SANTIAGO, Chile — Peru’s Kimberly García thought she set the world record in the women’s 20-kilometer walk race at the Pan American Games. She later found out she didn’t.
Organizers said in a statement that the times of the race were annulled due to “a measuring problem” in Santiago’s O’Higgins Park. They blamed the Association of Pan American Athletics for the mistake.
Athletes believe the distance they walked in Chile was about 3 kilometers shorter.
The mistake adds to Santiago’s woes in the organization of the Pan American Games, which started Oct. 20 and finish Nov. 5.
García finished her race on a cold and damp morning in 1 hour, 12 minutes, 26 seconds. The record belongs to China’s Jiayu Yang (1:23:49).
Eleven other competitors seemingly finished their race below the world record.
“We do control our pace a lot, and right out of the gate, in our first lap, we say the pace was too strong. It was quicker than the men’s,” said Brazilian Viviane Lyra, who finished fourth. “We knew there was something…
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