Gold medallist and world record holder Tobi Amusan of Nigeria [Reuters]
Published in AlJazeera, on July 25th, 2022,
Amusan broke the world record earlier on Sunday by clocking 12.12 seconds in the semi-final at Hayward Field.
Nigerian Tobi Amusan has stormed to victory at the 100 metres hurdles final at the World Championships held in Eugene, United States, becoming the first athlete from her country to win gold at such an event.
The 25-year-old’s 12.06-second performance on Sunday was initially announced as a world record, but was later ruled ineligible as the wind speed exceeded the legal limit.
Amusan had broken the world record earlier in the day by clocking 12.12 seconds in the semi-final at Hayward Field.
In the final, she recovered from a slightly slower start to put on a pristine performance over the barriers, 0.17 seconds clear of silver medallist Britany Anderson of Jamaica.
“The goal was to come out and to win this gold,” said Amusan.
“I believe in my abilities, but I was not expecting a world record at these championships. You know, the goal is always just to execute well and get the win. So the world record is a bonus.”
Puerto Rico’s Olympic champion Camacho-Quinn accelerated at the midway mark but lost a close battle with Anderson over the final strides after hitting the last hurdle, going home with bronze in her first World Championships.
“I got my nerves, to be honest. It kind of showed on my face, but I am just glad to come out here,” said Camacho-Quinn.
“From this point on, it is only going to be faster … I think we had the best event of the whole world champs.”
Anderson told reporters she was pleased with her performance, despite clipping some hurdles.
“I feel like everyone is so excited now,” she said. “I came out here to do what I had to do, and I did it.”
The final was without 2019 champion Nia Ali and medal contender Alaysha Johnson, both of the United States, after they hit hurdles and crashed out in the opening round.
US Olympic silver medallist Kendra Harrison, whose 2016 record Amusan broke in the semi-final, was disqualified.
