This is tough to watch.
After racing for close to 90 minutes around the streets of Rome, Spanish race walker Laura García-Caro entered the stadium feeling like a medal was in her grasp during the 20km race walk at the European Championships.
García-Caro seemed thrilled to claim a medal, smiling and waving with the Spanish flag around her shoulders as she came down the final straight.
But her look of joy turned to horror just 2 metres from the finish line as Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Olyanovska suddenly passed her.
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García-Caro did not react quickly enough to recover and crossed the line in fourth in shock.
“I was tired in the last kilometre and last metres, but I wanted to win this medal for my country so much,” Olyanovska said.
“Nowadays, there is a war in Ukraine. We train under very difficult conditions.
“They do not have electricity, there is no internet, no light, so I do not know if he saw me on the TV.”
Olympic champion Antonella Palmisano and Valentina Trapletti finished 1-2 in the event, after which Palmisano put a tiara on her head to celebrate before her home fans.
“I had been a bit sad because there’s little attention paid to race walking. But today I saw the fans really enthusiastic,” Palmisano said.
Laura García-Caro celebrates too early. AP
Meantime, former world champion Kristjan Ceh of Slovenia won the discus throw amid a world-class field.
Ceh’s throw reached 68.08 metres to put him ahead of Lukas Weisshaidinger of Austria (67.70) and Mykolas Alekna (67.48), the Lithuanian who broke the nearly 30-year-old world record in April.
Ceh won the world title in 2022 and took silver behind Sweden’s Daniel Stahl at last year’s worlds.
“I finally got my self-confidence back,” Ceh said after receiving a congratulatory kiss from his girlfriend, Estonian hammer thrower Anna Maria Orel. “Everybody was talking about Alekna. … He is the world record holder so everybody wants to beat him. I think it is going to be something big in Paris.”
With less than 50 days before the Paris Olympics, many athletes are using the Euros as a warmup, or a test rehearsal. Most don’t want to peak in Rome but are saving their best for Paris.
The moment she realises she’s not alone. AP
Stahl (66.84) finished fourth.
Alekna said he “felt tired after so many events.
“I need some rest,” Alekna added. “It is a lesson. I was not surprised by Kristjan’s performance, he is a good thrower and he deserves it.”
There was also an Italian gold in the 5,000, with Nadia Battocletti clocking a championship record 14:35.29.
Ireland won the 4×400 mixed relay for its first gold at Euros since since Sonia O’Sullivan swept the 5,000 and 10,000 in 1998.
In the women’s shot put, Jessica Schilder and Jorinde Van Klinken led a 1-2 for the Netherlands ahead of Yemisi Ogunleye of Germany.
The six-day championships end next Wednesday.