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VIDEO: The Paralympic T42 100m finish was so close that two silvers were awarded

The finish between two runners in the T42 100m final at the Paralympic Games was so close that there were two silver medals awarded.

T42 100m final

What an experience!

A photo posted by Scott Reardon (@scottreardo) on

The finish between two runners who ended up on the podium of the T42 100m final at the Paralympic Games was so close that officials awarded two silver medals. The photo finish could not clarify who had the edge between the two runners behind the winner.

Joint silver as photo finish can't decide second place at paralympics 100-meter

While Australia’s Scott Reardon was clear of the field to win in 12.26, it was the finish between Great Britain’s Richard Whitehead and Denmark’s Daniel Wagner that required an additional look. Both finished in 12.32 and were awarded silver medals. Timing officials go down to the thousandth of a second to determine who had the edge at the finish line.

RELATED: There’s a hidden feature inside the Paralympic medals.

The T42 category at the Paralympics is for athletes with single, above-the-knee amputations or a similar disability. All sprinters were running with at least one prosthetic leg, commonly known as a “blade” in track and field. Whitehead wears two prosthetic legs.

Video

Remarkably, with about 10 metres to go until the finish, it appeared that all three podium positions were locked up. However, Whitehead had a great finish and went from seventh to second in the span of a few seconds to snag a silver. There was no bronze awarded as only three athletes are generally awarded medals unless there’s a tie for bronze.

RELATED: Canada’s Guillaume Ouellet “not okay” with Paralympic and Olympic comparison.

A runner’s time is recorded by when their torso crosses the finish line. That’s the reason why many athletes lean metres from the finish line to shave valuable milliseconds from their time. Notice in the below photo that the two outer athletes are holding silver medals.

Reardon’s winning time was a Paralympic record.

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