Women 400m Final
The women’s 400m final turned out to be an American affair as Georgia-based Stephanie Smith and Texas-based Jerrika Chapple finished respectively first and second in tonight’s final.
Stephanie Smith who was running in lane three and had her main rivals ahead of her crossed the line in a new personal best and championships record of 52.19.
The fastest out of the blocks was Chapple who entered the back straight with a slight advantage on compatriot Smith.
But Smith then decided to take the race to another level and went through the 200-metre mark in an unofficial time of 23.5.
Amazingly powerful, she made the definitive difference in the last bend and entered the home straight more than 5 metres ahead of Chapple.
Chapple seemed to be paying for her efforts in the final metres but managed to secure the silver medal clocking 52.80.
The pre-race favourite, Jamaica’s Anneisha McLaughlin who held the best performance of the year (52.31) before the start of these championships won bronze with a time of 53.35.
Following a very poor result in the semi finals, McLaughlin was running in a very handicapping lane 8. The 14-year old Jamaican will nevertheless be able to return to these championships in Canada in 2003.
