Sports

Australian 10K Runners Remain At Their Race’s Finish Line To Cheer On Last-Place Contestant

The Commonwealth Games may not capture global attention as a matter of course, but a very sporting act performed by three Australian runners have directed global attention to the nation’s multi-sport competition. 

In the recent 10,000-meter race, Lesotho representative Lineo Chaka fell far behind the pack, two laps and five minutes from the finish line when gold-medalist Stella Chesang of Uganda finished. Though the winner and many subsequent finishers vacated the field as they finished the grueling event, a trio of Australian competitors — Celia Sullohern, Eloise Wellings, and Madeline Hills — remained at the finish line, waiting patiently and sportingly for the lagging runner to cross. 

When Chaka did finish, the newly-united quartet of runners hugged, celebrating their accomplishments. 

“I just love racing with two Aussie girls who are just such classy athletes. And I think that is the strength of Australian distance racing,” Sullohern said. “We were all out there having a go. [It was] so lovely to stand there with those girls and show a bit of, I hope, Aussie sportsmanship.”

None of the Australian runners medaled in the race, but thanks to their kind act, they’ve emerged as the stars of this event. 

Share image by Michael Steele/Getty Images. 

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