Deer Wipes Out Cross-Country Runner In The Middle Of A Race

Maybe this race needed a “Deer Crossing” sign.

A herd of deer ran straight through the course of a cross-country running event in Pennsylvania on Saturday, and one of the animals slammed right into a participant.

“I turn my head a little bit to the left and he comes right there,”Justin DeLuzio of Gwynedd Mercy University told NBC Philadelphia. “He knocked me down pretty good.”

DeLuzio wasn’t injured during the collision, which took place at the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional event held at DeSales University.

“Justin is doing ok, he’s just a little sore and bruised up,” head coach Kevin Clark told the Gwynedd Athletics website. “We were worried about his health for a while but we’re proud to see him fight through this along with his teammates, get up and finish his last collegiate cross-country race.”

Teammate Matt French helped DeLuzio up, then ran alongside him “in a true showing of camaraderie and sportsmanship,” the website stated.

The unusual scene was caught on video by Eric Bologa, who posted the clip on Facebook.

“Who says Cross Country isn’t a contact sport?” he wrote.

(h/t Mashable)