High drama at the World Roller Speed Skating Championships in Antioquia this week as Colombian skater Alex Cujavante thought he had won it all, just to find out that celebrating too early would cost him dearly.
Cujavante was a top candidate to win the final of the 20,000 meters elimination for men (juniors), and seemed to be heading for victory in the final few meters.
The skater clearly thought so as well as he began celebrating with several meters to go.
South Korean Sang Cheol Lee noticed that the gap with the Colombian wasn’t as big as his rival seemed to think, and rushed past Cujavante in the last meter of the race.
Cujavante initially didn’t notice his opponent flying past him but the sudden silence from the crowd and the sound of some hysterical narrators soon made him realize his painful mistake.
A small comfort for the Colombian: A sprinting mistake at 200 meters from the finish would have left him disqualified anyway.