There’s a certain something called the Olympic spirit, and most athletes have been buying into it these past few weeks.

If you haven’t then learn from Egyptian judo fighter Islam El Shehaby, who was sent home after failing to shake the hand of his Israeli opponent.

The latest athlete to come under fire is Mark Cavendish, the sprint cyclist who nabbed silver in the men’s omnium final.

A brief descriptor of his transgression from NewsAU:

Cavendish, the man famously known as the “Manx Missile”, sparked a huge controversy in the men’s omnium points race when he caused a massive high-speed crash that resulted in South Korean rider Sanghoon Park being taken to hospital in an ambulance.

Cavendish, riding high around the outside of the velodrome, dropped down on the track, forcing contact between his back wheel and Park’s front tyre.

Park fell heavily and was then run over by Italian Elia Viviani and Aussie Glenn O’Shea. Both were unable to stop or divert away from Park in time.

In horrifying scenes, Park appeared unconscious on the track and did not move as medical officials rushed to his aid.

Let’s see the crash and you can judge for yourself:

Did Mark Cavendish intend to cause this crash? #CyclingTrack https://t.co/ubBLe7deVt pic.twitter.com/61sWN0XPkO

— TheSportMatrix (@TheSportMatrix) August 15, 2016

Another shot, this time from a wider angle, shows why Cavendish is under the pump:

Mark Cavendish (UK)won silver having caused this crash.A jockey would have got 30 days+off. Looked deliberate to me! pic.twitter.com/ANDFwA46Lq

— Pat Flynn (@PatFlynnRacing) August 15, 2016

Cavendish had a nervous wait for the officials to rule on the crash, but they eventually ruled in his favour. He drew further ire for his comments (or lack thereof) after the race:

…the British rider’s biggest sin was refusing to speak about his act or Park’s scary fall in his interview after the race.

Speaking with the BBC, the 31-year-old instead spoke about how he is disappointed he did not do enough in the earlier rounds of the competition to win the gold…

The BBC did not ask Cavendish about his dangerous move.

A Dutch journalist reported he confronted Cavendish about the crash before the rider walked away cursing.

Dutch reporter and former cyclist Thijs Zonneveld said Cavendish threatened to sue him.

Cavendish eventually softened and offered an apology of sorts, although for many it was too little too late:

In the words of Sharlto Copley from District 9 – bloody prawns.

[source:newsau]