Shaunae Miller stunned Allyson Felix to win the 400m and deny the American a fifth Olympic gold thanks to an audacious dive across the finish line.
That's how you win #Gold
— Oddschecker (@Oddschecker) August 16, 2016
Shaunae Miller #BAH dives over the line to the win the women's 400m last night #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/Y59Q1Qc0Fq
ICYMI: Shaunae Miller dives to win 400m #Gold; David Rudisha defends 800m Olympic title https://t.co/mEKuv27IYN pic.twitter.com/WWCeDqi9EQ
— Rio 2016 (@Rio2016_en) August 16, 2016
The 22-year-old Bahamian went out hard from lane seven and led coming into the home straight, but Felix looked set to reel her in.
As the world champion tied up, though, Miller launched herself over the line to take victory in a new personal best of 49.44s.
“It was just a reaction,” she said. “My mind just went blank. All I was thinking about was the gold medal and the next thing I was on the ground.
“I’ve never done it before. I have cuts and bruises, a few burns.”
It's not textbook... but it worked!
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 16, 2016
Shaunae Miller dived over the line to win 400m gold.https://t.co/c8LFxDtPly pic.twitter.com/mDsBIcNBr2
And yes, it’s legal.
The relevant IAAF rule (Rule 164 – The Finish) states: “The athletes shall be placed in the order in which any part of their bodies (i.e. torso, as distinguished from the head, neck, arms, legs, hands or feet) reaches the vertical plane of the nearer edge of the finish line as defined above.”
Felix, 30, had to settle for silver in 49.51, with Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson taking bronze.
