Bahrain’s Winfred Yavi produced a stunning final kick as she stormed to an Olympic record to capture the women’s 3,000m steeplechase title at Paris 2024 on Tuesday, 6 August.
The 24-year-old Yavi beat defending champion Peruth Chemutai of Uganda in a sprint to the line to add the Olympic gold to her world crown.
Yavi crossed the line with arms outstretched in celebration, stopping the clock in a new Olympic record of eight minutes, 52.76 seconds (8:52.76) before busting out some dance moves.
A devastated Chemutai settled for silver, posting a national record of 8:53.34 with Faith Cherotich (8:55.15) of Kenya rounding out the podium with bronze.
World record holder Beatrice Chepkoech set the early pace with five athletes still in the running with one lap to go. Chepkoech faded to sixth place with Yavi and Chemutai getting tangled up in a fight for the line.
At the final water barrier, Chemutai still had a metre or so on with Yavi running on her heels. The two were shoulder-to-shoulder over the final barrier before Yavi pulled away to take the victory.
Yavi became only the third athlete to win a gold for Bahrain at the Olympics and is the second behind Ruth Jebet at Rio 2016 to claim the women’s 3,000m crown.
“This is like a dream come true. It’s something special,” Yavi said after the race. “It means a lot to me and also to the country.”
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