It may have seemed like a good idea at the time but Mahiedine
Mekhissi-Benabbad's bizarre celebration in the home straight of the
men's 3,000m steeeplechase at the European championships was to cost him
dear.Approaching the final
barrier, the Frenchman had the race and gold medal in the bag, having a
enough time in hand to showboat by stripping off his running vest before
putting it into his mouth and waving to the crowd.Fans in the Letzigrund
Stadium in Zurich jeered as he crossed the finishing line clear of his
teammate Yoann Kowal in eight minutes 25.30 seconds -- his third
straight victory in the event at the championships after 2010 and 2012.
The 29-year-old had the presence of mind to put his top back after the finish, but the damage was done.
He was initially shown a
yellow card as a warning by an official, but an appeal by Spain on
behalf of fourth placed athlete Angel Mullera led to his
disqualification.His French team lodged a
counter-protest but that was rejected, with Mekhissi-Benabbad
disqualified under IAAF competition rules 143.1, 143.7.Mullera was promoted to the bronze as result of the ruling."I find that the protest
lodged by the Spaniards is anti fair-play," Ghani Yalouzsa, the
technical director of the French athletics federation, was quoted by
AFP.But the double Olympic
silver medalist is no stranger to controversy. After winning his 2012
Euro gold in Helsinki he was criticized for shoving a mascot who offered
him a gift.The year before,
Mekhissi-Benabbad was involved in a punch-up with French teammate Mehdi
Baala at the 2011 Monaco Diamond League meeting, trading blows while
they were still on the track and earning a five-month suspension from
their federation.
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