Britain’s Asher-Smith dominates 200m final in Doha

Britain is proudest as a new champion emerged in the women’s track and field events at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha on October 2.

Read: Australia’s Lee-Barber throws for gold in Doha

Always a world champion of the athletics track in the making, 23-year-old Dina Asher-Smith was unstoppable in the 200m final, pulling ahead in the race with just over 100-meters to go. Push on she did, all the while cutting a figure of immense concentration and holding her form, to spectacularly clinch the event in 21.88 seconds.

The young track sensation claimed first-place ahead of Brittany Brown of the United States, who came placed for silver in 22.22 seconds, and Mujinga Kambundji of Switzerland, with the bronze in 22.51 seconds.

Image result for Dina Asher-Smith
Image: Daily Mail

As history would suggest, Asher-Smith’s doing ended a 36-year wait for a short sprint title at the World Championships for Britain. The sprinter now boasts two medals for her and her nation at the championships, also having claimed the silver medal in the 100m sprint event.

She becomes the first British woman in World Championship history to win either a 100m or 200m gold. Still to contend for her country in the relays, Asher-Smith will be one of the biggest medal prospects for Britain at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“I don’t know what to say, I don’t think it’s properly sunk in,” Asher-Smith told the BBC. “I woke up today thinking this is it. This is the moment you did all your work for. The tiredness disappeared. I’m lost for words. I dreamt of this and now it’s real.”

Polish hammer-thrower Pawel Fajdek took first place in his event; adding to his 2013, 2015 and 2017 World Championships successes. His longest throw of 80.50 metres was more than two metres longer than any other valid attempt in the final. France’s Quentin Bigot threw a season’s best of 78.19 metres, which was one centimetre more than bronze medallist, Bence Halasz of Hungary’s effort, to take second place.

The United States soared further ahead in the overall medal standings, picking up their eighth gold of the championships in the 110-metre hurdles after Grant Holloway (13.10 seconds) edged Sergey Shubenkov (13.15 seconds) by 0.05 seconds to cross the finish line in first. Pascal Martinot-Lagarde of France took the bronze medal in 13.18 seconds.