A dog invaded the home straight during qualifying for the women’s cross-country team sprint at the Milan and Cortina Winter Olympics, chasing a camera over the finish line as Greek athlete Konstantina Charalampidou completed her race
An unexpected guest stole the limelight during the women’s cross-country team sprint qualifying at the Milan and Cortina Winter Olympics on Wednesday.
A dog managed to escape its owner and ran onto the home straight in Tesero, chasing a camera across the finish line before finally being guided off the course. Two passing skiers then caught its eye, prompting the dog to run after them as they crossed the finish line.
Greek athlete Konstantina Charalampidou, who shared her final few metres with the canine, said: “Luckily, he was very well-behaved. He followed the camera on the finishing straight, was cute, and thankfully didn’t disrupt the race.
JOIN US ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page
“It was funny. He made me forget about the race, because it wasn’t good. Thanks to him, I’m famous now, so I have to thank him.” Top-qualifier Jonna Sundling from Sweden said she thought “it was cute”, while Norway’s Astrid Oyre Slind, who finished fifth, added: “A dog is my least problem, a Swede is my biggest.”
Croatia’s Tena Hadzic was more cautious about the incident, admitting she feared it would bite her. “At first I thought it was a wolf, and that I was hallucinating because of the strenuous race. It was extremely large, and as I ran past it, I was afraid it might bite me.
Ensure our latest sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source in your Google search settings
“The fact that he even made it onto the track isn’t good. For me, it’s not a big deal since I’m not competing for a medal. But if that had happened in the final, where medals are at stake, it could have been dangerous.”
The dog’s owner later came forward, revealing that his name is Nazgul and that he had escaped from their home. “He just disappeared, ran away from home,” he told Norwegian outlet VG.
“He is a very kind dog. Very stubborn, very sweet and very social. He always seeks contact with people. He doesn’t hurt people.”