Alessia Zarbo collapses during a 10,000-meter race
Temperatures remain high at the women's 10,000 meters on Friday evening. A Frenchwoman pushes herself to exhaustion in front of her home crowd - and collapses on the track. She does not appear to need to be taken to the hospital.
French 10,000-meter runner Alessia Zarbo collapsed during the race at the Olympics. The 22-year-old had to be treated on the track and was taken away on a stretcher while the race was still in progress. According to reports, Zarbo did not need to be taken to the hospital and was feeling better.
The Frenchwoman collapsed exhausted at the 8,000-meter mark in the shocked atmosphere of the Stade de France and lay gasping on the blue track. The athlete from near Nice was treated by a doctor from the French federation on the spot as the race entered its final phase.
The race was won by world record holder Beatrice Chebet. Four days after her triumph over 5,000 meters, the Kenyan made it a double with her final sprint in 30:43.25. Silver went to the Italian Nadia Battocletti (30:43.55).
Rai Benjamin wins the showdown
As in the 5,000 meters, there was only bronze left for Tokyo Olympic champion Sifan Hassan from the Netherlands (30:44.12). The 31-year-old now has her last chance for gold in the marathon on Sunday. Konstanze Klosterhalfen did not qualify for Paris, so there was no German runner in the race.
Later in the evening, there was a showdown over 400 meters. Rai Benjamin dethroned world record holder Karsten Warholm. The American stormed to his first gold medal in a spectacular finish in 46.46 seconds, with the Norwegian Tokyo Olympic champion Warholm finishing in 47.06 seconds for silver. Bronze went to Brazilian former world champion Alison dos Santos (47.26).
Benjamin celebrated his first victory over Warholm in a big race. The hurdles "Viking" could only keep up until just before the entrance to the home straight, but then had to let the 27-year-old go. The world record of 45.94 seconds, set by Warholm in his gold run three years ago in Japan, was not under threat. German runners Joshua Abuaku and Emil Agyekum were eliminated in the semifinals, while Constantin Preis was eliminated in the preliminary round.
The Olympic Games 2024 in Paris is eagerly anticipated by athletes worldwide, with the women's 10,000 meters event expected to be a thrilling spectacle. Despite the intense competition, a French athlete collapses during the race, causing concern in the crowd, but fortunately, she recovers quickly and does not require hospitalization.
