Athlete disqualified from 1500m race for shameful act towards opponent just centimetres from finish line
A Spanish athlete was clearly devastated when he realised that sometimes slow and steady doesn't always win the race after producing a shocking act which saw him disqualified.
It hasn't been a good few weeks in the world of athletics, with one young woman in America in the headlines after appearing to hit her opponent in the head with a baton.
Normally we see athletes disqualified for pretty minor incidents such as a false start, as we saw last summer when Welsh sprinter Jeremiah Azu's Olympic dreams were dashed in the 100m.
But just because we don't see as many bust-ups in an individual sport like running as we do in team sports such as football and ice hockey, doesn't mean they never happen.
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Over in Salamanca, Spain, Mario Palencia was slapped with a red card (who knew you could get a red card in athletics?) after a pretty inexcusable act just a few centimetres from the finish line.
Despite crossing the line in third, which certainly isn't a bad spot to finish in, not-so-super Mario clearly wasn't happy with the lad who pipped him to second spot.
The youngster was competing in the Under-20 Indoor Track Championships and reportedly clashed a number of times with Daniel López during the 1,500m race.
At one point, López is said to have moved across his path after changing direction - and it's safe to say this didn't go down well with the athlete.
And after López secured silver, Palencia gave him a big shove over the line which saw him tumble onto the track, while Palencia tumbled out of the championships.
The 18-year-old was immediately disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct according to Spanish publication Marca. The card was filed under article RT7.1.
It's unclear whether he'll be invited back following the incident.
Well done to Guillermo Sánchez, the winner of the race not just because he was far ahead in first (with a time of 3:54.55), but also because he avoided all of the drama that was happening behind him. King.
Palencia might want to take up playing Sunday league football if this video does have a long-term impact on his running career, as you're probably more likely to get away with a little push there than in a national championship being streamed live on La Liga TV.
James Moorhouse