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Y'er out Mexico's Segura disqualified from gold medal
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- Bernardo Segura of Mexico, world record holder in the 20-kilometer walk, was disqualified moments after crossing the finish line first at the Olympic Games Friday. The disqualification sent the gold medal to Robert Korzeniowski of Poland, who finished just behind Segura in a tight race. It was the first track medal of the games. Segura was accused of improperly breaking contact with the ground three times during the race. Olympic officials rejected an appeal by Mexico. Segura denied breaking any rules. "They can't give me back a medal I never lost. I won clearly. They can't disqualify me," he said. "It would be unfair because I ran a clean race." Segura was the bronze medalist at Atlanta four years ago and crossed the finish line Friday in a time of 1 hour, 18 minutes, 58 seconds. Korzeniowski, the gold medalist at the Atlanta games in 1996, finished in 1 hour 18 minutes, 59 seconds. Noe Hernandez, also from Mexico, won the silver medal, followed by Vladimir Andreyev of Russia. Hernandez offered support for his teammate.
Segura, Korzeniowski and Hernandez entered Olympic Stadium side by side after the walk, which took them through the streets of Sydney. Then Segura, the Pan American Games champion and World Cup winner last year, who posted a world best time of 1:17.25 for the event in 1994, pulled a few strides in front in the final 100 meters. After they crossed the finish line, Segura and Hernandez wrapped themselves in the Mexican flag as they celebrated together. The Mexican team said officials should have charged Segura with only two violations of improper form. A third instance of lifting feet and breaking contact with the ground -- in other words, jogging instead of walking -- results in automatic disqualification. "He took a risk at the end for the gold," said Tim Seaman of Chula Vista, Calif., the only American in the walk, who was unsure what place he had finished an hour after the race. "You're always pushing, pushing, pushing. The gold is never easy." Segura has parlayed his fame into a political career. This year he finished a three-year term in Mexico's federal congress and he also had been running for mayor of his home town, San Mateo Atenco near Mexico City. In a 1996 interview, Segura told the Mexican newspaper Cronica that the style of race walking has changed in recent years as competitors sped up. "The only thing that has not been changed is the rule," he said. "So if the judges stick 100 percent to what's on paper, we would all be disqualified."
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