Olympics fans rage at judges as Team GB 51-year-old skateboarder Andy MacDonald left bleeding
Andy MacDonald suffered a cut during his second run
BBC
Team GB star Andy MacDonald put his literal blood, sweat and tears into the men's park preliminary round and it still wasn't enough to impress the judges - much to the dismay of the crowd.
MacDonald is a eight-time world champion in the World Cup Skateboarding Series and holds the record for most X Games medals in vert skateboarding.
He was at the pinnacle of the sport alongside skateboarding icon Tony Hawk in the 1990s before announcing in 2021 his desire to compete in the Paris Olympics.
Representing the USA was out of the question so MacDonald went through the right channels to wear Team GB colours by virtue of his Luton-born dad Roderick.
Andy MacDonald suffered a cut during his second run
BBC
MacDonald then defied the odds in the final Olympic qualifiying series last month to make the final 22 and seal his spot in Paris.
At 51 years of age, MacDonald is the oldest-ever Olympic skateboarder and is joined by two 16-year-old girls in Sky Brown and Lola Tambling as Team GB's representatives in the event.
Brown secured bronze in the women's park final on Tuesday and 24 hours later it was the turn of MacDonald.
He was always going to be up against it with the event dominated by teenagers pulling off outrageous routines.
MacDonald featured in the final heat and was given a huge reception when he was introduced to the crowd.
Those cheers continued throughout his first run with MacDonald beaming from ear-to-ear at the end despite failing to land his backflip dismount and suffering a nasty cut on his finger.
He ended up getting a score of 72.07 that left him down in 19th, but put in a much-improved second run before landing the backflip dismount to the delight of the crowd.
Hawk led the applause in the stands with MacDonald heard shouting, "I love this. It's the Olympics!"
Skateboarding legend Tony Hark appreciated Andy MacDonald's run
BBC
But the judges didn't appear to love it as much as they gave him a score of 76.61 with the crowd making it clear they didn't agree.
It failed to wipe the smile of MacDonald's face though, who was lapping up every second of the experience.
He was the last man to run and he saved his best until last with the crowd once again on their feet after he landed his final routine.
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Andy MacDonald was loving every second of the experience
BBC
A final score of 77.66 wasn't enough for MacDonald to make what would have been an unlikely final appearance.
But that didn't affect his mood as he sent a touching message to his three kids on camera.
MacDonald ended up finishing 18th with the men's park final taking place at 5.30pm BST.
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