Runner comes last in 400m dash after his 'penis came out in the middle of the race'

An athlete has had a very unfortunate situation during a 400 metre race at the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships.

Italy's Alberto Nonino was competing in the event as part of the gruelling decathlon in Cali, Colombia.

While he started well in the middle lane, eagle-eyed viewers noticed he kept reaching down to his genital area.

Sports journalist David Sanchez de Castro said Nonino's penis kept falling out during the race.

"Perhaps I’ve explained myself poorly. His penis escaped out of the side of his shorts and he had to hold it because it wasn’t allowing him to run properly which is normal when your dongle is swinging from side to side," the reporter said.

He desperately tried to rectify the issue as his legs pounded the pavement, however it seems like nothing worked.

Despite being close to the front of the pack at the beginning of the race, he fell to the back by the time the running group rounded the final corner for the final sprint.

He finished last with a time of 51.57 seconds.

While it might not be the moment he hoped to attract headlines for, he's choosing to look on the bright side.

Nonino took to Instagram to send a message to his fans.

"I just want to talk to you a little bit about the rumpus there’s been on blogs and social media in general," he said in a Story.

"I’m conscious it was obviously an accident and I’d like to tell you I’m aware of the reaction and you don’t need to send me the links to the blogs out there.

"I’m trying to laugh about it now but immediately afterwards I felt terrible and I’m thankful to my friends and family for helping me get over what happened a few hours later."

The 18-year-old said it's lucky he's a resilient person as this type of incident could be devastating to someone else.

"The journalistic world worries about cases of bullying throughout Italy and around the world and then publishes these articles that for a more sensitive person could have done a lot of harm," he added, according to the Daily Star.

The decathlon is an event that requires athletes to compete in 10 separate events.

Over two days, competitors have to take part in a 100 metre sprint, long jump, shot-put, high jump, 400 metre run, 110 metre hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin, and 1,500 metres run.