A Squamish athlete is under investigation by Canada’s main triathlon governing body for alleged cheating.
Triathlon Canada, in cooperation with Triathlon British Columbia, is in the midst of a full investigation focused on allegations of misconduct by Julie Miller in an Ironman race in Whistler last July, Triathlon Canada spokesperson Chris Dornan said.
Miller was already disqualified by the independent Ironman organization from her original first-place posting for the women’s 40 to 44 division at the event on July 26. The win would have sent Miller to the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii this month.
At the time, Ironman sent a statement to The Squamish Chief. “Based on the combination of photographs and timing data, it was determined Julie Miller did not complete the entire run course of Ironman Canada and was therefore disqualified.”
The Triathlon Canada investigation is separate from Ironman’s ruling, Dornan said.
As the governing body of triathlons in the country, Triathlon Canada has strong policies in place against misconduct and will complete a thorough review of the situation with all parties involved, the organization stated in a news release.
“In fairness to all those involved in the situation, Triathlon Canada will be keeping all aspects of the investigation confidential until all due diligence has been performed,” the news release noted.
Once the investigation is complete, the organization will decide a course of action, Dornan said.
“They haven’t decided what the outcome is,” he reiterated.
Miller told The Squamish Chief that it was news to her that she is being investigated by Triathlon Canada.
“They have never contacted me,” she said, noting Ironman was the only organization to get in touch with her.
Dornan said Triathlon Canada sent Miller a letter. “A letter was sent to the athlete on Sept. 24 advising her of the investigation which gives her 15 days to respond to the committee. Once the letter is received (or 15 days lapses), the committee will sit to meet and complete the review.”
Miller said there are a lot of untruths circulating around, and some other races have stood by her results. She said she is not going to persuade those against her that she didn’t cheat.
“I am just trying to move forward,” Miller said.
Days after her 2015 Ironman Whistler disqualification, Miller was stripped of her gold in the 2014 Subaru Vancouver Triathlon (SVT) gold in her division. She was originally 28th overall at the SVT, clocking in at 4:46:23. She was ranked as the fifth fastest female at the race, which featured 73 other women.
Miller competed as a member of Team Canada in the 2015 International Triathlon Union World Championships in Sweden in June, placing 39th.
The previous year, at the 2014 World Championships in Weihai, China, she brought a gold medal home in her division.
To request donations to attend the events, Miller had a ‘Help Send Julie to World Championships’ website up. People donated 147,001 Air Miles to get her to the races.
