During a 400-meter race at the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia on Thursday, Italian decathlete Alberto Nonino suffered a wardrobe malfunction that kept him from winning the race.
Nonino, 18, started off strong in the sprint, gaining pace against his competitors, before cameras captured him reaching down to hold his crotch a couple of times. Apparently, Nonino wasn’t merely adjusting his shorts, but had accidentally exposed himself to the thousands of fans in attendance and those at home watching on TV.
Shortly after footage of the penis incident went viral, Nonino hopped on his Instagram Story to discuss the wardrobe malfunction.
“I just want to talk to you a little bit about the rumpus there’s been on blogs and social media in general,” Nonino said, per the New York Post. “I’m conscious it was obviously an accident and I’d like to tell you I’m aware of the reaction and you don’t need to send me the links to the blogs out there. I’m trying to laugh about it now but immediately afterwards I felt terrible and I’m thankful to my friends and family for helping me get over what happened a few hours later.”
