Michelle Jenneke in brutal mishap as Stew McSweyn elevated to final after Olympics carnage

Fan favourite Michelle Jenneke is fighting to keep her Paris Olympics dream alive after the Aussie suffered a brutal fall during her 100m hurdles heat, while fellow track star Stewart McSweyn won an appeal and will feature in the 5000m final. Australia enjoyed one of their best ever days at the Olympics having secured four gold on day 12, but Jenneke and McSweyn endured mixed fortunes on the track.

Jenneke felt she was coming into the Paris Games in great shape, but it all went quickly wrong for the 31-year-old in her heat. The Aussie hurdler collided with the third barrier and was sent crashing to the floor. The Aussie jumped to her feet and finished the race so she could qualify for the repechage. This gives her one more shot at qualifying for the final.

However, it appears her Olympics may be over. In a worrying development, Jenneke claimed she heard her knee go just before the fall and she wasn't able to jump the next barrier. The Aussie admitted she jumped up to finish the race to showcase the Olympic spirit.

"I actually feel like I'm in great shape," Jenneke said after competing in her third Olympics. "I got out really well and I'm really proud of that. And then, I think it was the third hurdle. I just felt something pop in my lead leg down towards my knee, and so I just like lost all power, and that's why I took a tumble.

"But I just really wanted to make sure that I got up and I finished. First of all, it's the Olympic Games and I want to be doing that. And second of all, I thought there was still a chance that I might be able to do the repechage tomorrow."

While Jenneke may have raced for the last time at the Olympics, the 31-year-old hasn't given up hope and hopes to recover before the repechage. "I'm really hoping it'll be alright and I should definitely be able to race the repechage," said the 31-year-old. "That's the plan. We're just going to see how things pan out over the next 24 hours."

Stewart McSweyn elevated to final after Olympics chaos

While Jenneke endured a brutal start to her campaign, McSweyn was given a fortunate break as he was elevated to the 5000m final after missing out due to the 'madness' on the track. During the race, tempers flared as athletes became entangled in the pack of the endurance race.

RELATED:

• Kennedy wins historic 18th gold as Aussies make mockery of prediction

• Tony Hawk's staggering move after 14-year-old Aussie wins gold

• Uproar after Boomers dudded by illegal move that went unpunished

Then bodies went flying as George Mills took a tumble and others followed. McSweyn stumbled over a number of athletes in staggering scenes. “Just madness,” commentator Gerard Whateley said during the contest. “These 5000s have been crazy. Honestly, you wouldn’t see it at Little Athletics some of what is going on here. We’ve had spills, running into cameramen ...”

McSweyn initially failed to qualify, despite avoiding the fall during the chaos. This was seemingly the end of the Aussie's campaign with no repechage for the 5000m event. The Aussie then opted to appeal the result because he was hampered when caught up in the madness. And officials deemed it was enough to elevate McSweyn to the final. McSweyn took to social media after the race to confirm his elevation into the 5000m final.

While McSweyn was thrilled, Great Britain's Mills was left fuming after the race and confronted Hugo Hay in surprising scenes. The Brit was running well before the incident, but finished in 18th place.

This wasn't the only drama in the 5000m events. During one of the heats, a cameraman walked onto the track during the race. The cameraman was possibly recording the javelin and unwittingly ventured across the track when the 5000m athletes came around the bend. Fortunately all the athletes managed to run around the cameraman and avoid any major drama.