Derek Murphy, the man behind Marathon Investigation who led the initial investigation against Runner’s World editor Kate Carter, has responded to England Athletics ruling over the allegations from the two London races.
Last week, England Athletics concluded its investigation into the actions of Kate Carter, acting commissioning editor at Runner’s World UK, in relation to two London events during 2023.
Despite the facts Murphy found against her, including her manual creation of a Strava entry for the London Marathon and dubious actions during the London Landmarks Half Marathon, England Athletics ruled that there was no deliberate intent to deceive or gain an unfair advantage.
What You Might Have Missed:
If you’re not up-to-date on the whole Kate Carter situation and the evidence against her, here’s what Murphy had previously pieced together before the latest revelations:
- The Oxford-educated, long-time running journalist is accused of faking multiple race results
- Marathon Investigation was tipped off about a fishy performance at the London Landmarks Half Marathon. A missing 5K split from the race and a bit of quick math shows that Carter would have had to have thrown down one heck of a 15-20K split to finish in the time she claims.
- At the 2023 London Marathon, Carter missed the timing mat, and early race photos show her bib fully visible, compared to photos from later stages in the race, where her bib is folded, only revealing part of her number. A deeper dive revealed that she may not have been on course in certain portions of the marathon.
- Suspicions emerged following the London Marathon when Carter claimed on Strava that her GPS watch died during the race. However, photos from late in the race and from the finish clearly show her watch face, which was certainly not dead. Carter later posted a Strava entry for the marathon, using a manually-created route (which she later deleted).
- Online commentators have been quick to judge Carter, an established figure in the running media world – stating that her position gives her access and entry to many events other runners don’t have.
- Following a five-week investigation into her alleged fake times and course-cutting, Carter was cleared by England Athletics of any intention to deceive.
For all the details, read our story on the initial accusations here.
In a statement to the British magazine Athletics Weekly, EA emphasized the importance of integrity in sport at all levels and assured the public of their commitment to thorough scrutiny in cases of concern.
However, the organization stopped short of absolving Carter of wrongdoing, clarifying that while her actions did not meet the threshold for serious misconduct, they did not condone fabricating entries or course-cutting.
Contrary to some reports, EA’s ruling does not exonerate Carter entirely.
A spokesperson from England Athletics said:
“England Athletics received information relating to alleged cheating by an EA-licenced athlete in two events during 2023. A thorough investigation into both incidents has been carried out, the results of which have found there was no intention to deceive and no attempt to benefit from the results.“
“As such, neither of these incidents meet the EA threshold for serious misconduct. In athletics – as with all sports – integrity is vital. EA welcomes the opportunity to scrutinise where there are concerns, and to put every adequate resource into arriving at the correct outcome.”
The EA ruling claims that she was cleared of intent to deceive, not of cheating.
Nevertheless, Murphy says certain publications have misrepresented the situation, with Carter’s husband, Sean Ingle, taking a victory lap on social media. Ingle, The chief sports reporter at the Guardian, was quick to use the EA’s ruling as an opportunity to dig at Murphy and Marathon Investigation.
It's great that this case was properly investigated by actual investigators – and for the truth to emerge.
— Sean Ingle (@seaningle) March 7, 2024
It's been an utterly grim five weeks. https://t.co/Mm8LEtxiMF
However, online users weren’t as eager to accept Ingle’s proclaimed victory.
In response, concerns were raised about the lack of a formal report from EA, highlighting the need for transparency in such cases.
Carter also used this opportunity to make a statement to the Telegraph regarding her manual Strava files and the controversy as a whole.
“Running was a big part of my identity, whether it was volunteering, fundraising, racing or coaching for my local club, or writing about the sport I love. Having been cleared, I really hope to find that joy again.”
She later said she had ran the race without a chip, meaning she had no official time logged but she still wanted it marked on her Strava profile. “This was not an attempt to mislead or cheat,” she said.
However, Murphy states that Carter could have simply entered her run as a manual entry. She did not need to manually create a map to get credit for the race on Strava.
Interestingly, Carter has made comments on previous Marathon Investigation posts, advocating for integrity in running. Additionally, Carter also interviewed Murphy in 2016.
The facts remain unchanged: Carter admitted to re-entering the course at a different location during the London Landmarks Half Marathon and using another runner’s GPS data to falsify her Strava activity. Additionally, Carter claims her watch died at the London Landmark Half Marathon; however, photos show that Garmin was not dead.
Despite this, she maintains her place in the official results and even received an entry to the 2024 London Landmarks Half Marathon.
While Carter insists her actions were not intended to deceive, questions linger regarding her decision-making, particularly given the availability of alternative options for recording her activities on Strava.
