Kazakhstan’s Yasmina Toksanbayeva was the first to cross the finish line in the women’s marathon race walk final.
However, a review of the shoe regulations was conducted after the event, and she was disqualified one day later.
Why did the finishing order and the final medal standings differ?
3-Line Summary
1. Toksanbayeva was disqualified for violating the shoe regulations
2. The first-place time was 3 hours, 22 minutes, and 20 seconds
3. The finishing order does not guarantee the final medals
First Across the Line on the 27th, Disqualified on the 28th
The women’s marathon race walk at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games was held on September 27 on a course around the Aichi Prefectural Government Office and Nagoya City Hall in Japan. Kazakhstan’s Yasmina Toksanbayeva completed 42.195㎞ in 3 hours, 22 minutes, and 20 seconds, crossing the finish line first.
The result was announced along with the event results, in which Chinese athletes finished 2nd and 3rd and Japan’s Sachiko Umeno finished 4th. In particular, it appeared likely to become the first case in these Games’ women’s race walk in which an athlete from a country other than China won the gold medal.
However, reports emerged on the 28th that the Asian Games Organizing Committee had disqualified Toksanbayeva. In other words, the time recorded at the finish line did not immediately constitute the final result after all procedures had been completed.
The Problem Was the Sole Thickness of the Shoes
The reason for the disqualification was the thickness of the soles of the shoes worn by Toksanbayeva. According to reports, an additional investigation after the event confirmed that the shoes exceeded the sole-thickness standard under the TR 5.2 regulation set by World Athletics.
Separate from judging the rankings based on athletic performance itself, the fact that athletes’ equipment is also reviewed under competition regulations changed the result. Toksanbayeva showed tears of emotion after crossing the finish line, but was subsequently disqualified and had her gold medal rescinded for violating the equipment regulations.
The most notable aspect of this case was not the time difference or a late ruling, but the equipment review conducted after the event. This is why it was difficult to determine the final standings by looking only at the finish-line scene.
China Inherits Gold and Silver, Japan Takes Bronze
Following Toksanbayeva’s disqualification, the two Chinese athletes who had finished 2nd and 3rd received the gold and silver medals, respectively. Japan’s Sachiko Umeno, who had finished 4th, moved up to receive the bronze medal, and MoneyToday reported that Maika Yarai, who had finished 5th, also moved up to 4th place.
Umeno had finished 4th at the time, with a time of 3 hours, 34 minutes, and 59 seconds, but became a medalist in the final standings. Conversely, the athlete who crossed the finish line first was excluded from the official results.
Reports said that Toksanbayeva expressed her gratitude for the support through her personal social media account and left a message to the effect that she would endure the difficult moment. This race will remain an example of how the official review afterward, rather than a single finish-line crossing, determined the medal recipients.
References
Tags #Women’sMarathonRaceWalk #MarathonRaceWalk #AsianGames #AichiNagoyaAsianGames #YasminaToksanbayeva #KazakhstanRaceWalk #ShoeRuleViolation #ShoeSoleRegulations #WorldAthletics #TrackAndFieldDisqualification #GoldMedalRescinded #SachikoUmeno #RaceWalkMedals