UPDATED: 'Biggest Loser' issues a marathon apology for misleading viewers

It was an inspiring finish to this week's two-part episode of NBC's "The Biggest Loser": Dane, who lost 100 pounds in just eight weeks before being eliminated from the weight-loss competition, is seen running a marathon alongside his fit-and-trim wife and crossing the finish line in what appears to be an eye-popping time of three hours and 53 minutes.

Only it didn't happen. Dane got himself an assist to the finish line courtesy of a field producer. UPDATED: Here's the statement Dane released late Friday:

"I always intended to run the full marathon. At the 17th mile, I knew I would not make it in time to cross the finish line before it closed at 6 hours, so I then received a ride from the field producer, who wanted to show me crossing the finish line. He drove me for three miles, and then I ran the rest of the way. After all the filming was done I went back and finished the last 3 miles later that day with my wife and cousin Blaine. I apologize for stating that I ran the entire marathon before I actually ran the whole 26 miles. I am proud of the feat of just running 26 miles in one day."

Here's the statement issued earlier in the day by Reveille, one of the show's producers:

As the Executive Producers of The Biggest Loser we would like to make an official apology and set the record straight with regards to the claim in last nights episode that Dane completed a marathon in Arizona.

After seeing on various online blogs that this information may be inaccurate we investigated the claim and found that Dane had not indeed completed the marathon unaided. From our internal investigation we learned that Dane ran the first 17 miles before receiving a ride from the field producer for 3 miles before rejoining the race at the 20 mile mark whereupon he completed the race.

We are incredibly proud of Dane for running 23 miles and losing over 130 lbs on his weight loss journey so far and wish him luck as he continues his new healthy lifestyle. We have also taken the necessary action to ensure that there is no future misrepresentations and sincerely apologize for misleading our loyal viewers and it was certainly not our intent but an unwitting mistake.

We hope they will continue to be inspired and motivated by all of our contestants and follow them as they continue to change their lives.

Here's NBC's statement:

In the final segment of last night's episode of “The Biggest Loser,” which updated viewers on the status of an eliminated contestant, the former contestant was shown running a marathon in his home state of Arizona. NBC today learned that the contestant did not, in fact, run the entire marathon as depicted in the segment. Because the segment as aired was contrary to NBC policy, we are working with the program producers to determine how this occurred, and to ensure that corrective action is taken.

Sources close to the production said this is what happened:

Dane was eliminated on Thursday night’s show, kicked off by fellow contestants who believed –— rightly — that he was one of the front-runners to win the $250,000 prize that will be handed out to the person who loses the largest percentage of his or her body weight. As is customary, the epilogue to the elimination is a segment in which the cameras catch up with the contestant today, to see whether the weight loss is continuing at home.

Dane’s epilogue was, seemingly, one of the most inspirational in recent memory when it was announced that he’d been training for and had completed a marathon.

But it turns out that an overeager field producer who was following Dane on race day realized that "The Biggest Loser" contestant would not finish the marathon by the six-hour cutoff time, which in turn meant that the producer would not get the footage of Dane crossing the finish line in personal victory. So the field producer picked Dane up in a vehicle and then dropped him a few miles closer to the finish. While the finish time in the background appeared to be 3:53, it was actually 5:53 — the descrepancy being caused by some bum lightbulbs on the time clock that made the 5 appear to be a 3, the source said.

The source also said Dane was so upset that he accepted the ride and didn't run the full distance that he went back later in the day — with his cousin Blaine, who was also with him on the show — and ran the missing miles so that he could say he did indeed run 26.2 miles.

The source said the fabrication came to NBC's attention after that apparent sub-four-hour finish time — an enviable pace for even an experienced runner — set off alarm bells in many corners, including among other runners in the marathon, and the blogosphere began buzzing about whether such a pace was possible for a big guy like Dane. (Kudos to TVBarn.com, which did a great job of covering the unfolding story with the tart headline, "The Biggest Loser" — or is that "Biggest Liar"? — fabricates account of contestant finishing marathon).

