Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad kept his top on and coasted to the gold medal in the 1500m of the European Athletic Championships.

The French athlete sidled to victory in 3:45.60, slowing to a walk and making gee-up gestures to the crowd as he crossed the finish line on Sunday. The action has caused some sections of the crowd to boo the Frenchman.

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In an interview after the race, Mekhissi-Benabbad said he "ran with rage" to make up for his disqualification earlier in the tournament.

Last week, the 29-year-old athlete was stripped off his gold medal in the 3,000m steeplechase final after he took his vest off in the final straight and stuck it in his mouth. Mekhissi-Benabbad, who has been accused of arrogance, said he's a supporter of Paris Saint-Germain and he was only trying to make the crowd happy by copying the football team's goal celebration.

It wasn't the first time that Mekhissi-Benabbad was involved in a controversy. The French was previously suspended after he traded blows with his team mate, Mehdi Baala, after the 1500m at a Diamond League meeting in Monaco.

Still, Mekhissi-Benabbad, with his 1500 gold victory on Sunday, said there are only a handful of athletes who can bounce back after a disqualification.

"I guess that today I wrote athletics history," Mekhissi-Benabbad said. "I came from joy to sadness after the disqualification and my reaction was the reaction of a champion. I had a lot of motivation."

Chris O'Hare, of Britain, took home the bronze after he clocked in at 3:46.18.

The British athlete said he had to avoid being tripped by other athletes, including fellow Briton Charlie Grice, who was taken out in a crash after he was knocked out twice at the bell.

TagsNews, Sports, Sports news, European Athletic Championships, mahiedine mekhissi-benabbad, Chris O'Hare, Charlie Grice