A high school track and field star in California is “in shock” after being stripped of her state championship over a celebration this past weekend.
North Salinas High School’s Clara Adams was disqualified by officials after winning the 400-metre event on Saturday for using a fire extinguisher while paying homage to U.S. Olympic hero Maurice Greene.
After the sophomore crossed the finish line to win the race being held at Buchanan High in Clovis, Adams ran over to her father to celebrate.
David Adams handed his daughter a fire extinguisher, who then — away from her competitors — sprayed the device on her shoes as if they were on fire.
“I told Clara, ‘You’re on fire,’” he told the Mercury News. “She did not do it in front of her opponents. She wasn’t disrespecting anyone.”
California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) officials at the meet didn’t see it that way, immediately disqualifying Adams and saying the celebration was unsportsmanlike.
“I don’t know what’s going through my mind right now,” Clara said.
“I’m disappointed and I feel robbed. I am in shock. They (officials) yelled at me and told me, ‘We’re not letting you on the podium.’ They took my moment away from me.”
It wasn’t just that moment of victory, either. Because the disqualification was for an unsportsmanlike act, Adams was not allowed to compete in the 200-metre race at the meet — which she was one of the favourites to win.
“That was our moment of celebration and CIF officials made it about them,” David Adams told local NBC affiliate KSBW. “The crowd went crazy, they loved it, the CIF booth went crazy, they loved it. But those few guys in those jackets took offence to it, didn’t like it and made a decision based off emotions.”
After the incident went viral, none other than Greene himself weighed in, saying that Adams’ win should be reinstated.
“When I heard, cause it happened, and then people just started calling me, ‘This girl who just ran the 400 did your celebration’, I was like huh? What?” Greene told KSBW.
“If it was away from everyone and not interfering with anyone, I would say reinstate her,” the sprinting icon said.
Greene, who won gold in the 100-metre sprint and 4×100-metre relay at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, performed the iconic celebration during an event in 2004. After winning his sprint, Greene took off both shoes while a friend came onto the track and sprayed them down with a fire extinguisher as Greene hopped around.
According to KSBW, there have not been any other instances of disqualification for unsportsmanlike conduct in the past 20 years.
And according to CIF’s code of conduct, athletes are expected to “be a good sport, teach and model class, be gracious in victory and accept defeat with dignity; encourage student-athletes to give fallen opponents a hand, compliment extraordinary performance, and show sincere respect in pre- and post-game rituals.”