By Tommy Lund and Liz Hampton TESERO, Italy, Feb 18 (Reuters) – A husky with lots of enthusiasm but no credentials gatecrashed a women’s team sprint cross-country race on Wednesday, giving an impromptu performance that had spectators howling with delight. The dog wandered onto the stadium course in Tesero during the qualifying event, spotted a couple […]
Sports
Olympics-Crosscountry-Who let the dog out? Husky gatecrashes team sprint
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By Tommy Lund and Liz Hampton
TESERO, Italy, Feb 18 (Reuters) – A husky with lots of enthusiasm but no credentials gatecrashed a women’s team sprint cross-country race on Wednesday, giving an impromptu performance that had spectators howling with delight.
The dog wandered onto the stadium course in Tesero during the qualifying event, spotted a couple of athletes on the finishing straight and decided to join the action.
The canine sniffed around for a bit before racing across the line ahead of the skiers to wild cheers from a crowd clearly entertained by the unexpected addition to the field.
Officials eventually got hold of the tail-wagging interloper but not before timekeepers preparing for a photo-finish in the race captured an image of the dog crossing the line.
(Tommy Lund and Liz Hampton in Tesero; Editing by Ken Ferris)