Almost 250 runners in a half marathon were caught cheating when traffic cameras captured them taking shortcuts through bushes.

Organisers of the race in Shenzhen, China, also discovered 18 runners wearing fake bibs and three runners they described as "imposters".

All who cheated are now facing bans.

Footage captured by Shenzhen police traffic cameras showed runners cutting through bushes to an adjacent carriageway, instead of continuing along the road and making a U‑turn.

The annual race in China's fourth largest city typically attracts about 16,000 runners.

[Source:BBC News]