Marathon Ruse Uncovered

Marathon Ruse Uncovered
By Patrick Garrity
Burlington Free Press Staff Writer

Johanne Provencher wasn't the second woman to cross the finish line Sunday
in the 13th KeyBank Vermont City Marathon after all.

Marathon officials have established the identity of the women's runner-up as
Karine Maltis, 25, of Montreal -- not Provencher, 46, of LaSalle, Quebec, as
originally thought.

Maltis ran Sunday's 26.2-mile race in 3 hours, 6 minutes, 5 seconds under
registration No. 1089, Provencher's race number. Marathon officials
protested the result and the $800 second-place prize hours after the race
after a reporter raised questions about the runner's identity.

Maltis called race officials Tuesday morning to confess the ruse and clear
the confusion.

"We had no intentions of this turning out the way it did, whatsoever,"
Maltis said. "I feel really bad."

Maltis said she bought Provencher's registration number after Provencher
injured her knee skiing. She said the women knew registration numbers were
non-transferable but didn't think race officials would notice or care.

Then she finished second.

"I was not supposed to do that well; I was not supposed to finish second,"
said Maltis, whose only previous marathoning experience produced a result of
3 hours, 32 minutes. "I just wanted to participate. I knew I was running
with a number no one was using. I feel terrible."

Andrea Sisino, executive director of the VCM, said she accepts Maltis'
contrition.

"She wanted to come clean," Sisino said. "She was extremely embarrassed. She
had no idea it was as serious an issue as it is."

The marathon is sanctioned and certified by USA Track Field. Race rules
prohibit registered marathoners from swapping race numbers or bibs. A
violation draws penalties up to and including lifetime banishment from the
VCM and all USA Track Field-sanctioned events.

Provencher denied knowledge of the chicanery when contacted by race
officials and faces a ban, Sisino said. Maltis' status is undetermined
because she came forward on her own.

"It bums me out, because I told Johanne on the phone, over and over, 'If you
know anything, now is the time to tell me, and we'll brush it off as a bad
mistake,'" Sisino said. "As of today, Johanne is banned. She clearly lied to
race officials."

This is the second time in two years bib swapping has plagued the VCM. Last
year, Joe Straub, 36 of Chester, N.Y., ran under a registration number
belonging to Dan Doyle, 43 of Sugarloaf, N.Y. Straub finished in 2:31.46,
eighth overall. Officials tried to award Doyle the $300 prize for having the
best time among runners 40-and-older, but Doyle acknowledged he had not
competed in the race. Neither man will run the VCM again, Sisino said.

To avoid bib swapping, the VCM requires runners to produce photo
identification upon registration in the days prior to the race. Maltis tried
to circumvent the rule with a signed letter from Provencher asking officials
to allow Maltis to claim the race bib in her absence. When a registration
volunteer denied the request, Sisino said Maltis made a color copy of a race
bib emblazoned with "1089" and entered Sunday's race anyway.

"I have nothing to hide; I know it was wrong," Maltis said. "If I knew I was
second, I would not have crossed the finish line. I was running just for
me."

Almost certainly, Maltis wasn't the only impostor to run Sunday's race.

"People are getting extremely creative," Sisino said. "I knew we could be in
for some trouble when Staples called and said they were color copying bibs
Saturday night. It dawned on them that maybe something was amiss and called
and told us."

Sisino said further steps will be taken next year to avoid possible fraud.
Runners finishing in position to claim prize money will be escorted into a
winners' tent upon crossing the finish line.

"We'll be giving them elite hospitality, while at the same time making sure
they are who they say they are," Sisino said. "You can't be too sure
anymore."

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