An Australian Paralympian was disqualified and stripped of his bronze medal for breaking a “ground rules” during a race on Saturday, inches from the finish line.
Jarryd Clifford, who is legally blind, was “disappointed” after officials decided he and his guide Matt Clarke were not tethered when they crossed the finish line in the men's T13 5,000m final.
Runners and guides must hold onto their tethers, which are 20-inch-long bands with handles on each end, until the end of the race.
“I was not only devastated for myself, I was devastated for them (his guides),” Clifford told reporters after the race. Go to nine.com.au. “They give everything for me.”
Clifford had two guides throughout the race: Tim Logan ran the first half of the 5,000m, and Clark joined him for the second half.
“… This is awful. I don't know why I was disqualified, but I'm sure there's something going on and it's disturbing,” Clifford said before the official decision was announced.
Athletics Australia said it would appeal the ruling, but officials said there were no grounds for an appeal.
After the race, an emotional Clifford hugged his family.
“I went to see my mom, my dad and my girlfriend and I broke down in tears,” Clifford said. According to Yahoo Sports“I had a bit of a cry on the side of the track. If you consider a reaction to a result as sadness, then I also had my moments of sadness. I was a bit numb on the track. I still am a bit numb… I'm pretty devastated, to be honest. We went in for the gold, to be honest.”
Australia's Channel 9 commentator David Calvert pointed out Clifford's error during a broadcast on Saturday.
“You have to hold the tether to the line and it's clear that's not in either guy's hands,” Calvert said. Sydney Morning Herald. “In fact, it looks like Jarryd let it go right before the line.”
Clifford shared his thoughts about the race on social media, acknowledging he made a “serious mistake.”
“I made a serious mistake today and I'm really disappointed. The cardinal rule when leading a race is to stay in the lead at all times and it's a shock that I lost my mind in the last few metres,” Clifford said, looking ahead to his next race.
“I still have a lot to work on and I promise to give it my all in the 1500m on Tuesday,” he added.
Clifford, who won two silver medals and one bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, has been diagnosed with Best's disease, a rare vision disorder.
He was the only guided runner in the race.
“Having a guide allows me to concentrate on the ride,” Clifford explained. “For me, a guide is not a need, it's a want. The pros usually outweigh the cons.”
“Having two guides means we're supposed to be fresher,” he added. “Today's last lap was probably a bad day for the guides.
“But these kids are my best friends,” Clifford said.
T13 is the classification used in Paralympic track events for athletes who are visually impaired.
Paralympic athletes' visual fields are limited to a radius of less than 20 degrees, and they are only capable of discerning objects the size of a tennis ball up to five metres away.” According to LEXI.
The bronze medal went to Anton Kuriatin of Russia.
Yassine Oudadi El Attabey of Spain won in 15 minutes 50.64 seconds.
