In one of the most bizarre scenes in recent Diamond League history, Ethiopian distance runner Fantaye Belayneh stormed to victory in the women’s 3000m at the Zurich final on Thursday night, while wearing the race bib of her teammate, Aleshign Baweke.
Initially, announcers, graphics, and even the official results listed Baweke as the winner of the high-stakes race. Belayneh’s name didn’t appear anywhere near the top of the results sheet.
The problem? The athletes had accidentally swapped bibs before the race. Belayneh was wearing Baweke’s bib, and Baweke, in turn, had pinned on Belayneh’s.
The confusion threw everyone off, including the broadcast crew, who hailed Baweke as the champion.
Meet photographers snapped her nameplate at the finish, and World Athletics briefly credited her with the $50,000 first-place prize.
But photos told a different story.
The woman who crossed the line first was not Baweke, a Nike-sponsored athlete, but Belayneh, identifiable in her Adidas kit and by previous race footage, including her win earlier this season at the Maurie Plant meet in Melbourne.
Within 45 minutes, Diamond League officials corrected the results. The trophy and title belonged to Fantaye Belayneh.
While the identity mix-up may seem like a harmless logistical snafu, the stakes were unusually high. The Zurich 3000m was one of the few Diamond+ events on the calendar, which not only bumped the winner’s prize to $50,000, but also carried a significant perk, an automatic wildcard into the 5000m at the World Championships in Tokyo.
That wildcard spot could prove critical. Belayneh had not initially been selected for Ethiopia’s team, and with the depth of talent in Ethiopian distance running, the Diamond League victory now gives her a shot at a first major championship appearance.
Baweke, meanwhile, had already been named to the Worlds roster, but did not appear to be a factor in Thursday’s race.
It’s still unclear how the bib switch occurred. Race-day photographs show Baweke wearing Belayneh’s number at the start line, and vice versa, but there’s been no formal explanation from either athlete, the Ethiopian federation, or event organizers.
According to World Athletics rules, athletes are not permitted to race under someone else’s bib, a policy more often enforced in mass participation races than elite-level track meets. Whether the federation or World Athletics will take action remains to be seen.
For now, though, Belayneh walks away with a career-defining victory, a five-figure payday, and a last-minute ticket to Tokyo, thanks to a dominant run and a bib with someone else’s name on it.
