CALIFORNIA, United States — A sophomore at North Salinas High School in California, United States, was stripped of her 400m state championship title after pulling a fire extinguisher stunt made famous by Olympic medallist and sprint icon Maurice Green.

According to a report by Mercury News, Clara Adams, who was placed first in the high school state championships held on Saturday, in a celebratory mode following her victory, took a fire extinguisher from her dad, stepped away from the track and blasted her feet as if they were on fire.

California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) officials reportedly were not too keen on the act, which they deemed as unsportsmanlike, and as a result, she was disqualified and stripped of her title. Adams was also disqualified from taking part in the 200m event that was set to follow.

“I worked so hard for that title,” a weeping Adams said in a KSBW8 Sports interview.

Clara Adams and her dad David Adams (Instagram photo: Yungcheetah831)

“When she blew that fire extinguisher, the opponents were gone. That was our moment of celebration, and CIF officials made that about them. The crowd went crazy; they loved it. The CIF booth went crazy; they loved it. But those few guys in the jacket took offence, didn’t like it, and they made a decision based on emotions,” said her dad, David Adams.

Adams clocked 53.24 seconds to finish first place in the 400m event. She was also reportedly a favourite to finish in the final three of the 200m.