Paris Olympics: Reason American Sprinter Freddie Crittenden Jogged in Men’s 110m Hurdles Race

• American sprinter Freddie Crittenden surprised many by casually jogging in the men's 100m hurdles at the Paris Olympics
• However, Crittenden intentionally did so for a reason, thanks to the newly introduced repechage round
• The 30-year-old finished fourth at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest in 13.16 seconds

American sprinter, Freddie Crittenden produced a bizarre performance during the heats of the men's 110m hurdles at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Crittenden completed the race and later clarified why he jogged through it despite being one of the favourites.

The 30-year-old was in the second heat in lane three, and once the gun went off, he inexplicably jogged instead of sprinting.

Commentators and fans were taken aback by his method. He finished last in his heat in 18.27 seconds as Senegal's Louis Francois Mendy won in 13.31 seconds, per Olympics.

Read also

Mikel Obi slams Nicolas Jackson after Chelsea's loss to Man City: video

Why Crittenden jogged in 110m hurdles

Crittenden later gave an explanation of why made that decision.

"I'm doing well. I had a little bit of aggravation in my adductor yesterday from my pre-meet. I went to the Team USA medical staff and doctors. They said it's not an injury. There's just a lack of activation in my muscle and that's causing pain and discomfort. The plan was to come out here and get through the round as long as I didn't get disqualified or hit any hurdles, the idea was to get through and I'll have another opportunity to run in the repechage round," via journalist Chris Chavez.

The repechage round, introduced for the first time in athletics at the Olympic Games, gives athletes who didn't automatically qualify a second chance to qualify for the semi-final, per USA Today.

Read also

South African sprinter narrates his experience at Paris 2024 Olympic Games

Therefore, Crittenden will have a chance to reach the semis when he runs in the repechage round, which is set for Tuesday, August 6.

The USA have dominated this event, but they last won a gold medal in 2012. Team USA's Grant Holloway, who is a three-time world champion, is the favourite to win.

Julien Alfred wins 100m gold

Briefly News also reported that Julien Alfred defeated Sha'Carri Richardson to win the gold medal in the women's 100m.

The Saint Lucia sprinter was the outside contender for the gold medal but surprised everyone by winning with a time of 10.72 seconds.

Source: TUKO.co.ke