Moment marathon runner begins celebrating victory earlier than the end line… permitting her rival to sneak previous on the final second

A runner suffered an embarrassing loss after she started celebrating her win too soon, ultimately costing her the first place title.

Xiao Fen, 35, was in the lead as she approached the finish line at the Women’s Half Marathon in Chongqing, southwest China on Saturday.

With a victory seemingly right in front of her, Xiao raised her arms in the air in triumph and appeared to slow down, allowing her rival to zoom past at the last second.

Gan Zhifang overtook the runner and sprinted towards victory, crossing the finish line to become the first-place winner of the race.

Footage of the Xiao’s embarrassing loss quickly went viral on Chinese social media, with the runner saying she was ‘disappointed’ in the outcome.

Xiao said that despite placing second just a few fractions of a second behind Gan, she should not have let her guard down and ‘opened the champagne’ ahead of time.

Even though she only placed second, the mother-of-two said she was still happy because she had set a personal best for the competition.

Xiao is an amateur runner, having only picked up the sport in September 2023, but has already participated in 19 races.

Xiao Fen, 35, (left) was in the lead as she approached the finish line at the Women’s Half Marathon in Chongqing, southwest China on Saturday. With a victory seemingly right in front of her, Xiao raised her arms in the air in triumph and appeared to slow down, allowing her rival Gan Zhifang (right) to zoom past at the last second

Gan Zhifang (pictured) overtook the runner and sprinted towards victory, crossing the finish line to become the first-place winner of the race

‘I was really careless near the finish line and then relaxed too soon. Alas, keep trying, I can run better next time,’ Xiao said after the race, Báo VnExpress reports. 

The runner said that although the outcome was ‘really frustrating’, she learned a valuable lesson and vowed to never make the same mistake again.

But as the clip made rounds online, critics were quick to accuse Xiao of purposely losing the race for attention or internet fame.

One user on the Chinese social network Weibo joked that she joined the ‘famous athletes who celebrate too early’ club, according to Vietnamese newspaper Tuổi Trẻ.

‘Xiao Fen has helped everyone have another viral video,’ quipped another. ‘She would have become famous, even more famous if she had won!’ 

‘Xiao Fen taught me a lesson. Never be too happy before winning,’ one user joked. 

Another added: ‘Running 21km is awesome, but the last 21m sprint is awesome… of others!’ 

Several social media users did, however, express sympathy for Xiao and offered words of encouragement following her loss.

‘The arena is like a battlefield, this is not just empty talk,’ one posted. 

Video shows the moment Gan Zhifang overtook her fellow runner and made it across the finish line first

It appeared that Xiao Fen, 35, was in the lead as she approached the finish line at the Women’s Half Marathon in Chongqing

Xiao Fen lifted her arms up to celebrate as she approached the line, but her competitor gained on her

Both women had their arms outstretched in victory as they crossed the line

Another noted that had she come in first place, ‘the prize money could have doubled’. The user added: ‘What a pity.

Xiao dismissed the criticism and defended her efforts during the 2025 Chongqing Women’s Half Marathon.

‘I fought my best for 21.0975km, how could I do this to attract attention?’ she said. ‘Anyway, I think I did pretty well. I fought hard.’

Xiao is not the first runner to make an embarrassing blunder close to the finish line.

Matteo Bustos came in second place at the Sagunto Triathlon in Valencia, Spain in June 2021 after he was overtaken by Germán Cister as he jumped in celebration near the finish line.

Just last year, British sprinter Jake Odey-Jordan was overtaken by his rivals after he suddenly slowed down during the 200-metre dash at the European Athletics U18 Championships qualifier. The athlete, then 16, finished fourth place in the race.