US blasted for protest
21/08/2008 2:08 PM
The United States has been accused of petty behaviour following the two disqualifications in the men's 200 metres final in Beijing.
While there was no doubt about the winner, Usain Bolt breaking his second world record in five days to claim the sprint double, the battle for the minor medals turned into a farce.
Firstly American Wallace Spearmon was disqualified for running out of his lane and denied bronze, team-mate Shawn Crawford being promoted to third.
But then officials upheld a protest from the US team that second-placed Churandy Martina of the Dutch Antilles had also stepped out of his lane.
That bumped Crawford into silver and team-mate Walter Dix, the 100m bronze medallist, up to third.
Omayra Leeflang, the minister of sport for the Dutch Antilles, was furious that the American team protested against Martina.
"It's not in the spirit of the Olympics," he said. "It's a pity for a big country like the US to make such a small statement."