August 7th 2024.
In a heart-stopping moment during the men's 3,000m steeplechase final, Ethiopian runner Lamecha Girma took a terrifying fall on the track at Stade de France in Paris. Girma, who holds the world record and won a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, was surging towards the front of the pack in Wednesday's race.
But as he attempted to clear the final barrier in the last lap, disaster struck. Girma's trailing leg clipped the hurdle, causing him to tumble head-first onto the ground. He lay motionless on the track as other athletes ran past and over him, the race continuing without him.
Medical staff quickly rushed onto the track to attend to the 23-year-old, placing him in a neck brace before carefully stretchering him off. As of now, there is no update on his condition following the fall. Meanwhile, the race went on, with Morocco's Soufiane El Bakkali successfully defending his Olympic title and taking home the gold.
In a surprising turn of events, American runner Kenneth Rooks made a strong surge through the field and claimed the silver medal, while Kenya's Abraham Kibiwot earned the bronze. Despite this disappointment, Girma's track record is nothing short of impressive. Along with his Olympic silver medal and current world record, he has also won three World Championship silvers in the past three editions.
It was just last year in Paris that Girma set the world record at a Diamond League meeting with a blistering time of 7:52.11. But unfortunately, his luck did not hold out on the same track this time around. We can only hope for a speedy recovery for this talented runner, and keep our fingers crossed for more record-breaking performances in the future.
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