Teddy Roosevelt takes a rabbit to the face in Nationals' presidents race

Perpetual schlimazel Teddy Roosevelt had the finish line in sight during the Washington Nationals’ Presidents Race on Sunday, which generally means something tragic is about to happen.

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The poor mascot can never seem to run a full race without falling victim to some calamity. But it looked like his bad luck was about to come to an end with Nats hosting the Phillies.

And that’s when a flying rabbit came out of nowhere to ruin his day.

Oh, Teddy. No. Not like this.

You would think the former commander in chief would have a better battle plan than to try running through a wild hare like this. Maybe Teddy was trying to channel his inner Marshawn Lynch?

Whatever he was going for, it certainly did not work. This rascally rabbit perfectly timed his act of anarchy and completely took the 26th President of the United States out of contention.

It’s difficult to watch.

But we also can’t stop watching.

It’s a miracle Teddy’s glasses didn’t shatter on impact. His Easter Bunny ears weren’t as fortunate, however. Which is a shame since they really tied his whole wardrobe together.

The best part here is YoUDee — the University of Delaware’s mascot — trying to warn Teddy before it’s too late. You can see the Blue Hen in the background waving his hands and trying to get Teddy’s attention just before the collision.

We can only assume that Teddy, the fierce competitor that he is, had developed some kind of tunnel vision with the finish line so close. The win was right there for him. And that’s exactly why he should’ve known something was coming.

Hang in there, Mr. President. There will be plenty of shots for redemption this year, though you’ll likely waste them all.

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Blake Schuster is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at blakeschuster@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Schustee