TOKYO, Aug 2 (Reuters) – Puerto Rican Jasmine Camacho-Quinn won the gold medal for the 100-meter hurdles on Monday, the first in athletics for her country, despite throwing a hurdle to finish her test in 12.37 seconds in the Tokyo Games.
World record holder Kendra Harrison of America won silver in 12.52 and Jamaican Megan Tapper took bronze in 12.55 seconds.
Camacho-Quinn shot out and stood shoulder to shoulder with Harrison, accelerating to the finish line to win his first Olympic medal and Puerto Rico’s first at the Tokyo Games.
Harrison and Tapper faced an agonizing wait as officials analyzed their final photo, with the bronze medalist staring at the screen and saying “pray Jamaica” as she awaited the results.
The victory capped a dazzling performance in Tokyo for Camacho-Quinn, who broke the Olympic record in his semi-final.
The Puerto Rican told reporters that she was on the verge of crashing in the final, five years after her fall in the semifinal in Rio de Janeiro.
“I was running for the record and I hit the fence, but it all happens for a reason. I crossed the finish line, ‘wait, I just won!'” Camacho-Quinn told reporters.
The 24-year-old athlete said she hoped her achievement could inspire the children of the Caribbean island.
“I’m glad I’m that person to do that,” she said, crying with joy. “I am very happy at the moment.”
The race was the last of the morning program at the Olympic stadium, where the competitors were once again greeted by the scorching heat of Tokyo.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery, edited in Spanish by Carlos Calvo Pacheco)