Advertisement
keep on running

Two runners put medal hopes on hold to help each other finish race after ugly fall

Both women were given exemptions to advance to the semi-finals as a result of the fall.

1 NBC NBC

IN THE MIDST of allegations of corruption in Rio, two Olympic runners are being commended for putting sportsmanship ahead of their medal dreams.

Middle-distance runners Abbey D’Agostino of the United States and Nikki Hamblin of New Zealand both took hard falls on the track in Rio during a preliminary heat in the women’s 5,000 meters yesterday morning.

But what happened after their falls has drawn praise from all over, as both D’Agostino and Hamblin helped each other up, made sure each was ok, and then took to finish their races, even though both looked hurt and finished much later than the rest of the field.

The women are being commended for an excellent display of sportsmanship on both sides, and have been given exemptions because of the fall, which allows them to carry on to the semi-finals.

The fall happened early in the heat, as D’Agostino appeared to clip Hamblin with her spikes:

2 NBC NBC

Both runners hit the track hard:

3 NBC NBC

D’Agostino got up first, but rather than immediately taking off she waited to make sure that Hamblin was ok:

4

When Hamblin got back up, they both started to run. Both were visibly upset about what had happened:

5 NBC NBC

Then, D’Agostino’s knee quickly started to bother her:

6 NBC NBC

When D’Agostino hit the track again, this time it was Hamblin who waited, making sure D’Agostino was ok to continue:

7 NBC NBC

Finally, they both got on their way. Even though they’d been lapped by the field, both runners gutted it out to cross the finish line.

Here’s D’Agostino at the finish:

8 NBC NBC

Afterwards, she was greeted by Hamblin, and the two shared a nice moment:

9 NBC NBC

Both runners were ultimately given exemptions that allowed them to advance, as exiting as a result of a nasty fall would be far too cruel. Hopefully their semi-final races will be a little bit smoother.

The42 is on Snapchat! Tap the button below on your phone to add!

Boxing authorities reject Conlan’s ‘cheats’ claims, as IABA call for review of judging process

‘One of the greatest Irish performances’ – Stunning Thomas Barr reaches 400m hurdles final

Published with permission from
Business Insider
Your Voice
Readers Comments
2
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.