James Teagle: Spanish triathlete stops and allows British opponent to cross finish line first after wrong turn

Teagle hailed his opponent’s ‘incredible’ gesture of sportsmanship

Diego Mentrida waits on the finish line for James Teagle (Instagram/@james_teagle)

Triathlete James Teagle has hailed an “incredible” gesture of sportsmanship by a rival who stopped on the finish line and allowed the Briton to finish first.

Teagle was on the verge of taking bronze when he missed the finish chute during the dying stages of the race and crashed into a barrier, enabling Spaniard Diego Mentrida to overtake him. 

However, after realising what had occurred, the 21-year-old waited just short of the finish line so Teagle could clinch a position on the podium.

Addressing the incident on Instagram, Teagle said: "So this happened a week ago...

"I missed the finish chute in a triathlon in Spain. After around 50m I realised and sprinted back. By that point Diego Mentrida was 50m from the finish chute and we ended up sprinting for the line. I crashed into the barrier and thought it was over.

"A video of this has now gone worldwide and been picked up by loads of media outlets.

Moral of the story is that sportsmanship is a highly regarded trait?"

Speaking to Eurosport, Mentrida said: “When I saw that he had missed the route, I just stopped. James deserved this medal."