Why was Owen Lloyd disqualified? The bizarre rule that stripped the swimmer of his NCAA victory explained

On February 24, a bizarre decision was made at the 2024 ACC Swimming and Diving Championships, leading to Owen Lloyd being stripped of his title in the men's 1650m freestyle. Many were angered by the referee's decision to disqualify Lloyd, including teammate Ross Dant, who was awarded the win at the end.

As it happened, Lloyd was the fastest swimmer of the group, touching the finish line in an impressive 14:37.04. A little over two seconds later, Dant made it to the end to claim silver, and the two NC State swimmers were quick to celebrate and congratulate each other.

In his excitement, Owen Lloyd mounted the lane rope and accidentally fell over into Dant’s lane, which officials termed as “lane interference,” subsequently leading to his disqualification.

Lane interference is when a swimmer interferes with a competitor's race, and the controversy stems from the fact that both Lloyd and Dant were technically done with their races. However, some of the field was still in action, which is what seems to have led to Lloyd's disqualification.

At the same time, the NCAA swimming rule book doesn't explicitly address if going into a swimmer whose race is complete while others are still swimming is lane interference.

Additionally, swimmers often use lane ropes to rest their heads and arms after races, and in many cases, their feet tend to cross into a fellow swimmer's lane. Winners of a race also typically congratulate each other over lane ropes, none of which has previously led to a disqualification.

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Owen Lloyd on his disqualification

After he learned that he had been disqualified, Owen Lloyd looked understandably heartbroken, burying his head in his hands.

At that time, his teammate Ross Dant has come to his defense, telling the ACC Network after the race:

“Owen beat me fair and square. He should be on that podium. He was excited. That’s a huge moment for him, right? He earned that. He earned that, and that’s his emotion.”

In solidarity with his teammate, Dant refused to climb up on the first step of the podium and went on to give Lloyd the gold medal after the race.

Detailing his thoughts on his disqualification after the race, Owen Lloyd wrote on Instagram:

“Upset, angry, and confused about what happened tonight, but not defeated. There are lessons to be learned and I'm sure I will find the silver linings in this experience but I know that I am not finished and that all of this just added more fuel to the fire."