The athlete celebrates before finishing and becomes a meme

An unusual scene marked the 20 km race walk event in European Athletics Championships In Rome, on Friday the 7th, Spanish runner Laura García Caro, who was about to cross the finish line in third place, slowed down to celebrate the supposed bronze medal. However, the Ukrainian runner Lyudmila Ulyanovska overtook her a few meters before the end of the race.

+ Read more news from Mundo em Oeste

Laura’s expression of joy quickly turned to sadness and disbelief. A television station recorded the scene, which spread on social media. With the Spanish flag already tied around her shoulders, Laura tried to regain her position, but Lyudmila’s overtaking, about 5 meters from the finish line, made that impossible.

It happened in the women’s 20 km race walk at the European Athletics Championships in Rome

Spain’s Laura Garcia Caro, who celebrated with the bronze medal and with the flag and everything else, “raised her foot.”

Ukrainian Ludmila Ulyanovsk took advantage of the opportunity and overtook the Spanish woman, leaving her in fourth place 😶 pic.twitter.com/r5NNmDq8PH

– Surto Olimpico (@SurtoOlimpico) June 7, 2024

Italian athletes dominate the race

Italians Antonella Palmisano and Valentina Trabletti won gold and silver medals, respectively. Laura Garcia Caro, who was already celebrating the bronze medal, was forced to settle for fourth place after a surprise overtake by Lyudmila Ulyanovska.

Read also:

The European Athletics Championships is an event organized by the European Athletics Federation. This event is held every two years in a city in Europe. The first edition took place in 1934.