What a way to make your debut in an Olympic final.
On Wednesday 7 August, cheered on by a capacity crowd the the Stade de France, Team USA’s Quincy Hall raced to a brilliant gold medal in the Paris 2024 men’s 400m to the surprise of many — but not his own.
“I told you guys I was going to get a gold medal this year and I guess I just showed you I did it,” an ecstatic Hall said after the race, “I know I can win. I knew it today. That’s what I’ve been doing my whole career.”
The US star posted a time of 43.40 to claim the Olympic title ahead of Matthew Hudson-Smith of Great Britain, who won silver in 43.44 and Zambia’s Muzala Samukonga who won bronze in 43.74.
Hall had entered these Olympics as the US trials winner and ranked number one in the world. However, the fastest time of the year belonged to Britain’s Hudson-Smith with a resurgent London 2012 gold medallist Kirani James of Grenada the second-fastest man on the start line.
Yet if there’s anything that’s become clear during this rollercoaster of a ride of an athletics competition at Paris 2024, it’s that past times — and reputations — mean little in the pressure cooker of an Olympic final.
Courage, determination and the ability to fly when others falter can take you all the way to Olympic gold. Hall demonstrated all of those qualities in abundance.
“I don’t give up,” Hall continued. “I just grit, I grind. I’ve got determination. Anything I think will get me to that line, I think of it. A lot of hurt, a lot of pain.
“I just won. It’s over. For the next four years, I can say I’m an Olympic champion.”
After a clean start, Hudson-Smith had caught and passed Hall by around the 200m mark and looked like he was on his way to gold as he bounded confidently into the final straight.
However, against the backdrop of gasps from the crowd, the 27-year-old Hall somehow found the strength to fight back. As his British rival faded, the new Olympic champion pounced on his opportunity, passing the line first to win a thrilling Olympic medal race.
It says much about the quality of this final that the third and fourth-placed finishers, Sumukonga and Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards both set new national records, while Hudson-Smith broke the European record en route to silver.
For Hall, this was the fastest time he had ever recorded and a testament to just how good he needed to be to earn the title of Olympic champion.
Source link : https://olympics.com/en/news/paris-2024-athletics-results-quincy-hall-wins-gold-400m
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Publish date : 2024-08-07 20:05:51
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