by RBR Admin
This is Sam Fariss’s column on day 8 and the great upset of the World Champs, the US defeating Jamaica in the women’s 4 x100m relay! Sam Fariss has been writing for RunBlogRun for just over a year. A recent Duck graduate, we enjoy her columns and observations on the sport.
Norman goes for his first gold.
By Sam Fariss
Michael Norman has earned his first ever gold medal on the international stage. The young sprinter attended the University of Southern California and competed at Hayward Field many times throughout his collegiate career but failed to find a place at the top of the podium on the global level.
On day eight of the World Athletics Championships, however, Norman flew around the track and crossed the finish line before the rest of the field in 44.29 seconds.
Entering the final straight, Grenada’s Kirani James had a slight lead over the American, but Norman was able to outpace his competitor to win by the slim margin of 0.19 seconds. (Kirani James would finish in silver, and Matthew Hudson-Smith, bronze).
“My coach gave me three things to think about before the race, and one of them was to dig deep,” Norman said. “I think that was the biggest reminder that I had going into the home stretch – who wants the gold more? Feeling the energy of the crowd, I just dug deep.”
Before Friday, the United States men had not seen gold in the 400 meters since the 2013 Moscow World Athletics Championships when LaShawn Merritt reigned victoriously.
The United States has been able to find great success in the men’s sprints this week as they swept the 100 meters and the 200 meters as well as earned second and third place in the 400-meter hurdles.
“My brother! You deserve this,” shared Norman’s teammate Rai Benjamin, silver medalist in the 400-meter hurdles.
Many athletes have turned to social media to voice their congratulations for Norman, and even Norman himself used Instagram to share his excitement and joy over the race.
“Words can’t begin to explain this moment,” Norman said. “The journey is never easy, but all the continuous support, it definitely makes this more memorable. Much love.”
Norman had qualified for the Tokyo Olympics and represented his country in the 400-meter race at the games but fell short of earning a medal, finishing fifth in the final despite entering into the race as one of the favorites.
The other Team USA member who raced in the final on Friday, Champion Allison, finished in fourth with a time of 44.77 seconds – less than half a second behind Norman’s first place finish.
