A 17-year-old cross-country runner, who came first in a recent race in Iowa, has been stripped of his win after a touching display of sportsmanship on Thursday.
Zachary Houghland, a high school senior and dedicated runner, was celebrating his newfound title of District Champion when he realised fellow runner, Garret Hinson, had collapsed.
Speaking to ABC News, Zachary's coach, Josh Husted, recalled the events of the day, saying: "Zach saw him and shouted at other runners, 'Is anyone going to help him?"
Stunned that nobody stepped forward to help the young athlete, Zachary went against the National Federation of State High School Association rules and offered assistance to his fellow competitor.
Draping Garreth's arm around his neck, Zachary walked the fallen runner over the finish line in a move which saw him lose his chance to secure a win at the upcoming state title.
Justifying their decision to strip the teen of his win that day, Jared Chizek, assistant director of the Iowa High School Athletic Association, said: "NFHS rules do not allow a competitor to receive or give assistance from or to another competitor during a race,"
"If a competitor receives or gives assistance, that competitor is disqualified from the event," he explained in response to the local community's outrage.
Commenting on the controversy born of his kind act, Zachary told ABC News: "I thought about what it’d feel like if no one helped me."
Insisting that helping a fellow athlete meant more to him than adhering to the rules of the event, the teen continued: "Even though he wasn’t on my team, I thought I’d show some good sportsmanship."
"I wasn’t thinking about how he was on another team or what officials would say about it."
Zachary's mother, Nancy, believes the rules of the event need to be updated, but she takes solace from the fact competitors will put fellow runners before a title, saying: "Cross-country is a sport where in some of these places they're kind of off by themselves so it's nice to think that they have each other's backs."
We think Nancy should be incredibly proud of her son.
