Last week, Ethiopian steeplechaser Chala Beyo allegedly attacked his coach after learning that he will not be joining Ethiopia’s World Championships team next month in London. Ethiopian Athletics Federation spokesman Sileshi Bisrat told the Associated Press that the 21-year-old athlete punched coach Yohannes Mohammed in the face, injuring his left eye after it was announced that Beyo failed to qualify. Beyo, who represented Ethiopia in the 2016 Rio Olympics, has received a two-year suspension from all competition.
Beyo’s temper tantrum on the track isn’t the first time athletes have lost their cool. Here are some other memorable altercations:
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A Slap Midrace
In 2016 at the Bix 7, a seven-mile road race in Davenport, Iowa, the race’s jury of appeals issued that Kenya’s Silas Kipruto would remain the race’s champion, despite taking a swipe at his competitor, Ethiopia’s Teshome Mekonen, around the race’s five-mile mark.
Officials examined footage of the race, information given by both athletes involved after the race, and spoke with both athletes’ agents, before determining that they didn’t believe the incident affected the outcome of the race. Assistant race director Dan Breidinger told Runner’s World by phone that Kipruto maintained that his heels had been clipped by Mekonen several times before he turned around to retaliate.
French Runner Hits 14-Year-Old Mascot After Winning Race
Middle distance runner Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad lashed out at a 14-year-old girl in a mascot costume after winning the 3,000-meter steeplechase during the European Championships in 2012 in Helsinki. The runner, who took the silver in the steeplechase in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games and a bronze at the 2016 Games, left a lot of fans angry.
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High School Runners Fight During 4x400
Even when the stage is smaller, the competition is still fierce. In a video from 2013, two boys on opposing teams brawled at a meet at the Armory in New York during the 4 x 400 meters when they collided while merging into the first lane. In the video, the two runners make contact and then continue fighting in the infield, much to the confusion of their competitors, who continued the race.
Two French Runners Get in Brawl After Race in Monaco
Before Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad attacked the 14-year-old girl mascot, he got in a brawl with fellow French runner Mehdi Baala after the 1500 meters during the Diamond League meeting in 2011. The video shows the fight started after Baala head-butted Mekhissi-Benabbad, who then lashed out in response. The two athletes, who finished ninth and 11th, were both suspended.
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Cross-Country Collision
Distance Runner Clubs Competitor in Back of Head
At the 1992 World Junior Championships, Ethiopian runner Haile Gebrselassiepassed Josephat Machuka of Kenya in the last 100 meters of the 10,000-meter final. As Gebrselassie passed, Machuka punched him in the back of the head. Gebrselassie went on to win the race, while Machuka was disqualified.
