The ultra-marathon runner who used a car on her way to a third-placed finish has blamed jetlag for her actions.
Joasia Zakrzewski was disqualified from the 2023 GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool race, after it was discovered she had travelled 1.6km in just 1m 40s.
The 47-year-old has since revealed she got lost around the halfway mark and was battling a leg injury that made her limp.
Instead of pulling out, she accepted a ride from a friend in his car to the next checkpoint with the intention of telling officials of her withdrawal, but after informing them of her situation, she was encouraged to continue on, eventually crossing the finish line and being awarded the third-place trophy.
"I made a massive error accepting the trophy and should have handed it back," she told BBC. "I was tired and jetlagged, and felt sick.
"I hold my hands up, I should have handed them back and not had pictures done, but I was feeling unwell and spaced out, and not thinking clearly."
Zakrzewski has since become the target of "haters" on social media, but apologises to eventual third-placegetter Mel Sykes for stealing her spotlight.
Despite her version of events, race director Wayne Drinkwater says she made no attempt to inform organisers she had used a car.
"At no point, at the finish, were the event team informed by Joasia that she was 'not running the race competitively'," he told BBC.
"None of our event team in question, with written statements to confirm this, were aware that Joasia had vehicle transport at any time during the race, until we received information after the race from another competitor.
"If we had been made aware during the race, disqualification from the race would have been immediate at that point."
Zakrzewski is a former world record holder and competed at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
