No more shortcuts allowed, founder of runners’ group says

The founder of the running group phenomenon JeansMarines says the organization will do some things very differently in the future. And that means there will be no cutting corners — critics say “ cheating” — at the annual Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D. C., to ensure the slowest runners can finish the 26.2mile ( 42- kilometre) course.

“ Not any more,” said Dr. Jean Marmoreo. “ It can’t happen any more.” It also means some of the slowest runners will likely either receive more coaching in future — or be discouraged from running in this particular event until they’re ready. The Star revealed yesterday that a small minority of JeansMarines runners at the Oct. 30 event — about eight or nine out of some 225 JeansMarines taking part — were encouraged to take a shortcut under the guidance of Marmoreo.

That shortcut shaved several miles off the course and allowed the slowest runners to reach a key bridge before it was reopened to traffic. Marmoreo says a few runners from her group and others used what’s known as the 17th St. bypass in 2004 as well.

“ But I didn’t invent the 17th St. bypass,” she said. “ So I had it on good faith that this was somehow acknowledged or not on the books.”

Within days of the event, the forums on runnersworld.com were being flooded with posts accusing a few runners with JeansMarines and another group of cheating in the event. On Tuesday, Marmoreo sent an email to JeansMarines members accepting full responsibility and asking any of those who had not completed the entire course to return their “ finisher’s medal.” Lee Ogden, 52, a JeansMarines runner, completed the course in 2004 and 2005. “I can’t say enough about the whole organization,” she said. “ It’s been just superb to me.” She says yesterday’s news hurt.

“ It does tarnish us all — hundreds of us.”