Sun Yuanyuan Dropped by Brooks After Cycling During Berlin Marathon

What changed

Chinese fitness influencer Sun Yuanyuan, known as Abeeeer, admitted riding a bicycle between the 35km and 40km marks of the September Berlin Marathon after claiming a personal best.

Brooks ended its sponsorship deal with her, and marathon organisers disqualified her finish time. Sun, who has 520,000 followers on Rednote, apologised and said she had deliberately concealed what happened.

Why it matters

This was not just a bad race result. Sun’s public identity was tied to performance, and the bicycle turned a claimed personal best into a credibility problem that reached her sponsor and the event itself.

The episode also shows why split times and public fitness records matter when online audiences turn personal achievements into proof. The Official Marathon Time Integrity Unit highlighted the gap between Sun’s recorded segments, while posting an image that appeared to show her on a bicycle. Its Instagram bio describes the account as satire, so the image and analysis sit alongside Sun’s own admission rather than replacing it.

Brooks’ decision makes the commercial consequence clear: for a fitness influencer, a performance claim can carry obligations beyond the finish line. Further sanctions from the Berlin Marathon remain uncertain.