Elaine Thompson-Herah wins both the 200-meter and 400-meter events at the Tokyo Olympics, giving her a perfect score.
E. Thompson-Herah Olympic Games Tokyo 2020
Elaine Thompson-Herah of Jamaica made history on Tuesday night at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo by becoming the first woman to defend both her 100-meter and 200-meter titles. Thompson-Herah, who won the 200-meter race at Rio de Janeiro five years ago, successfully defended her title with a final-round time of 21.53 seconds, a new Jamaican record.
A barnstorming performance by Namibia’s Christine Mboma earned her silver in 21.81 seconds, and the United States of America’s Gabrielle Thomas won bronze in 21.87 seconds. Compatriot and tough opponent Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, 24, was hoping to better on her second-place performance from London 2012, but she could only achieve fourth place in her return to action in Tokyo 2020.
Despite the Jamaican’s apparent dominance throughout the race, 18-year-old Mboma put on a show, breaking the under-20 world record as she powered past the competition to win Namibia’s first medal at Tokyo 2020.
The great Frankie Fredericks won silver in both the 100 and 200 metres at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, so this is the first medal for the country in either of those events. The Harvard alumna Thomas continued her impressive recent form with a good finish, bolstering her case as a potential future Olympic champion.
Rematch in the women’s 200m
Thompson-Herah finished third in her 200-meter heat just two days later, although she still advanced automatically to the next round. In contrast, Jackson ran too slowly in the last seconds of her heat and came in fourth, eliminating her from the race.
Even though Fraser-Pryce, the silver medalist from London 2012, appeared to have the race won in the semi-final heat that night, Thompson-Herah, running blind on the outer lane, was quite superb, exploding out of the blocks and running an excellent bend to surprise everyone.
In the final stretch, she slowed down and matched her best time by crossing the finish line in 21.66 seconds. Fraser-Pryce kept up with her compatriot at the last turn, but Thompson-Herah eventually pulled away to win the 100 and 200 metre events for a record-tying third consecutive Olympic Games.
Conclusion
Usain Bolt, Thompson-compatriot, Herah’s has won the 100 and 200 metre events in the Beijing 2008, London 2012, and Rio 2016 Olympic Games and successfully defended his championships on two separate occasions. Thanks for read our Article E. Thompson-Herah Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
