Yohann Diniz, who was in the lead for much of the race, went down 2 hours 22 minutes into the event, which was slated to take about four hours. It is unclear what caused the collapse, but the athlete did not appear well for much of that time and complained of stomach pain. Just 15 kilometers into the event, the 38-year-old was spotted shoving sponges down the back of his shorts to soak up a brown substance running down the back of his legs.
The weather also may have played a role. It is currently 81 degrees in Rio de Janeiro, with a humidity percentage of 65 percent. The two-kilometer loop has water mists set up, but athletes have been using at least as much water to dump over their heads as they have for drinking.
Despite the issues, Diniz didn’t stay down for long. With the help of race officials, the Frenchman who holds the current world record in the event, got up and resumed racing. He hadn’t recaptured his lead by the 40-kilometer split, however. Diniz was in eighth place, about two minutes behind new leader Jared Tallent.
Diniz would eventually finish in seventh place after the third-place walker Hirooki Arai was disqualified for bumping into Canada’s Even Dunfee, who would then take bronze. Slovakia’s Matej Toth won the gold. Tallent finished in second place.
The sole American in the race, John Nunn, finished in 42nd place.
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