German Olympian Missed His Race Because Cell Phone Was Off
Posted by Alex_Pasternack on Friday, Feb 26, 2010
The German speedskater Patrick Beckert missed out on his chance to compete in the Olympics yesterday because his cell phone was switched off prior to the start of Wednesday’s 1,000m competition. Officials were trying frantically to call the 19-year old, who was the fourth alternate in the race.
The spot became free when injured two-time gold medalist Enrico Fabris of Italy withdrew from the race one hour beforehand. After officials failed to reach the first three alternates (who were probably just busy playing Assassin’s Creed 2), the German delegation made a hasty search for Beckert. Calls were placed to his turned-off cell and his sister, Stephanie—herself a medal favorite in the 3,000m—also tried to find him.
Beckert finally called back 17 minutes before the race, but it was too late to get to the Richmond Olympic Oval, even on speedskates apparently.
To be fair, the chances of the fourth alternate being called in are pretty tiny. And when you think about it, the chances of getting to compete as the fourth alternate may be a lot smaller than the chances of getting all sick from ein handy. And if you’re life is dedicated to speedskating, you really need to stay healthy—especially if you get a chance to be in the Olympics!
Deadspin via Yahoo!Filed under:
About the author
Email: alexp at motherboard dot tv. @pasternack,
