Jul 2, 2012

French athlete Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad has gained track and field infamy for all the wrong reasons, in the lead-up to the London Olympics.

The 27-year-old had just won gold in the European Championship's 3000 metre steeplechase in Helsinki yesterday when audience cheers quickly subsided into shock over his subsequent actions.

Rather than appearing happy about his 8.33.23-minute victory, the Algerian-born athlete walked over to the championship's mascot "Appy", which was being worn by a 14-year-old girl, and smacked a gift bag out of her hands and shoved her with both hands.

http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c2#/video/international/2012/07/02/tsr-moos-mascot-gets-shoved.cnn