The Games got off to a chaotic start on Thursday as the women’s Keirin race featured several crashes. and left viewers questioning if the competitors even knew the rules of the game.
A VT of the training showed Olivia Attwood suffering a shoulder injury as she crashed her bike, and the live event, broadcast on ITV on Thursday evening, showed that practice does not always make perfect.
Chelcee Grimes caused a domino effect crash at the start as she pushed off on her bike and immediately fell over, causing chaos as those behind her were unable to get going and some toppling alongside her.
The organisers naturalised the race with a lap to get everyone back into their starting positions, but chaos continued when the gun went off.
Two competitors, possibly forgetting the rules through adrenaline or the messy start, briefly overtook the Derny on the velodrome, with the bike having to put on a burst of speed to overtake again.
And Lucrezia Millarini – who suffered a spectacular stumble over the line to clinch third place in yesterday’s 400m race – lost control of her bike and took another fall, sliding straight off the track and leaving her far behind the other competitors.
The Games fans watching at home viewed the race through their fingers, with more than a few people taking to Twitter to comment on the crashes – and some wondering if the competitors knew the rules at all.
‘Probably a good idea in future to teach them the rules of the sport before letting them have a go?!,’ one person wrote.
Another fan suggested there should have been a restart as ‘no one had a clue what was going on.’
‘Wacky races at the Velodrome,’ another joked, while another described it as ‘an absolute mess.’
‘What an absolute shambles, nobody has a clue what’s happening,’ one fan began, before adding ‘Best event so far by a country mile.’
After the madness died down the race began properly, with Chelcee and Christine McGuinness at times head-to-head for the gold medal.
Chelcee came in first, followed by Christine and Rebecca Sarker, while Lucrezia unfortunately landed in last place after her second fall in two nights.
The former Channel 4 favourite, which sees celebrities compete in Olympic Games-style events, has returned to our screens this year after a long break away, with Holly Willoughby and Freddie Flintoff presenting.
Now airing on ITV, the live competition is set to air daily for a week, with the finale coming on Friday, 13 May when the top competitors will be awarded their well-deserved glory.
Other stars pushing themselves to the limit in the ITV series include influencer Phoenix Gulzar-Brown, former Strictly Come Dancing pro Kevin Clifton, and actor Ryan Thomas.
The Wanted star Max George, Harry Potter actor Josh Herdman, musician Wes Nelson and Coronation Street’s Colson Smiths finish the line-up.
The Games continues Friday night at 9pm on ITV.
Credit: Original article published here.You can read this post on My Celebrity Life.
