The 800 metres is thought to be one of many hardest occasions on the observe. It’s one of many few occasions the place you push your physique to the max, giving every thing you’ve bought within the remaining 100 metres. As if coping with lactic wasn’t onerous sufficient, a collegiate 800m runner competing on the Robert Platt Invitational in Houston on Saturday was on his option to a private finest when he was tripped up by a pole vault pole within the remaining 50 metres.
It is advisable to see this to imagine it. The College of Texas-San Antonio (UTSA) athlete, who was main the race, virtually had victory wrapped up, till he was all of a sudden struck by a pole vaulter whose pole missed the pit, knocking him down and wrecking his race.
The pole worn out the lead runner and almost snagged the second runner, who was from the College of Texas-Arlington. Nonetheless, the second runner skillfully danced out of hurt’s approach, transferring to the within of the observe to keep away from each the pole and the falling athlete in entrance of him. Regardless of being knocked down, the UTSA-athlete was in a position to rise up and end the race in 1:58.92.
As an 800m runner, that is the very last thing you’d count on to occur on the finish of a race, nevertheless it isn’t the primary time one thing like this has occurred. On the 2017 Irish College Indoor Championships, an 800m runner bought snarled within the pole-vault’s warmup bungee twine within the remaining 50 metres.
In each instances, these incidents happen as soon as in a blue moon. Nonetheless, they usually occur when the pole vault space is located too near the observe, resulting in people being within the unsuitable place on the unsuitable time. That is much less of a priority at outside observe occasions, the place the pole vault has more room to function inside the area of a 400m observe.
