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Topics: Sport, Spain, World News, Virginia, US News
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An athlete has been disqualified after he appeared to push his competitor who fell to the ground after passing the finish line.
On Sunday (March 9), Guillermo Sanchez was crowned the winner of the 1,500m race at the Spanish Under-20 Indoor Championships in Salamanca.
The 18-year-old sprinter bagged the win with a chip time of 3:54:55.
But as he crossed the line and raised his hands in celebration, two other runners, Daniel Lopez and Mario Palencia, also both 18, were coming up quickly behind him.
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In the milliseconds between them, second-place contender Lopez appeared to alter his path to the right of the track, either to block Palencia behind him or to avoid Sanchez's victory.
But Palencia allegedly pushed his competitor just centimetres before crossing the finish line, with video footage of the incident showing the athlete subsequently loosing his balance and falling to the ground.
Now, according to Spanish news outlet, Marca, Palencia was disqualified from the race for unsportsmanlike conduct and received a red card under article RT7.1.
The incident came as the pair reportedly clashed during the race and in the last lap.
The news also comes as a similar incident between two competitors appeared to take place at a 4x200 meter relay race at Liberty University, Lynchburg, in the US on March 7.
Brookville High School runner Kaelen Tucker suffered a concussion as well as a potential skull fracture after she was struck by a baton in the back of the head while running the second leg.
The footage shows Tucker was hit with a baton being held by another competitor, Alaila Everett, of I.C. Norcom High School.
After striking her head, the video shows Tucker ran off the pitch before falling to the floor.
The Virginian high schooler told WSET ABC 13: "So, on the back curve, I kind of got cut off, and I tried to pass her the first time, so I let her go ahead... So, as we were coming up in the middle of the curve, we were bumping arms a lot. So, I got a little more on the outside of the curve to go around her.
"When I finally pushed through to get in front of her, that’s when she hit me in the head with the baton."
The footage has since gone viral on social media, with many criticizing Everett and calling for her to be banned from the sport.
However, in a tearful interview, the younger sprinter has insisted it was not intentional.
"They are going off on one angle," she stressed.
Telling her version of events she said: “After a couple times of hitting her with my baton, I got stuck behind her back like this and it rolled up her back. I lost my balance, and when I pumped my arms again, she got hit. I know my intentions and I would never hit somebody on purpose."
Tucker's family have since served the family with court papers for a protective order while judges at the event disqualified Norcom High School for Everett's 'contact interference.'