Key details in case of athlete who hit opponent with baton as victim's family 'plan to take action'

Two high school athletes have hit the headlines after one hit her opponent with a baton during a race - here's all the details so far.

I.C. Norcom High School student Alaila Everett claims that the violent action was a result of 'losing her balance' during the race, while victim Kaelen Tucker's mother claimed that the crowd 'gasped' when her daughter was struck.

Alternative footage has since been released, showing the incident from a different angle after Everett claimed that it only looked bad from the first angle, which caused the moment to go viral.

Tucker, who was representing Brookville High School in the second leg of the race, and her family, have reportedly called for a protective order to be placed.

What happened?

Everett has experienced a lot of backlash on social media after becoming involved in a sport row with Everett, after the two competed in the 4x200m relay final at the Virginia High School League (VHSL) Class 3 State Indoor Championships on Tuesday 4 March.

Footage shows Everett in second place going out of a bend, as Tucker passes her, before the former looks to whack her opponent on the head, which left her with a concussion and a possible skull fracture.

Tucker immediately ran off the track and fell over, holding her head as she was tended to by medics.

While Everett claimed that the incident looked worse from 'one angle' of a 'nine second video', the powerful strike could also be seen from an angle behind the runners, which you can view below.

An alternative angle shows the runner holding her arm back before hitting Tucker (WAVY TV 10)

Tucker speaks out

Tucker and her mother, Tamarro carried out an interview with WSET ABC 13 last week on Friday (7 March), as the teenage athlete recalled overtaking Everett.

"I knew when I got fully on the curve that I was just going to have to push through past her. 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," she claimed.

Tamarro added that extended family had travelled to see her daughter compete, and they 'gasped' when she was hit, adding: "When I saw her go down, all I could do is run out of the bleachers. I just knew I had to get to her."

She added that her daughter, a junior in high school, was 'hysterical', and revealed that judges had disqualified the Norcom team for 'contact interference', though she heard nothing from Everett or her school's coaches since.

Everett defends herself

Everett claims that she didn't intend to cause any harm, explaining her side of things to WAVYTV10.

"After a couple times of hitting her with my baton, I got stuck behind her back and [the baton] rolled up her back," she insisted, saying that she lost her balance and 'pumped' her arms, accidentally hitting her.

"I know my intentions and I would never hit somebody on purpose," she said in years.

Her parents even insisted that they 'knew 100 percent' that their daughter did not deliberately hit Tucker.

"Everybody has feelings, so you're physically hurt but you are not thinking about my mental, right? They are going off of one angle," she stated,

"They're assaulting my character, calling me ghetto, racist slurs, death threats, all of this, just because of a nine second video."

Everett has remained adamant that she didn't mean to cause any harm (WAVYTV 10)

Tucker's parents 'call for a protective order'

During her interview, Tucker's mother, Tamarro, claimed that they were waiting for an apology.

"No apologies, no coaches. No athlete. No anything. Even if it was an accident, which I don't believe it was... nothing," she said.

Everett claimed that she does want to apologise, but has been blocked on social media, as Tucker has not been 'receptive'.

Her parents even claimed that the Tucker family served them with court papers that called for a protective order to be put in place.

Tucker said of the incident: "Why did you do it, and why haven't you apologised?"

The VHSL said in a statement to LADbible: "The VHSL does not comment on individuals or disciplinary actions due to FERPA. The actions taken by the meet director to disqualify the runner were appropriate and correct.

"We thoroughly review every instance like this that involves player safety with the participating schools. The VHSL membership has always made it a priority to provide student-athletes with a safe environment for competition."