There were gasps and boos in the velodrome after officials ruled that the Paralympian, who has won seven gold medals for Britain, was guilty of a false start and would not be allowed to try again.
In an extraordinary outburst, a distraught Cundy shouted at officials, telling them they were ‘ruining my life’.
He was still yelling as he was dragged from the velodrome by a coach.
The decision outraged the 6,000 spectators packed into the velodrome and triggered a furious reaction on Twitter.
It also overshadowed another day of spectacular British cycling success, with Mark Colbourne winning gold, Jon-Allan Butterworth, Aileen McGlynn, and Shaun McKeown individual silvers, and Darren Kenny bronze.
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But officials raised the red flag and refused to review the incident on TV monitors.
Cundy, 33, who has an artificial leg, was incensed when told of the decision.
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Anger: Great Britain's Jody Cundy is restrained
after being disqualified from the Men's Individual C4-5 1km Time Trial
Final at the Velodrome today
Rage: Cundy lifts a finger towards judges after he lost out in the cycling event after four years of work
On a video posted by Channel 4, he could be heard saying: ‘They are ruining my life, they are ruining my life. Everybody else seems to be able to get a restart...I fell out of the gate..and here I am...I want to ride.’
Wobbles: Cundy gets out of the gate badly in the C4/5 one-kilometre time-trial but he is denied a restart by the judges
Bitter: The poor start ruined Cundy's chances
and despite coach Chris Furber's pleas, he was not given another go at
the competition
Cundy cuts a forlorn figure after coming off the track as he holds his head in his hands
‘This is what he thought was his event to win in London,’ he said.
‘It was one of his only opportunities with him not being in the team sprint for us. He is alternating between being very angry and actually quite apologetic for his behaviour.’
Cundy swears towards the judges and officials
who disqualified him. He believed that he should have been allowed to
have another go
Cundy has to be pulled away from the track side by a Team GB coach
Still furious: Cundy hurls abuse from the cycling team's area as stunned officials look on
If looks could kill: His face a picture of hurt and rage, breathing heavily Cundy has to be calmed down by a team member
WELSH CYCLIST WINS GOLD SETTING ANOTHER PARALYMPICS RECORD
The cyclist’s feat in the 3km pursuit also set another Paralympics record.
He became the first British Paralympian to win a medal when he came second in the 1km time trial.
Colbourne, 42, dedicated his gold medal to his late father Cecil, who died earlier this year.
‘I had this dream two years ago along with Neil Smith (his trainer). And fair play to Neil. He said keep working hard and your dream will become a reality,’ Colbourne said.
‘I’m dedicating this win to my later father and mother obviously. I’m surprised I couldn’t hear her shouting among everyone else.’
Just three years ago his life was changed after breaking his back in a paragliding accident. He underwent five months of physiotherapy just to learn to walk again.
Colbourne represented Wales in volleyball from 1990-1993 and went on to compete in the Welsh indoor adaptive rowing championships.
In September 2009 he set himself a target of competing in his first para-cycling event and went on to win two gold medals at the Wales Grand Prix in Newport.
He was then joined the GB para-cycling team in June last year.
Speaking after his silver win on day one, he recalled the days after his accident, saying: ‘My future was very uncertain. I didn’t even know if I would ever walk again due to the damage that had been caused to my spine.
‘It was a very slow and worrying time for me and my family. You can imagine the phone call my mother had on the day I didn’t come home.’
The former sales consultant, from Tredegar in south Wales, spent four months in a bed at Cardiff’s Rookwood Hospital, graduating to physiotherapy and then walking frames.
These improvements lifted his spirits but it was meeting Anthony Hughes of Disability Sport Wales (DSW) that changed his life.
He said: ‘I realised there were opportunities for people like me who’d had terrible accidents or had severe illnesses.
‘The worst thing in the world is when you’ve had something taken away from you and you have no control over it. It’s difficult to focus on anything positive. I tried rowing, shooting and cycling, anything at all to take my mind off this disability that wasn’t going to change.’
Although he had no movement in his feet, hamstrings or glutes (buttock muscles), he found that the nerve damage did not extend to his quadriceps, meaning he could ride a bike.
On leaving Rookwood Hospital, Colbourne started training with the DSW Academy para-cycling squad under the guidance of coach Neil Smith and in May 2010 debuted in a track race, the Wales Grand Prix.
‘I felt at that point I was returning back to society. I thought it would be a good idea to take up something to stop me from sitting in the house all day. I had to work to get the muscle memory back and start training like an athlete. It was slow.
‘I owe such a lot to the DSW team and to Neil. They gave me my life back. I get a massive buzz from cycling because when I’m walking with my crutches I do feel disabled. However, when I’m on the bike I do feel able-bodied again. So it’s a great feeling that I look forward to every day.’
His dedication clearly paid off as he took his podium place at the Paralympics.
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