EUGENE, Ore (Reuters) - Brazilian Alison dos Santos denied record-holder Karsten Warholm a third successive World Championship title on Tuesday, winning the 400-metre hurdles in a blazing-fast 46.29seconds.
While the hype heading into the final had largely focused on a showdown between Norwegian Olympic champion Warholm and his American rival Rai Benjamin, the Tokyo bronze medallist had the victory in hand down the final straight in a championship record.
Dos Santos exploded off the blocks and stretched his arms out wide as he glided through the finish with ease and held his hand to his ear, urging on cheers from the crowd after the remarkable upset.
The energy of the crowd was amazing. I felt their love, people hugging me, he said. When you win, you start being everyone’s favorite. That’s pretty awesome to win the world title on this track.
Benjamin had a fighting chance until the ninth hurdle, when he slowed dramatically before finishing more than half a second slower for his second consecutive world silver.
He told reporters that he drew strength from the home crowd at Hayward Field to keep himself on the podium.