What happens when a spectator runs onto a ski course during a heat?

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What happens when a spectator runs onto a ski course during a heat? image

What are the Olympic rules on spectator interference during events?

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Answer by Carl Burnett 3-time Paralympian in alpine skiing

I can tell you how it works in my sport, alpine ski racing, where it's actually somewhat common for an unexpected obstacle such as a fallen skier to end up in the middle of a race course.

If a competitor is in the midst of a race run, be it in the Olympics or elsewhere, and he believes he has been negatively interfered with, he has the right to immediately stop racing, approach the nearest official (most likely a gate judge), and request a re-run. Such a request will almost always be granted provisionally. The competitor returns to the start and is allowed to take another run on the course. Later, the race's jury will determine whether the re-run was justified. If it was, the result of the re-run will stand; if not, the competitor receives a DNF (did not finish).

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Things that might be considered valid cause for a re-run include a person, animal, or other unexpected obstacle like a ski or a large rock in the "race line" (the path racers take through the gates). Obstacles that a jury would probably not find good reasons for a re-run would include anything weather- or snow-condition-related, or anything that could be easily avoided without affecting one's time.

This is a good system, I think. But there is no doubt that even under these rules, a racer who is interfered with suffers a huge disadvantage. Physically, mentally, and equipment-wise, he essentially has to prepare for and execute the same race twice.

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