Shelby McEwen is an Olympic medalist — whether or not you name him grasping or aggressive.
The 28-year-old American defended his choice to compete in a jumpoff in opposition to New Zealand’s Hamish Kerr as an alternative of sharing the gold medal throughout the males’s excessive leap last on the 2024 Paris Olympics on Saturday.
“If it was meant to be it could’ve been,” McEwen, carrying a silver medal, informed reporters on the post-event press convention. “Shout out to Hamish for coming as much as me, accepting a leap off and I accepted it and I used to be all for it.”
McEwen and Kerr cleared 2.36m, which sparked a jumpoff between the 2 Olympians for the highest spot on the rostrum.
If two or extra athletes finish on the similar peak within the males’s excessive leap, they go to a leap off beginning on the subsequent peak above the place they cleared.
Each athletes missed at 2.38m and a couple of.36m earlier than the bar was lowered to 2.34m.
That they had missed 11 jumps in a row by the point Kerr made his leap at 2.34m, ensuing within the “Flying Kiwi’s” first Olympic gold medal.
“I imply, hey, he acquired the gold and I acquired the silver. On the finish of the day, like he stated it’s a sport. I imply I signify my nation, identical to he’s representing his. I’m representing my household identical to he’s representing his,” McEwen stated.
“On the finish of the day all of us wish to be champions and the one respectful factor to do is stroll away with one champion.”
McEwen was adamant that it was a mutual choice to compete within the jumpoff.
“He stated it first, and I agreed to it,” McEwen stated, in response to the Washington Submit. “In some unspecified time in the future, I sort of acquired fatigued. I perhaps would have shared it with him, for certain. However I agreed to it, and it was all good.”
Now, McEwen is concentrated on successful gold on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“I’m going to take my silver, get again to the drafting board, belief my workforce, belief my docs, belief my coaching and get higher,” McEwen stated.
China leads the US in gold medals 39 to 38 heading into the ultimate day of the Paris Olympics on Sunday. The international locations can be deadlocked in a tie if McEwen and Kerr agreed to share the celebrated honor.
The jumpoff choice has sparked debate on-line with folks arguing whether or not McEwen made the best alternative.
“It makes it very fascinating. Honest play to each of them,” one X user commented.
“That’s the aggressive spirit between them each,” one other stated.
“Silly from Shelby after which he misplaced the gold…”
“Ought to have shared the Gold like final Olympics!” a fourth added.
Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim, who took the bronze medal on Saturday, supported his opponents’ jumpoff, saying there must be some stage of greediness.
Barshim famously shared the gold medal on the 2020 Olympics with Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi after the 2 excessive jumpers declined to partake in a jumpoff.
“We’re sport folks, we’re very grasping and that’s the way it’s imagined to be, we’re all champions,” Barshim stated. “In case you are a champion it is advisable to be the perfect.”
“Everyone desires to be the perfect, we’re all grasping and that’s the mentality and that’s the spirit it’s best to have,” he added.