The 23-year-old Harrison produced the performance of the evening, obliterating a world-class field and the Bulgarian Yordanka Donkova’s 100m hurdles world record which had stood for 28 years.
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In his first 200-metre race of the season, the world’s fastest man ran 19.89 seconds at the Olympic Stadium he left with three golds four years ago during the London Games.
That the world record was broken mere weeks after the Olympic trials by a hurdler who did not make the U.S. team raises sticky questions among American athletes, especially when the trials are tougher than the worldwide competition. “Go back to training and go after the world record”.
Kendra Harrison was disappointed when she didn’t make the US team for this year’s Olympic Games in Rio, but her consolation prize is nothing to sniff at.
In that race, British runner Tiffany Porter (12.70sec) and Jessica Ennis-Hill (13.04sec) were sixth and eighth respectively. The newly-laid track in Stratford is clearly very quick.
After a steady start he led halfway round the bend, but only just.
Rocking noticeably, he had to work all the way to the line for a time considerably shy of American LaShawn Merritt’s season-leading 19.74.
At the Olympic Stadium on Friday night, Bolt finished 0.15 seconds ahead of Panama’s Alonso Edward in second, with Britain’s Commonwealth silver medallist Adam Gemili third.
“I tried to hold my form”.
“After prelims (Friday), I finally got my confidence back”, said Harrison, who had been plunged into despair by her failure to punch her Rio ticket at the US trials in Eugene, Oregon, earlier this month. “I’m just really annoyed with myself, I clashed arms with someone after the final hurdle and that threw me”. “The pressure got to me on the day. But I’m feeling good and happy I could run and finish the race without any injuries”.
Her initial struggles, and the list of stellar swimmers who will not attend the Rio 2016 Olympics at all, prompted questions about whether some sports’ U.S. trials exceed the Olympics for intensity.
Ms. Franklin ultimately secured her spot by way of the 200-meter backstroke, freestyle, and a relay team.
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In the pole vault, the Olympic champion Renaud Lavillenie was the comfortable victor, his mark of 5.90m being 7cm clear of American Sam Kendricks.
