Canada’s Andre De Grasse added gold to a growing collection of minor medals by winning the 200m (m) event, Kenya scored a brace in the men’s 800m and Peruth Chemutai made history in Uganda in another night (Japan time)) brilliant for athletics at Tokyo Olympics this Wednesday (4).
It all followed another huge world record in the 400m hurdles in the morning, when Sydney McLaughlin beat fellow American Dalilah Muhammad on the super-fast track, and new shoe technology continued to mock historical comparisons.
De Grasse, who raced in the considerable shadow of Usain Bolt for most of his career, has won six bronze and two silver in individual races and international relays, but he’s a machine to Tokyo.
August 4 – #Athletics – 200m men
NdAndré de Grasse🇨🇦
Kenneth Bednarek🇺🇸
Noah Lyles🇺🇸#UnisByEmotion | # Stronger together | #Olympic Games | # Tokyo2020– # Tokyo2020 (@ Tokyo2020) August 4, 2021
Showing perfect judgment, he overtook leader Noah Lyles and set a Canadian record of 19s62, becoming the eighth fastest man in history over that distance.
“In 2016 I was a boy and inexperienced, but now I have high expectations of winning medals,” said the 26-year-old, who won silver behind Bolt in the 200m in Rio de Janeiro.
“I wanted to show that all my injuries are behind me and that I can win a gold medal,” he said.
Three runners from the United States followed (Kenny Bednarek, Lyles and Erriyon Knighton, 17), but the American athletes’ quest for the first Olympic gold since 2004 in any men’s sprint event continues.
Emmanuel Korir and Ferguson Rotich formed Kenya’s double in the men’s 800m, the fourth consecutive gold medal for East African athletes at the event.
August 4 – #Athletics – 800m men
Emmanuel Korir🇰🇪
Ferguson Rotich🇰🇪
Patryk Dobek🇵🇱#UnisByEmotion | # Stronger together | #Olympic Games | # Tokyo2020– # Tokyo2020 (@ Tokyo2020) August 4, 2021
Chemutai became the first Ugandan woman to win Olympic gold in any sport with a well-calculated performance in the 3,000m hurdles.
Uganda only won two other Olympic gold medals, both in men’s track and field, in 1972 and 2012.
The day after Karsten Warholm’s incredible world record in the men’s 400m hurdles, McLaughlin cut almost as much of her own time: the 21-year-old crossed the finish line in 51’46, dispersing the 51’90 that it had established during the Olympic selection in your country.
August 4 – #Athletics – 400m hurdles women
Sydney McLaughlin🇺🇸
Dalilah Muhammad 🇺🇸
Femke Bowl#UnisByEmotion | # Stronger together | #Olympic Games | # Tokyo2020– # Tokyo2020 (@ Tokyo2020) August 4, 2021
Poland’s Wojciech Nowicki finished a very consistent streak with his personal best hammer throw 82.52m (a double for the country after Anita Wlodarczyk won a third consecutive title last Tuesday).
August 4 – #Athletics – Men’s hammer throw
Wojciech Nowicki🇵🇱
Eivind Henriksen🇳🇴
“Pawel Fajdek”#UnisByEmotion | # Stronger together | #Olympic Games | # Tokyo2020– # Tokyo2020 (@ Tokyo2020) August 4, 2021
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