Shocked Alexander Bolshunov breaks podium with big victory celebration at Beijing 2022 Olympics

Updated 07/02/2022 at 10:34 GMT

Gold medal-winner Alexander Bolshunov bounced up and down and leapt with delight as he assumed his standing on the top of the podium after his skiathlon triumph and, in so doing, broke the seemingly unstable structure below him. As he realised what had happened, he stooped down to check on the damage and, fortunately, was able to continue standing on the podium for the remainder of the ceremony.

'Testing it's strong enough!' - Funny moment Bolshunov breaks podium at Beijing 2022

Alexander Bolshunov can always be relied upon to bring the drama, but he certainly wasn't expecting to when taking his place on the podium at the Beijing Olympics.

The 25-year-old, who boasts the overall World Cup victories in 2020 and 2021 on his resume, stormed to the gold medal in the men's 30km skiathlon on Sunday.

The precocious skier won three silvers and a bronze in Pyeongchang four years ago but had never won gold before - so it was understandable that he celebrated with real gusto on the podium after his victory.

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Bolshunov bounced up and down and leapt with delight as he assumed his standing on the top of the podium and, in so doing, broke the seemingly unstable structure below him.

As the shocked skier realised what had happened, he stooped down to check on the damage and, fortunately, was able to continue standing on the podium for the remainder of the ceremony.

"He claims gold, his first Olympic gold ... I don't know what he is trying to ... I think he is just testing if it is strong enough?" said Patrick Winterton on commentary for Eurosport at the time.

The below angle perhaps best demonstrates how the structure of the podium broke with Bolshunov's forceful jump as the front layer even tumbled off. For a brief moment it appeared as though he was going to try to fix it back, but he quickly gave up that idea and just enjoyed his moment.

The Russian's emphatic victory was all the more impressive given a strong field, which included Norway's Johannes Hosflot Klaebo, and he was certainly more than confident even midway through the race.

Bolshunov demonstrated that he was far from sheepish about his romp to the gold medal as he took a moment to both take a swig of drink and celebrate with plenty of race left to ski.

'I've never, ever seen it' - Bolshunov shocks commentators by celebrating mid-race

"A little punch of the air from Bolshunov," said a stunned Winterton. "You might have picked up on that. I have never, ever seen him celebrate prior to crossing the line!

"This is the one that he has wanted for so long. It didn't happen for him in Pyeongchang - he came very, very close. He was a young man then - he's still only 25. But despite that, he was still expecting to come away with some gold.

"But today it is definitely a golden day for Bolshunov."

The Russian Olympic Committee racer finished well ahead of compatriot Denis Spitsov who took the silver medal, spending the final 13km of the race in second.

Finland's Iivo Niskanen, rated as the best classic skier in the world, held off challenges from Norway's Hans Christer Holund and Pal Golberg to take bronze.