Another fourth but great effort from Asher-smith as Schippers wins 200m final
It was yet another fourth spot for Great Britain in the showpiece event last night as Dina Asher-smith became the fifth home athlete to suffer that loneliest of placings in the women’s 200 metres.
Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands successfully defended her title, dipping at the line just ahead of Marie-josee Ta Lou.
Shaunae Miller-uibo, the 400m Olympic champion, who dramatically broke down close to the end of the one-lap race earlier in the week, took bronze.
Schippers came out of the bend just ahead of Ta Lou and finished in 20.05 seconds. Ta Lou set an Ivory Coast record of 22.08, while Miller-uibo crossed in 22.15.
The fourth curse may have struck again but, in many ways, it was a triumph for Asher -Smith who has endured an injury nightmare since finishing fifth at the Rio Olympics last year.
Emma Coburn led an unlikely 1-2 finish for the United States in the women’s steeplechase. Courtney Frerichs took silver while defending champion Hyvin Jepkemoi of Kenya earned bronze.
Coburn took the lead for good at the final water jump and kicked for home to finish in a championship record of nine minutes, 2.58 seconds.
Frerichs was 1.19 seconds behind, holding off Jepkemoi in a sprint finish.
Beatrice Chepkoech of Kenya, the third best performer this year, was running in the lead at the start when she missed the turn for the water jump on the inside of the track and had to go back. She made a strong comeback but faded in the final lap. Pawel Fajdek of Poland won his third straight hammer throw world title. Valeriy Pronkin of Russia, competing as a neutral athlete because of his nation’s doping suspension, took silver ahead of Wojciech Nowicki of Poland.
Brittney Reese of the United States won her fourth world title in the long jump with a mark of 7.02m. Britain’s Lorraine Ugen was fifth.