NEW DELHI: In a delightful display of team spirit, Belgium shot put and hammer throw champion Jolien Boumkwo ran a 100 metres hurdles race to save her team from disqualification.
Stepping outside her event, a smiling Boumkwo was seen carefully attempting each hurdle after two hurdlers in the Belgian team had to pull out due to injury. The video of Boumkwo's efforts has gone viral on social media.
Had no Belgian athlete competed in the event, the team would have been disqualified.
The 29-year-old finished the race without knocking any of the hurdles down in 32.81 seconds, 19 seconds after Spanish sprinter Teresa Errandonea who won with 13.22.
Boumkwo was applauded by the audience and congratulated by her rivals as she earned two points for the team.
The points could be crucial as the bottom three countries will be relegated from Division 1.
(With inputs from Reuters)
