Referee blocks siblings from hugging after US basketball game win

Video of a young boy denied the chance to hug his sister after her team won a basketball state title in the US has sparked outrage online.

The short video, uploaded to the Twitter account of Wisconsin man Nic Levy over the weekend, shows the boy “Jaylen” jumping up and down with his arms in the air and running onto the court to hug his sister, “Syd”.

Mr Levy said Syd’s basketball team, Appleton North Lightning, had just won the WIAA Division I State Championship.

Syd appears to approach Jaylen, only for an official to suddenly step between the pair, pushing the young boy back.

Jaylen can be seen turning back towards the camera, visibly crestfallen, while the official speaks to Syd and appears to direct her away.

“@wiaawistate didn't let Jaylen give his sister, Syd, a hug after winning the STATE! He gets excited to hug her after EVERY game. He cried,” the video’s caption read.

The video has since received a flood of viewers’ comments expressing ire at the official’s conduct.

One Twitter user replied to the video by sharing an excerpt from a Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) statement expressing “regrets for any distress” caused by the official’s intervention.

“For the safety of all involved, we keep spectators off the playing surface,” the statement read.

Mr Levy has since shared a statement of his own stating that Jaylen was just one of many family members who “prevented” from celebrating the North Lightning’s win.

“Family members of our players travelled from as far as Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois and even California to be at this momentous game and no arrangements were made to allow players to join their families,” he wrote.

“Players were forced onto the bus through the back door, families were asked to leave the building via the front and contact was prohibited.

“Many family members returned to their hometowns without the opportunity to hug and congratulate their players,” he said.

Mr Levy concluded his statement with a call to the WIAA to alter its policy to accommodate “receptions for waiting loved ones”.