Team GB's Jack Burnell slams Olympic judges after disqualification in 10km swim
By Press Association
Last Updated: 16/08/16 4:52pm
Britain's Jack Burnell was left fuming and perplexed after being disqualified from the men's open water swimming when in medal contention.
The 23-year-old was in the mix at the end of the 10-kilometres race but was denied in the frantic finale.
Initially he was in a photo finish for third, behind winner Ferry Weertman of Holland, before being demoted to fifth and then disqualified altogether for a second caution from race officials.
The Loughborough swimmer, who was fifth in last year's World Championships, said: "It was an absolute joke, the whole thing from start to finish.
"You've got the best guys in the world out here, who have trained for four years, put a lot of hard work into this.
"This is the pinnacle of our sport and it's ruined by a couple of judges who want to stick their nose in, just because they want something to do.
"They want to be seen to be like they're doing something. Just let the guys race. It's an absolute outrage.
"There were yellow cards left, right and centre. The first yellow card I got, there was nobody either side of me.
"I couldn't physically have touched anybody, even if I had had six-foot long arms. And he gives me a yellow card.
"I just laughed at the guy as I was swimming. I looked at him and shook my head. He just nodded his head and showed me the yellow card. They just want to be seen to be doing something.
"This is unbelievable, considering how much work these guys put in, for four years, including myself - and it all gets thrown away just by some judge who wants to stick his oar in."
Open water swimming is notoriously rough and often sees tugs of limbs, clashes of elbows and the occasional punch.
Weertman won gold in one hour, 52 minutes and 59.8 seconds. Greece's Spiros Gianniotis was second in the same time and Burnell was one of three swimmers just 2.42 seconds behind them.
France's Mac-Antoine Olivier was ultimately awarded bronze ahead of Zu Lijun of China, with Burnell left empty handed.
Defending Olympic champion Oussama Mellouli of Tunisia was 12th, 6.3secs behind, despite Burnell alleging he impeded his progress.
The Brit added: "The guy that should've got disqualified is the guy that stopped me, Mellouli. He grabbed my leg.
"He was holding my leg not for one, two, three, but for four or five strokes, so I had to turn round to try to get him off. What am I meant to do?
"In that line, I'm thinking 'this is brilliant, this is perfect for me'. We're all at top speed and I'm stopped dead. I'm one of the fastest finishers in there.
"He was yellow carded for that, which stopped me winning, but I was disqualified for trying to get him off to try to win the race. Explain that to me. Absolutely outrageous.
"There's an appeals process, but it will mean nothing. It's never changed anything in the sport.
"Imagine this happens in the (football) World Cup final and the referee gives the goalie a yellow card for standing there. That is how ridiculous this is.
"A referee should not be there unless there is something clearly wrong. They always want to be seen to be doing something.
"On the Olympic stage, what do they want to do? Do they want to get on telly to show a yellow card? To show their family back home that they're doing something? It's absolutely ridiculous."
