US news: Virginia high school sprinter hit competitor by baton in relay race; disqualified | Watch

 US News: A sprinter from a Virginia high school sustained a concussion and a possible skull fracture when her competitor struck her in the back of the head with a relay baton during a race.

Kaelen Tucker, a junior at Brookville High School, was running the second leg of the 4×200 meter relay at the VHSL Class 3 State Indoor Championships at Liberty University on Friday, according to a report by the New York Post.

Tucker, who had won silver in the girls' 55m dash earlier in the event, was trying to move into lane one while battling for second place as she rounded turn four, according to the report.

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“When we got to the curve, she kept bumping me in my arm, and when we got off the curve, I finally passed her, and that’s when she hit me with the baton,” Tucker explained.

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An audible gasp was heard from the crowd inside the Lynchburg, Va. venue as Tucker veered off the track, grabbing her head and falling to the ground. Tucker’s mother and team trainers immediately rushed to her side, the New York Post reported.

“I could feel a headache coming on, so I just stood out,” Tucker said. She stopped running, pulling her team out of the race. A doctor later diagnosed her with a concussion and a “possible fractured skull.”

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As a result of the incident, IC Norcom was disqualified from the race, according to the report.

Netizens react

"The State should file charges even if the runner who was injured doesn't. This type of transgression can't be ignored," said a user.

Another said, “That’s assault. The woman who did this needs to get jail time.”

In a similar incident, in March 2022, a Florida high school runner was sucker-punched during a race by another student-athlete who wasn’t even competing in the event. The runner, who was attacked during the 1,600-meter race at the Tohopekaliga Tiger Invitational in Kissimmee, also suffered a concussion.