The traditional morning-after conference call with the week's eliminated contestant — in this case, Dane — was abruptly canceled.

NBC has rescheduled the conference call for Monday.

Another source close to "The Biggest Loser" said there was a feeling of sadness because the show "relies on its integrity" in a world where reality programming is often suspect, and this person hoped this didn't overshadow Dane's accomplishments. "Dane is such a nice guy," the source said.

It was unclear what, if anything, will happen to the field producer.

In the meantime, what do you think about this development? Does this hurt the show's credibility?

— Rene Lynch

Photo credit: NBC Universal

Comments

[Kate Beall]

I hate reality shows and refuse to watch them for this very reason- they are anything BUT
reality. The show's producers constantly manufacture the desired outcome any way they
see fit. It's a real shame that they are replacing quality programs and I can only hope that
the public will finally wake up to reality...

[Jesse]

As a runner of marathons in the 4 hour range Dane finished in, I don't have much of a problem with him getting the assist from the producer to make sure they showed him finishing the race. He ran 23 out of 26 miles which I would be willing to bet is better than what 95% of the people that watch this show could do. It still is pretty darn impressive either way especially when you consider where he came from and how big he was.

What I have a problem with is the show stating that he finished the race in under 4 hours. That kind of time is on par with people that have had serious dedication for years of running and training for races like this. Saying he ran a 26 mile race when he only was able to do 23 is a small exaggeration. Saying he ran the race 2 hours faster than he really did is a GROSS exaggeration and really makes me question a lot of what is said on the show.

[Runner]

From reading some of these posts, it sounds like some folks "condone" lying.
FACT: Dane LIED that he said he did a full marathon before actually completing it. (Correct: running 26.2 miles in several days does NOT count as a marathon).
FACT: Biggest Loser show said Dane ran a marathon but the show LIED.
FACT: Dane & the show LIED that Dane did a full marathon.

That's the main reason folks started these comments.
FACT: No one is disputing how well he's been losing the weight....he depicts great accomplishments.
FACT: They are both LIARS!!!!!!!!!
In my eyes, this loses credibility to the show.

[Runner]

FACT: the epilogue CLEARLY depicted Dane finished a marathon by 3:53. BL = LIAR
Yes, definitely would have been better to finish even in dark time. Normally after the "6-hr cuttoff" the course closes and RUNNERS ARE ON THEIR OWN WITH NO OFFICIALS SUPPORTING THEM. SO WHAT....FINISH IT IN THE DARK THEN. This would have been CREDIBLE!!!

[CMPepper]

He was wrong to do that. It is a shame after his hard work and accomplishments he now has to feel shame. What he and the field producer did not need to lie like that. I lost a lot of respect during the last season with Heba and Vicky and what they were allowed to get away with. I thought this season had a lot better contestants. I watch this show for inspiration and I find it hard to be inspired by those who lie. Sad

[Thomas Semesky]

I thnk in the near future, we are going to see a big scandal with these so called reality shows that will rival the game show scandals of the 50's. I can't help but question some of the outcomes on the shows that I have watched.

As for those supporting this guys actions. You need to come back to the real world. IT WAS FRAUD! IT WAS WRONG!

[Harry Cook]

When we lose our integrity we have lost the most important thing we have in life. "Dane" needs to return his marathon medal. Having run over 50 marathons and ultramarathons I know full well what your body feels at 20 miles and then at 26.2 miles as you "really" finish a full marathon. If Dane had not been picked up we and Dane will never know whether he could have finished the full 26.2 miles at one time within the cut-off time. To have a significant rest break in the 26.2 miles and only to come back later in the day and make up the miles does in no way means Dane ran a true "Marathon". It is sad that Dane does not have enough integrity to know he has not run a "marathon".

