USATF is still having a hard time navigating the chaos left behind.

Like Sunday’s race itself, this week we covered half the distance. Not of 42km, but of the path to a solution. And that path began with some answers. Atlanta Track Club, the event organiser, revealed that one its officers had been hit by a car prior to the race, which meant the intersection in question had been left unguarded. In other words, an oversight had been made, and it didn’t involve the athletes not reading the course markings.

To be continued…

Now that the initial confusion had been put to rest, the question then turned to what could be done. Thankfully, (for USATF at least), these three athletes were so far ahead of the field and had so little left to run when the incident happened, that a podium finish was inevitable. In every scenario but this one, of course. Jess Mcclain was therefore given the prize money for first place, and because Emma Hurley and Ednah Kurgat left the course side-by-side, they were able to split the combined prize money for second and third place.

Although it wasn’t just money on the line that day. It was a World Road Running Championship spot too. And that’s where things get complicated. USATF had two different podiums to contend with: the one that should have been, and the one that was. Neither its rules, nor its conscience, were allowing it to simply choose either one and be done with it. So the story continues. A special, and, frustratingly for some, secret, request has been made which will be voted on by the World Athletics Council on the 18th-19th March.

Extra care is now being taken to keep the athletes in the loop: not just on the course, but off it too.

2. The ‘young’ Ethiopian athletes- a scandal for the ages

It’s been fairly quiet on the track this week- noticeably so. After all, we went from almost two months straight of records to nothing overnight. Something had to fill the silence. So to make up for the fact that we weren’t seeing records being broken, we saw them reversed instead. Along with several ages too, as it turns out.

In an investigation led by the Athletics Integrity Unit, a different type of scandal was unearthed. One that may seem laughable, but it fooled us all the same. Age falsification. It’s not doping, but a 21 year old racing 16-19 year olds does have a similar effect. 5 world U20 records set by 3 Ethiopian athletes were struck down, and a lot of questions brought up to the surface.

Cheating in its oldest form

The most troubling of those three cases is that of Medina Eisa. A double world U20 5000m champion from 2022 and 2024, the birth year she declared was 2005, but it’s now been revealed as 2002. She’s not 20, she’s 23. Not only did she win those two titles illegitimately, she also set the world U20 5000m record at age 21. Which is most certainly not, under 20.

But scratching her records was the easy part, and now the question remains: what about her world titles? She was ineligible to compete in both the 2022 and 2024 world U20 championships. There’s no other way to frame it than to say that she quite simply took someone else’s place. Another week, another tainted Ethiopian world medal. And just because it doesn’t involve drugs, doesn’t mean it should be taken any less seriously.

When it comes to the two other cases of Melknat Wudu and Birke Haylom, what they lost in records, we gained in doubt. Their supposed ages of 21 and 20 still stand, but the AIU caught them shaking at the knees. Birke Haylom won the World Athletics Rising Star award last year, and I can’t help but wonder: was the award given to a talented teenage prospect, or a young adult in her prime?

3. ISTAF Berlin- Jeremiah Azu is the 60m world champion for a reason

The start is very important in the 60m. Not just for the athletes, but for officials too, especially when your entire event centres around the discipline. And it’s safe to say, the ISTAF Berlin indoor meet did not get off to a great start. A two false and six faulty, kind of not-so-great start. But when it eventually did get going, the action didn’t disappoint. After all, it did have the expectations of an increasingly impatient crowd to fulfil.

There were two big achievements of the night. First, the fact that Emmanuel Eseme of Cameroon still managed to finish 2nd in the men’s 60m final, despite also having run the equivalent of six 10m races in the form of repeated recalls. And second, Jeremiah Azu. The winner of the men’s 60m in a new personal best of 6.47. A time that ties him as the third fastest British man ever, while also making him the fastest in 12 years.

Last year, Jeremiah Azu won both the World and European indoor 60m titles. That same year he opened his season with 6.64. This year, Jeremiah Azu is looking to defend that world title, and it’s not just his words that are saying so, it’s his form too. In 2026 he opened with 6.54, his fastest 60m season opener ever. That winning time from Friday night and his new personal best, is quicker than the 6.49 that secured him a gold medal in Nanjing. If Jeremiah Azu can keep this up, he might just keep his title too.

4. Paris Half Marathon- a repeat, and a new feat

It’s quite rare to see an entire podium return. But in the Paris Half Marathon this Sunday, all three male top finishers were back at the start line and ready for a rematch. Or a repeat, rather. Because Kennedy Kimutai of Kenya didn’t just cling on to his title from 2025, he now holds it more comfortably than ever before.

Not even the heavy fog could hide the tall, dominant figure of Kimutai leading the pack out in front. His change of pace was unmatched, extending his lead in bursts right when needed, before eventually breaking away for good. While his positioning was the same as last year, he did improve on one count: his winning time of 1:00:11 was 4 seconds faster than last year’s 1:00:15.

On the women’s side, returning champion Jackline Cherono didn’t have quite the same luck. The only position she maintained was her fourth place finish from the Dubai Half Marathon last month. It wasn’t fate, but rather Ftaw Zeray of Ethiopia, who decided it was time for a new winner. And not only that, but a new course record too. Finishing over a minute ahead of the rest of the field in 1:05:12, Ftaw Zeray bettered the previous time of 1:06:01 by almost as much, cementing her place in the Paris Half Marathon history books.

Nevermind the fog, she was so far ahead that the rest of the field couldn’t be seen regardless.

5. Lisbon Half Marathon- Jacob Kiplimo (re)sets the world record

The news that Jacob Kiplimo‘s half marathon world record of 56:42 from 2025 wouldn’t be ratified was quite the scandal. Had he really been running too close to the lead car, who even determines how close you can be to the lead car, why would a major event not ensure its course were rule-abiding, that sort of thing. They say that the key to managing a storm is to lay low. But in Jacob Kiplimo’s case, that translates to attacking it head-on.

Neither the Lisbon course, nor the Lisbon field of elites, stood a chance. When you mix an athlete in the shape of his life with a whole lot of pent up frustration, you get this: another world record. And hopefully not a lead car in sight. Jacob Kiplimo’s winning time of 57:20 may be slower than his last, but the point isn’t in the times. It’s in the proof. Did he gain an unfair advantage in Barcelona? Maybe. Is he still the fastest man ever without it? Yes. No caveats, no asterisks (except the one for pending ratification).

What sent him below Yomif Kejelcha’s 57:30 from 2024 wasn’t some kind of external force. It was some kind of extreme talent that only Jacob Kiplimo and Jacob Kiplimo himself possesses. And if this new time isn’t ratified, get ready for a real-life game of Whac-A-Mole. World Athletics can knock his records down all they want, but they’ll just keep popping back up again.

The drama’s not done yet

Satisfied? Hopefully not, because the next course is just around the corner. And by that I mean: see you next week.