Organisers have revoked He Jie’s first place in the Beijing half marathon last weekend after an investigation confirmed that three other runners had slowed down to let him win the race. All four were disqualified and had to return their medals and prize money.

Online users in China had shared the video from the final moments of Sunday’s race out of suspicion that it had been rigged. The footage showed three African runners letting He, China’s top long-distance runner, move ahead of them shortly before they were about to reach the finish line.

The three runners deliberately reduced their pace, according to a statement from a committee set up to investigate the race. The special committee said that four runners had originally been hired as pacemakers by a sponsor but that the main organisers of the race had not known this. One of the pacemakers didn’t finish the race.

The statement did not acknowledge whether the race was rigged, but it did issue an apology. “We deeply and sincerely apologise to the world and to every part of society, that we did not discover and correct the mistakes in time at this race,” the committee said. Zhong’ao Lupao Sports Management Co, the main organiser, is losing its right to host the Beijing Half Marathon as punishment.

One of the runners had told BBC Sport Africa that they allowed He to win because they had been hired to serve as pacemakers and were not attempting to win the race. “I was not there to compete,” Willy Mnangat of Kenya was quoted as saying. “My job was to set the pace and help the guy win but unfortunately he did not achieve the target, which was to break the national record.”