Moment British 16-year-old sprinting star suffers DISASTER in 200m as he makes shocking mistake by easing off FAR too early to be overtaken by rivals at European Athletics U18 Championships
- Jake Odey-Jordan was on his way to victory in a blazing pace in the 200m
- But the British rising star stepped on the gas pedal and was embarrassingly overtaken
- Failure at the European Athletics U18 Championships is an important learning experience
A rising British sprinter suffered a hugely embarrassing accident at the European Under-18 Athletics Championships.
16-year-old Jake Odey-Jordan was the fastest in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, and came through the last corner with a big lead.
But inexplicably, he then let it slide, thinking the finish was closer than it actually was or that his lead was insurmountable.
His competitors then overtook him, leaving Odey-Jordan in fourth place with a time of 22.12 in the fourth heat.
His misjudgment saw him eliminated from the competition, which he was the heavy favorite to win.
Jake Odey-Jordan sped off the field before inexplicably slowing down
After slowing down, the British rising star was passed by three other sprinters
Odey-Jordan (pictured at another event) took full responsibility for his mistake and said he had felt good in the race
Odey-Jordan came forward when interviewed about his mistake, saying: “It’s okay. I mean, it’s my fault, so I can’t be sad about anything else but myself.
“It is what it is. It felt good. It wasn’t the fastest run, but it felt good. It could have been sub 21 for sure. But it’s all good.
“I’m just here, it’s my first race at this meet. I just tried to stand on my feet, nothing hurts or anything.”
On his Instagram profile, he repeated those words by posting comments he had received from others.
He posted this comment on his Instagram story after the embarrassing accident
Another repost suggested that it was some kind of divine will that he threw away the lead
One of the lyrics read, “Things really do happen for a reason. We live and learn. You’re still young.”
Another put it simply: “God said #notyet.”