[Postpositivist]

Running 23 miles is an accomplishment to be proud of, but the marathon has a symbolic meaning that transcends the physical distance. The big problem is that Dane didn't complete the race but won't return the medal. I used to be a marathoner and I'm flummoxed that Dane thinks what he did is the same as actually completing. It's disgraceful and tends to demean his other accomplishments. What is the point of keeping a medal that one didn't truly earn. If he plans on running more marathons, then he doesn't really need a meaningless medal.

[Loufca]

Even if he would have finished in 7 hours (or even longer), but completed the whole marathon it would have been highly commendable. There was a sumo wrestler who ran last years LA marathon and it took him over 9 hours. I applauded him for completing it.

I ran my first marathon at 55, have run a few since and several 1/2 marathons. It's always great to see someone like this guy who completes a marathon no matter how long it takes. But now, he has lost all of his credibility.

The saying for first time marathoners is "it's not about your time, it's about finishing".

The field producer should be fired for really bad jjudgment.

[Stephanie]

Ok. So if this marathon was part of the actual competition, I would be livid. But it's not. It's a short "where are they now?" segment. It has nothing to do with the money he lost. Yes, it's misleading. But reality tv does this all the time to make their pieces more interesting. It would not be a good shot if it was Dane not finishing. Remember when they edited the Jillian argument with the producers to look like a fight between Ali/Jillian? It's TV!!! It's still inspirational, it's still showing people that being healthy is a great choice.

It's not "fraud"...it's TV. If you believe everything you see on reality tv, there's something wrong with you. You just have to understand the mechanism. It's for good shots.

Dane did amazing, I'm proud of him. Maybe he shouldn't say he "completed a marathon" but he can certainly say he "ran in" one. Good for him.

End of story.

[Linda Lee Fagan]

It is so easy too make people heavier than they really are, too the point there is alot of none believers and I'm one of them. It is always selling a product or show and it comes down too the mighty $$$$$$ only.

[Ted]

Truly shameful actions on Dane's part and proof that he won't stick with it. Training is about challenging one's self and not about making up stories about pseudo-successes.

[Stampp]

The sad thing is the most inspirational meoment would have been Dane crossing the finish line with no one there. It would have shown Dane's tenacity and illustrated his weight loss journey was more about achieving a goal, not the speed at which the goal is achieved.

[minimama]

Wouldn't the producer have gotten a better ending by showing Blaine cross the finish line with the clock turned off, maybe a few people hanging around to show that he achieved a personal goal of running the 26 miles. It would've been a great accomplishment if it wasn't tarnished by the ride. Who cares how long it took him???? I wonder if Blane had the option of continuing on foot or if the producer told him he had get a ride to finish to get that last shot. I'll still watch because it is an inspirational show. I'm just glad Joelle is long gone!!!!

[Doug B]

People saying this is overblown likely have similar ethics challenges. They all participated in a lie. Is that now ok?

[Trey]

Wow......all this deceit!!! That's why his cheating butt got booted....KARMA!!!!

[Toelle]

The true inspirations are the thousands that truely finished the marathon. I would like to know if Dane also took a finisher medal?

[Jay Eicholtz]

I am dissapointed the way the weigh in's keep changing. The show seems like it is picking who they want to win. Set up rules at the beginning of the Season not mid stream. I love the show. It is an inspiration

[tim]

If this marathon was faked, I wonder if the weight loss is really by the week? Or is the entire show a rigged scale, to make the trainers and results appear incredible.

[K]

The fact that the comments on here indicate that lying about running the marathon and the time is "ok" because he did something millions will never achieve just demonstrates a total lack of ethical standards. Do you want to know why the country is in such a mess? Because lying and cheating are "ok." What a disgrace!

When this guys cousin was voted off the show they showed him training for a triathlon. In the footage he stated that he was training for an "IRONMAN" and then gave the distances of the race. I was confused because those distances were definitely not an Ironman. It turns out that he said he was training for a half ironman but NBC cut the footage and changed it to Ironman. Anyone who does triathlon knows it was wrong but NBC knows that the majority of the population have no idea what the distances are for Ironman.

Don't think the marathon lies were the only misrepresentation by NBC.