Fans convinced Olympic athletes were 'caught cheating' on live TV during event at 2024 Games in Paris

Olympic viewers are convinced that several athletes broke the rules in an event at the 2024 Games in Paris after seeing new TV footage.

Fans on social media claim several participants cheated in the 20km men's walking race on Thursday morning, the first athletics event to take place at the Games.

Ecuador's Brian Daniel Pintado took gold in the event, finishing with a time of 1:18:55 to win the first medal for an Ecuadorian athlete in Paris.

Brazil's Caoi Bonfim took silver with a time of 1:19:09 while Spain's Alvaro Martin followed closely behind at 1:19:11 to take the bronze medal.

Footage circulating on social media after the race appears to show several athletes breaching the rules of the walking race.

In a clip originally posted on Reddit, several athletes can be seen leaving the ground with both feet.

According to World Athletics, athletes must have one foot in contact with the floor at all times during the 20km walk race.

Failure to do this is known as 'lifting' and is against the rules.

Fans were quick to spot a number of participants seemingly breaking this rule during the men's event.

"They all do it. Thats why the tactic now is to hide in the pack until their final push," one fan commented on Reddit.

While another added: "Every single one of them is cheating."

However, another user pointed out that the athletes may not have technically broken the rules due to the wording of the regulations.

"It's very simple. The rule is it must be visible to the naked eye - not slow motion replays," they commented.

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While another fan added: "They're allowed to have millisecond 'no contact' because they are judged by eye, not by slow-mo camera."

Another fan questioned why the sport's governing bodies had yet to come up with a more modern solution to regulating the sport, rather than relying on the naked eye of officials.

"If technically available, it would be good to install sensors on the shoes to see if their feet are above the ground and for how long," suggested the fan.

While another added: "Imagine being a judge. Did you do your job? Well no. And how many do they need in a 20k race if they have to observe it live?"