It was too fast to be true.
Three months after Frank Meza completed the 2019 Los Angeles marathon in 2:53:10, the fastest time ever logged by a man of his age, it has been revealed that the 70 year-old retired physician left the course at one point and reentered at another location. Security camera footage was used to confirm the growing accusations by the marathon community.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Meza was immediately accused of cheating after his supposedly exceptional performance. The marathon community has high ethical standards and has been plagued with fraud. The Conqur Endurance Group tracked as many as 10 years worth of Meza’s races.
“The video evidence is confirmed by a credible eyewitness report,” Conqur Endurance Group said in a statement. “Our calculation that Dr. Meza’s actual running time for at least one 5K course segment would have had to have been faster than the current 70-74 age group 5K world record, an impossible feat during a marathon.”
Meza has repeatedly stuck to his statement that he left the course in search of a restroom and used the sidewalk to find one, but “didn’t cut the course.”
Officials have also accused him of wearing his numbered bib on his hip, instead of correctly pinning it to his shirt. Allegations have arisen that he passed the bib to another runner for a portion of the marathon.
Meza has also stated that he has never carried a GPS device to track his location during the marathon, and when asked about his miraculous timing, he could not offer officials an explanation.
“I don’t know,” Meza said. “I wish I did.”
To combat these accusations, Meza plans to enter the L.A. Marathon next year and run with an observer to prove he can finish the race in under three hours and to prove he did not cheat this year.