Jebet wins Bahrain's first ever gold

Jebet wins Bahrain's first ever gold

August 16, 2016
Ruth Jebet of Bahrain poses with after receiving the women's 3,000m Steeplechase gold in Rio Monday. — Reuters
Ruth Jebet of Bahrain poses with after receiving the women's 3,000m Steeplechase gold in Rio Monday. — Reuters

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RIO DE JANEIRO — Teenager Ruth Jebet won Bahrain's first ever Olympic gold medal Monday, blowing away the competition in the women's 3,000 meters steeplechase but narrowly missing out on the world record.

The 19-year-old stormed into the lead after a few laps and set a blistering pace to win in eight minutes 59.75 seconds, shy of the 8:58.81 world record set by Russia's Gulnara Galkina at the 2008 Beijing Games.

"I admit it was too easy for me but nobody told me about the record. I wanted the gold medal," Jebet said.

Galkina and Kenyan-born Jebet, who was the world junior champion, are the only two women to have run a sub-nine minute time.

Kenya's Hyvin Kiyeng Jepkemoi, who won the world title in Beijing last year, was almost 50 metres behind Jebet in second place.

American Emma Coburn won United States' first ever medal in the steeplechase as she grabbed bronze and a new national record.

Poland's Anita Wlodarczyk smashed her own world record on her way to victory in the women's hammer throw — four years after being denied gold by Russian dope cheat Tatyana Lysenko.

Wlodarczyk, widely regarded as the greatest women's hammer thrower of all-time, heaved a monumental 82.29m on her third attempt to crush the competition at the Olympic Stadium.

Zhang Wenxiu of China took silver with a throw of 76.75m while Britain's Sophie Hitchon claimed bronze with 74.54.

Wlodarczyk's winning effort was more than one metre further than her own previous world record of 81.08 set in 2015.

Greece's Eleftherios Petrounias showed off his superior power in the strongman event as he edged out local favorite and 2012 champion Arthur Zanetti to win the rings gold medal.

Petrounias added the Olympic gold to the world the European titles he currently holds with a score of 16.000.

Zanetti lost out on the top prize by just 0.234 of a point while Russia's Denis Abliazin had to settle for bronze.

Britain's Charlotte Dujardin retained her Olympic dressage individual gold, fighting off a two-pronged German challenge.

Dujardin, riding Valegro, finished ahead of Isabell Werth on Weiheigold and Kristina Broring-Sprehe on her mount, Desperados.

The 31-year-old Dujardin also won silver in the team event last week.


August 16, 2016
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