From hero to villain: Throwback to French athlete Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad's bizarre behavior towards mascots

The only man to win three Olympic steeplechase medals, Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad, is regarded as one of the greatest steeplechase athletes in the world. But unfortunately for him, it's not just his athletics that made him famous - his weird mascot-hating tendencies took precedence. After more than one incident, in which he went out of his way to push around mascots, he led to a lot of public outrage. But fortunately for MMB, he never faced any consequences for his action, other than the hate he got from the public for his behavior. At the 2010 European Championships in Barcelona, Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad crossed the finish line first to win gold. The tournament's mascot, named Barni, was there waiting for the winner, and when approached, MMB asked the mascot to kneel before him. While that itself should have rung warning bells, people took it as a moment of rush from the win. But things took a drastic turn when, after Barni had kneeled before the Frenchman, he shoved it over. Then two years later, at the 2012 European Championships in Helsinki, a similar incident happened. MMB won the 3000 m steeplechase final and was again approached by the tournament mascot, named Appy, who was later found to be a 14-year-old girl. Unfortunately for her, who had a gift bag for the winner, she faced something she never imagined. The runner shoved the gift bag out of her hands and then proceeded to push her with both hands.Thankfully, neither of the mascots from the two different tournaments was hurt. But much to the shock of the public, Mekhissi-Benabbad was never punished for his actions. And to top it all, he never even apologized, let alone explained his weird behavior to anyone. Instead of the glory of Olympic gold, he became known as the athlete who hates mascots. While he never faced any consequences for his weird mascot-hating tendencies, Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad got a 10-month-long ban for fighting with his fellow competitor, Mehdi Baala, at the 2011 IAAF Diamond League meet in Monaco. After the 1500 m race, where both Baala and MMB took part, the two athletes were seen trading blows with each other. Security personnel had to intervene and pry them off each other, and both athletes faced a ban of 10 months for their actions, along with a fine and ordered community service hours. Not that the ban did much, as both were later cleared to take part in the 2011 World Championships, later that year. MMB announced his retirement in 2023.Also Read: “She should never have a job to care”: LIV Golfer Anthony Kim reacts to nurse accused of mocking Charlie Kirk’s death