Egg and Spoon Race Champion Stripped of Title

After the previous week’s prolonged celebrations, the St Russell’s Primary School Egg and Spoon race champion Simon Mcswithern was yesterday ordered to hand back his title due to shocking revelations that he is not a student of the Margate comprehensive.

Mcswithern, 37, stormed to victory in the 50 metre dash, where contestants are required to balance a hen’s egg on a 2" by 4" tablespoon, beating 8 year old Nicholas Lyndhurst in second place by nearly 2 seconds. The schoolboy was hailed as a sporting revelation by the national press in the week that followed, and considered to be a hot prospect for the next “Fun Olympics” held in 2011.

However, it has since become apparent that Mcswithern was not a pupil at St Russell’s at the time of winning, having in fact left the school nearly 30 years earlier. He was ordered to hand back his prize, with Lyndhurst given the title in his place. When asked to explain his actions, the boy claimed that he had merely forgotten to inform the school of his change in age and circumstance before taking part in the event.

“I am saddened to be stripped of my title of Egg and Spoon race champion 08/09, but would like to stress that my actions were in no way deliberate; it was never my intention to deceive all of those at the sports day” Mcswithern said

“I was not aware of the restrictions of which I was violating and hope that I will not be looked upon as a cheat as it was simply a misunderstanding of the rules”.

St Russell’s Head teacher Moira Thomas said that she was reluctant to take away the prize from the schoolboy, but felt that the rules of the race should be honoured

“It is a shame, as Simon was delighted to win last week and his victory was joy to watch. But the rules clearly state that any contestant must be a current pupil of the school, and Simon unfortunately it seems left us a considerable time ago”

Former school governor Sylvan Distin has blasted the organisers of the event – saying that they should have checked each contestant more rigorously before allowing them to compete.

“This is an embarrassment for all those involved in this prestigious sports day. This shouldn’t have been allowed to happen and hope from now on checks will be put in place to ensure that 6ft men in their thirties do not compete in these games in the future”

Mcswithern’s crown will now be awarded to runner up Lyndhurst, who although pleased to hold the title, feels his victory is tarnished.

“Of course its great to be a winner, but to be a winner by default leaves a bitter taste. Despite the irregularities, I believe that Simon was the clear victor and any advantages he may have had by not being a student here are inconsequential” the 8 year old said

“It is a shame that red tape has undermined what was in my opinion a terrific sporting achievement” the schoolboy graciously added.