The celebration that cost a California girl her state track title

CLOVIS After Clara Adams appeared to have become a state track champion Saturday night argument erupted to mar what was thought to be a historic achievement Clara Adams shown here earlier this season won the state meet -meter race but was later disqualified John Devine Monterey Herald Adams a North Salinas High sophomore was the first-place finisher in the meters in the state high school championships Then in a celebratory moment she took a fire extinguisher from her dad stepped away from the track and sprayed her shoes with the retardant foam I notified Clara You re on fire disclosed her father David She did not do it in front of her opponents She wasn t disrespecting anyone Apparently California Interscholastic Federation officers felt differently They this instant disqualified Adams and stripped her of her state title leaving her in disbelief just minutes before she was scheduled to run the meters I don t know what s going through my mind right now Clara Adams revealed later that night I m disappointed and I feel robbed I am in shock They officers yelled at me and narrated me We re not letting you on the podium They took my moment away from me The gold medal instead went to Madison Mosby a senior at St Mary s Academy in Inglewood The day only got worse Because Adams was disqualified for what was ruled an unsportsmanlike act after winning the she was also disqualified from the meet and was not allowed to run in the where she was one of the favorites to finish in the top three I have video of it reported David Adams who is also his daughter s sprint coach She was on the other side of the wall I described her to step off the track She did not spray her shoes on the track We have protested the decision I feel it was racially motivated Adams is Black The protest fell on deaf ears as the decision to disqualify Adams was upheld preventing her from her second straight podium finish in the event having finished fourth last year as a freshman It s a very unfortunate event mentioned North Salinas head track coach Alan Green We are all heartbroken Clara ran an incredible race and is the fastest -meter girl in the state Adams had hoped to match Calvin Harrison s achievement years ago of winning the and even wearing the throwback North Salinas uniforms from that era But with the protest upheld her day was finished She was trying to have chosen fun at the finish line after the mentioned Green choosing his words rigorously It was interpreted as unsportsmanlike What an incredible season and run It s unfortunate Adams had advanced to the finals after clocking the second-fastest time in the trials on Friday nearly matching her state-leading time of seconds achieved at the Central Coast Section finals last week In the finals she blistered the track out of Lane clocking Related Articles CIF NorCal baseball softball playoffs First-round games in all divisions Trans athlete Hernandez wins two competitions at California state track meet sharing podium with Bay Area jumpers CIF track De La Salle s Jaden Jefferson wins state title in as encore to record run NCS roundup Acalanes Las Lomas win baseball titles Miramonte celebrates softball crown For second straight meeting big inning powers Serra to comeback win first CCS baseball championship in years In the trials on Friday Adams shaved nearly half a second off her best time clocking and going from being ranked th to No going into the finals Adams who broke the CCS finals record in the last week and is the Monterey County record holder is now No all-time in the county in the behind Monterey s Sani Roseby s mark of set in During the season the Pacific Coast Athletic League s Cypress Division - - and -meter champion set school records at North Salinas in the and Clara is taking it really hard mentioned her father But she s had a lot of backing from people in the stadium