--- title: This Marathon Runner Won After Competitors Ran the Wrong Way description: The results of the Venice Marathon took a turn for the unexpected after the race frontrunners were led astray by a motorcycle guide. canonical: https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-10-23T15:42:52.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T09:58:11.594Z og:title: This Marathon Runner Won After Competitors Ran the Wrong Way og:description: The race leaders were following a motorcycle guide who led them astray og:url: https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb3a25fe82aa16ed9/6988e2f3096a9464186a01f1/venice-marathon.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3591 og:image:height: 2020 og:image:alt: Atardecer en Pizza San Marco (Venice) og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: This Marathon Runner Won After Competitors Ran the Wrong Way twitter:description: The race leaders were following a motorcycle guide who led them astray twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb3a25fe82aa16ed9/6988e2f3096a9464186a01f1/venice-marathon.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Runner Wins Marathon After Competitors Totally Ran the Wrong Way > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: The Cost of Running a Marathon [Watch (HLS stream): The Cost of Running a Marathon](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/d4kChq2T.m3u8) (1:55)  _Published 2017-09-11. The Cost of Running a Marathon_  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Oct 23, 2017 3:42 PM UTC The Cost of Running a Marathon  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Oct 23, 2017 3:42 PM UTC It was a big day for Italian marathon runner Eyob Faniel, who came in first place at the Venice Marathon Sunday — after the race’s frontrunners [were led astray](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/23/unknown-local-wins-venice-marathon-after-favourites-take-wrong-turn) from the course by a motorcycle guide. In the surprising twist, the leading pack at about 16 miles in — which included runners Abdulahl Dawud, Gilbert Kipleting Chumba, Kipkemei Mutai and David Kiprono Metto — ran “several hundred meters” in the wrong direction before doubling back to correct the error, according to [_ITV_](http://www.itv.com/news/2017-10-23/favourites-in-venice-marathon-lose-out-after-being-led-astray/). But that was enough for local runner Faniel, the first Italian athlete to win the race in 22 years, to solidify his lead, according to [_The Guardian_](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/23/unknown-local-wins-venice-marathon-after-favourites-take-wrong-turn). His final time was 2 hours, 12 minutes and 16 seconds. One of the original frontrunners who made the wrong turn came in fourth. Starting inland in the Veneto region, the Venice Marathon [covers 26.2 miles](http://www.huaweivenicemarathon.it/en/venicemarathon/runners-area/course) between historic country towns, across the Liberty Bridge and through to the island of Venice itself. The finish is in the center of the romantic city of canals. It’s undoubtedly a picturesque run — although those disappointed leaders may need more than scenic ocean views and Italian pasta to assuage their frustration at the unexpected turn of events. > [](https://twitter.com/itvnews/status/922413690271551489) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/"},"headline":"Runner Wins Marathon After Competitors Totally Ran the Wrong Way","datePublished":"2017-10-23T15:42:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-08T09:58:11.594Z","description":"The results of the Venice Marathon took a turn for the unexpected after the race frontrunners were led astray by a motorcycle guide.","url":"https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/","keywords":["Newsfeed","viral","Bizarre","Running","Sports"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb3a25fe82aa16ed9/6988e2f3096a9464186a01f1/venice-marathon.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb3a25fe82aa16ed9/6988e2f3096a9464186a01f1/venice-marathon.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Atardecer en Pizza San Marco (Venice)","caption":"Atardecer en Pizza San Marco (Venice)","creditText":"All rights reserved - Copyright—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/","name":"Runner Wins Marathon After Competitors Totally Ran the Wrong Way"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Cost of Running a Marathon","description":"The Cost of Running a Marathon","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/d4kChq2T/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-09-11T15:07:58.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/d4kChq2T.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/","duration":"PT1M55S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4993234/venice-marathon/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```