World Championship Marathon Runners Swindled: Hendrik Pfeiffer's Race Betrayal at the Competition
Title: Unfairly Excluded: Marathon Ace, Hendrik Pfeiffer, Fumes Over Tokyo World Championships Snub
By: Rick Wagner
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Marathon ace Hendrik Pfeiffer's dream of competing in the World Championships in Tokyo (13-21 September) has shattered. The German Athletics Association (DLV) neglected to nominate him, leaving him feeling duped by his own federation.
Pfeiffer, taken aback and seething with frustration, detailing his dismay in an extensive Instagram post, had presumed he would make his World Championships debut, but the DLV's betrayal left him in disbelief. The DLV chose to leave one of three available spots for Germany vacant, sending only Amanal Petros and Richard Ringer to the starting line.
Pfeiffer's qualification could have been attained either by meeting World Athletics' exceptionally high standard of 2:06:30 or by World Ranking and the DLV's internal standard of 2:07:50. Though he ran 2:08:20 at the Berlin Marathon in September, a mere 30 seconds off the performance confirmation standard, Pfeiffer had no way of knowing about this criterion at the time. Earlier in January 2024, he had run 2:07:14, below the later required standard, but the DLV deemed it inapplicable as it transpired before the relevant period. Although he would have qualified via World Ranking, the DLV insists on its rigorous own standard, which is strict and only 1.1% higher than World Athletics' standard, while it's more lenient over 10,000m (3.8%).
The 32-year-old lamented to ntv.de: "The standard is definitely well-conceived to ensure I just miss it at the Berlin Marathon. This is quite evident when you examine the percentage deviation from the confirmation standard." He also stated, "Retroactive standards have no place, and they interfere with the dynamics of a qualification process."
Beset by Olympic Strife as Well
In 2023, Pfeiffer also missed out on a spot, being named only as a reserve runner for the Olympics in Paris. When Petros fell ill and was forced to drop out 10km from the finish, he criticized the federation once more, stating in his podcast "Eine rennt, Einer hinterher," "It would have been important for me to have this information, as it would have impacted how I planned the final week before the race. Running extra training the day before a marathon isn't a sound idea."
Pfeiffer yearns for a discussion with the association's leaders, particularly DLV's Performance Sports Board member Jörg Bügner, blaming him for the 2024 fiasco. However, "no direct conversation has materialized yet. It seems the board is wary of a dialogue with the athlete." Bügner denies responsibility, relaying through the athletes' representative he is not actually responsible for the nominations. However, the nomination guidelines state that the board is in charge of the nominations, so Pfeiffer contends that someone indeed shoulders the responsibility. It seems someone is trying to dodge accountability.
Sympathy and Similar Experiences Abound
On Instagram, a wave of support and shared experiences from former athletes floods in, further corroborating Pfeiffer's claim of arbitrary decisions. "Amazing. History repeats. It was the same for me in 2004," penned 2002 European Championship bronze medalist in the marathon, Sonja Oberem. "Leaving a place vacant when there's a qualified athlete is pure arbitrariness. There's no justification for it." Fellow runner Anja Scherl added, "That's dismal... Unfortunately, it jives with the pattern of experiences I've had with the DLV." And 40-time German champion Sabrina Mockenhaupt wrote, "I sadly anticipated this, and it hurts even more when you'd truly give your all to don the German colors."
Richard Ringer, set for a World Championship appearance, expressed his sympathies, sharing, "That's a pity, Hendrik. You managed to snag a top-40 finish out of 100 participants, which is four places better than I ranked on the Road-to-Paris list last year. Leaving a spot empty with so many great runners in Germany is simply inexplicable."
Legal Action, If Necessary
Pfeiffer is contemplating legal action against the association, stating, "I could potentially petition for an injunction. If the DLV only claims two spots now, the vacant spot will be handed to another nation, making it difficult to reverse this situation. Another alternative would be to establish in principle whether such retroactive norms are even permissible. If it were concluded that this is improper, perhaps we could effect a positive change for all athletes."
Pfeiffer has suffered legal disputes with the German Athletics Association in the past. 1999 triple jump world champion, Charles Friedek, and decathlete Pascal Behrenbruch, to name some examples, have engaged in extended battles with the DLV. And runner Philipp Pflieger attempted in 2018 to compete in both marathon and 10,000 meters at the European Championships, but to no avail.
Pfeiffer states, "It's always a gamble for a solitary athlete to challenge a large association. Military status is often used as a leverage point." Pfeiffer fears that taking legal action could endanger not only his World Championship participation but also his professional future. Scherl, who spoke out on Instagram, shares similar concerns: "Hopefully, your criticism of the DLV won't cost you a spot in the 2026 team." Pfeiffer concludes, "I want to emphasize that Jörg Bügner still has the chance to back down and, perhaps, simply admit, 'You were right, maybe I made a mistake.' Then we can call it a day. That's leadership, acknowledging and correcting an error."
Source: ntv.de
- DLV
- Athletics
- World Championships
- Sabrina Mockenhaupt
- Charles Friedek
- Pascal Behrenbruch
- Philipp Pflieger
- Sonja Oberem
- Anja Scherl
- Richard Ringer
- Hendrik Pfeiffer, the marathon ace, is disappointed about his exclusion from the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, claiming the German Athletics Association (DLV) neglected to nominate him despite his qualification, leading him to question the fairness of their selection process.
- The world of sports is sympathetic to Hendrik Pfeiffer's plight, with several athletes, including Sonja Oberem, Anja Scherl, and Sabrina Mockenhaupt, sharing similar experiences of arbitrariness in athletics and expressing support for Pfeiffer's call for a reevaluation of the DLV's nomination guidelines.
