Whitehead winds back the clock to claim victory
Sprinter delights crowd with repeat of 2012 win Hahn and Kinghorn break world records in gold rush
For a few glorious seconds it was as though the clock had been wound back five years and we were bathing again in the glory of that halcyon London 2012 summer.
There was Richard Whitehead rounding the bend near the back of the field as he lulled his rivals into a false sense of security. There he was reeling them in like a gleeful fisherman revelling in his catch. And there he was arms aloft, roaring into the night sky having left them for dead.
Back then the prize had been Olympic gold, whereas this time it was the world title at stake. But other than that it was the same spectacle, in the same place, with the same result – another T42 200m gold.
The crowd went wild and the celebrations only continued as Sophie Hahn followed suit with T38 200m victory and Sammi Kinghorn completed the Saturday evening gold rush in the T53 200m.
“I came round the bend and there was a whirlwind effect pulling me to the finish line,” said Whitehead. “I could have given up at any point in my life. The 200m shows that just because you are behind at 50m, you don’t stop – you keep pushing. I’ve reaped the rewards of hard work and discipline.”
That it takes Whitehead, 40, time to reach his top speed only adds to the splendour of his performance. The nature of his disability – he was born with only the upper part of his legs above the knee – means he is incapable of showing his hand at the sound of the gun.
The power is there in abundance and the acceleration electrifying when it comes, but it is not until the latter stages of a 200m race that his widearced running style comes into its own.
The majority of the 27,000 people inside the London Stadium had seen him work his magic before and remained unconcerned when he was slow out of the blocks last night. The thrill was yet to come.
As he rounded the top bend he was already making inroads on those ahead of him, matched the whole way by the 15-year-old South African Ntando Mahlangu, who had won silver at the Rio Olympics last year. But then Whitehead turned on the afterburners.
By the time he crossed the line in a championship record 23.26 seconds, his lead was almost five metres, with Mahlangu again taking the silver medal.
There was further British success behind the leading duo with Dave Henson, an Army officer who lost his legs when an improvised explosive device detonated in Afghanistan, claiming bronze to replicate the podium from Rio.
At some point – and that point may finally come after these championships – Whitehead will decide to call it a day. It is astonishing to think that he will celebrate his 41st birthday on Wednesday, but with the 100m still to come next week he had an ominous message for his rivals.
“It doesn’t get any easier, but I’ve got a great team around me who support me through the highs and lows,” he said. “It’s about pushing myself. Even at 41 I feel there’s some way to go.”
At the other end of the age spectrum, Hahn only turned 20 this year but has already developed an iron grip over the T38 100m division that she tightens with every race. A Paralympic and now quadruple world champion, Hahn flew round the wide outside lane nine, leading from gun to tape and breaking the world record in the process to triumph in 26.11sec as team-mate Kadeena Cox won bronze.
“I’m absolutely delighted,” said Hahn. “To win and break a world record in front of a home crowd is just phenomenal.”
Taking the British gold medal tally to six across the opening two days of competition, victory for Kinghorn was particularly poignant for her father Neil after his involvement in the traumatic accident that left her wheelchair bound.
Kinghorn was 14 when she was crushed by snow and ice, breaking her back as her father cleared their farm.
Within two years she was racing in the London Mini Marathon and now has a world title to her name with the added bonus of breaking her own T53 200m world record in 28.61sec.
“This has been the dream since I started,” she said. “Every time I’m on the track my dad smiles a little bit more and accepts it a bit more.
“It’s never nice to be part of something that’s so devastating to your daughter’s life, but I can say to him that it’s OK and I wouldn’t be in this position without him.”
There were two more British medals in the T33 100m with Toby Gold claiming silver and Andrew Small bronze.
Men’s T13 100m final, 9.06pm
Dubbed the fastest para athlete on the planet, Ireland’s Jason Smyth is unbeaten at major championships and is favourite to retain his title here. British debutant Zak Skinner – son of former England rugby union player Mick Skinner – has made huge strides this season, taking chunks off his personal best, and will hope to make the final.
Men’s T54 1500m final, 9.45pm
The final race of the day sees the blue riband event of wheelchair racing, which contains almost unparalleled strength in depth. Thailand’s Prawat Wahoram upset Marcel Hug of Switzerland to win the Paralympic title last year, but Canada’s Brent Lakatos set a world record last month. Richard Chiassaro leads the British charge after David Weir’s retirement.