Chinese influencer apologizes after being spotted riding bike during Berlin Marathon
A Chinese fitness influencer has apologized after coming under fire for being caught riding a bike toward the finish line during the Berlin Marathon.
According to local outlet Orange News, Abeeeer, an influencer on Xiaohongshu with 530,000 followers, admitted to violating fair competition rules in a social media post. She explained she felt ill during the race on Sept. 27, so her friend picked her up on a bike. They later decided to take her to the finish line for the final four kilometers.
She acknowledged that feeling unwell was not an excuse to break the rules and said she felt deeply ashamed.
"My attempt to take a shortcut was disrespectful to the fairness of the competition and the spirit of the marathon," she wrote. “I will not make any defence for the above behaviour,” she added.
Abeeer, whose real name is Sun Yuanyuan, reportedly finished the 42-kilometer race in four hours and 53 minutes and claimed on social media that she beat her personal best.
Per The Straits Times, the Official Marathon Time Integrity Unit, an Instagram account that investigates questionable race performances, exposed pictures showing her on a bicycle near the 38km mark. According to OMTIU, Abeeeer recorded her fastest 5km split between the 35km and 40km marks — the same section where she was photographed riding a bicycle.
这事今天闹的很大。原因是海外博主发现一名中国健身头部博主 Abeeeer，疑似在柏林马拉松作弊，她中途乘坐自行车，事后宣布获得 4 小时 30 分，马拉松跑步优秀成绩，并写了一篇感动小作文。 就在国内有网友，将这件事翻译成中文报道后，竟收到她的公关私信，指责报道有细节问题。 最后耐不住质疑的人群过多，加上她这个公关私信，也被网友们分享了出来，连她常带货的广告方，也被冲了。 今天凌晨她突然发文，决定公开承认错误 + 道歉。
— AB Kuai.Dong (@_FORAB) October 3, 2026
Berlin Marathon has yet to comment on the matter, but Abeeer's results page on the website shows “DSQ,” indicating that she has been disqualified.
The fitness influencer later deleted her marathon posts after photos of her riding a bike during the race surfaced.
Abeeeer's sponsor, sports brand Brooks China apologized for the oversight.
“After the race, although we verified the finishing results and related text, images, and video materials they provided, we didn’t conduct a thorough and detailed review of the entire participation process, especially information such as segment data,” it said, calling this “an oversight on our part," per The Independent report.
"Brooks believes running should be grounded in integrity, fairness, and respect for competition," it said, per BBC.
Brooks China has also terminated its ties with Abeeeer and said it “will never work with her again."
The Berlin Marathon is one of the largest marathons in the world. According to its website, 13 world records have been broken on its 42.195-kilometer pavement so far.