Great Britain speed skier Jack Whelbourne has claimed that his United States rival Eduardo Alvarez "knew" that he was suffering an injury in the Olympic short track men's 1,000m qualifiers and exploited this to qualify at the expense of the East Midlands skater.
The Team GB athlete, who injured his ankle during a fall in the 1,500m final on Monday, was beaten into third place at the line by Alvarez earlier today, which meant that the Nottingham-born 22-year-old just failed to qualify for the subsequent rounds.
After the race, Whelbourne told reporters: "It was pretty tough, I think that level of racing would have been tough no matter the result of what I have done previously. I have been off the ice since the A final. I have been a bit flat, I have been coughing so I definitely felt it, but I put out the best performance I could.
"The guy knew I was weak on my right foot and he just tried to hold me on the outside and that takes a lot of pressure to keep me there. It was either me or him who was going to qualify and this time it was him."
The latter rounds of the short track men's 1,000m competition, including the final, will take place on Saturday.
Giuseppe Labellarte
