Alex Walsh Disqualified from Women’s 200m Individual Medley at Paris Olympics

In a surprising turn of events, Team USA swimmer Alex Walsh was disqualified from the women’s 200m individual medley at the Paris Olympics. Despite initially appearing to finish in third place, Walsh was stripped of her position after officials reviewed her performance and identified an illegal maneuver during one of her turns.

The disqualification centered around Walsh’s transition from the backstroke to the breaststroke. She was deemed to have violated the rules by not finishing the backstroke on her back, as she rolled over and went past the vertical before beginning the breaststroke segment.

NBC swimming analyst Rowdy Gaines explained, “She rolls over…she went past vertical, that’s the problem. The head has to come back and cannot go past that 90-degree mark.” The ruling confirmed that Walsh’s turn did not comply with the technical requirements, leading to her disqualification.

As a result, Kate Douglass of Team USA moved up to second place with a time of 2:06.92, narrowly missing gold. Canada’s Summer McIntosh set an Olympic record with a winning time of 2:06.56, while Australia’s Kaylee McKeown claimed bronze

Via NBC