Britney Cuts Short Mexico Concert

By Stephen M. Silverman

07/30/2002 at 01:00 PM EDT

It's been a strange week for Britney Spears. The pop princess got heat for flashing a universally recognized finger sign shortly after she landed at Mexico City's airport last week (she later said the finger was meant for annoying paparazzi, not fans). But even stranger, according to a report from Reuters, Spears, 20, let the fizz out of her Pepsi-sponsored world tour by cutting short her final performance Sunday night at Mexico City's Foro Stadium, blaming rain showers. She was booed by the 52,000-strong crowd, given that she stopped singing midway through her fifth song, "Stronger," and then left the stage, saying only, "I'm sorry Mexico. I love you. Bye," according to a report in the local daily newspaper Milenio, Reuters notes. Some concert attendees started tossing Britney paraphernalia at her and chanting "fraud, fraud," the newspaper reported. The backers of the concert, OCESA, issued a statement Monday, saying that Sunday night's thunderstorm and lightning posed a significant enough safety concern to cancel the show after so brief a performance. OCESA also said it would offer full refunds for those who desired them, beginning this Thursday (ticket prices ranged from $14 to $190). Spears was also quoted in the statement as saying, "The Mexican fans are some of the best in the world. However, for the security of my company and the audience, as well as for the show's quality, I had to suspend my performance."