In a development that should surprise absolutely no one who has ever scrolled through fitness influencer content, a Chinese fitness influencer has been dropped by her sponsor after admitting she rode a bicycle during the Berlin Marathon. Sun Yuanyuan, known as Abeeeer on Chinese social media, had claimed a personal best at the September event. But an Instagram account dedicated to monitoring inaccurate race times posted a photo appearing to show Sun on a bicycle between the 35km and 40km marks. Because nothing says "personal best" like a casual two-wheeled shortcut.

The account, calling itself the Official Marathon Time Integrity Unit (OMTIU), also posted a grid of Sun's splits - the times for each 5km segment. The grid apparently shows she sped up between 35km and 40km, which is precisely when she was allegedly on the bike. Marathon organisers have since disqualified her finish time, and Brooks, the running shoe company, has ended its sponsorship deal. Sun apologised on Rednote, writing: "I won't make any excuses for this behaviour. I was feeling physically unwell on the course, [but] that is absolutely not an excuse for breaking the rules. My attempt to take a shortcut was disrespectful to the fairness of the competition and the spirit of the marathon." She also admitted she "deliberately concealed" her actions, adding: "I feel deeply guilty about this." With 520,000 followers on Rednote, Sun's guilt is now shared with a slightly larger audience than she might have hoped.

Brooks confirmed to BBC News that it had dropped Sun, stating: "Brooks believes running should be grounded in integrity, fairness, and respect for competition. After verifying the facts, Brooks China terminated its relationship with the individual and publicly addressed the matter." OMTIU was set up to highlight "the growing trend of GPS-based fabrication, selective Strava displays and false PR claims" among marathon runners, particularly fitness influencers. Its mission statement reads: "We exist to protect the integrity of the sport by ensuring that the times athletes share publicly reflect the times they actually ran." The account's Instagram bio describes it as "satire," which is either a legal shield or a cry for help. BBC News has contacted the Berlin Marathon for comment, presumably to ask if bicycles are now considered a legitimate marathon category.