Sally Pearson was the heavy favorite to win this event, but with her silver in Beijing, you never know what might happen. She had the fastest qualifying time coming in and extensive experience to boost her confidence. The US had three excellent contenders, two of which grabbed the silver and the bronze in just over 12 seconds. The revered gold, however, went to the deserving Pearson, who is the 2011 world champion in the event.
Kellie Wells was the only other hurdler to beat Pearson this season, but it was her teammate, Dawn Harper, who won silver. Wells was extremely pleased with her result, though, since she has no previous titles to her name and is virtually a newcomer on the rise. Her third place at the Olympic Games looks to be the beginning of an illustrious career.
Right from the gun, everyone’s feet were lightning fast between each of the 10 hurdles. Pearson didn’t start out ahead, but with every hurdle, she inched her way forward. By the time it came down to the last sprint, it looked like she had it. She had to wait for the official time to appear to be certain because her torso crossed the line just two one-hundredths of a second ahead of Harper.
One of America’s new favorite runners, Lolo Jones, just missed out on a medal, finishing in fourth place overall. Even still, she ran a season best time of 12.58 seconds. With Pearson’s new Olympic record and her teammates’ incredible talent, however, she wasn’t able to pull through. While she mourned her loss, Pearson’s face lit up with glee, and she fell back to the ground. Overcome with joy, she couldn’t even get up. When she finally did, tears streamed down her face. Australia will welcome her home with open arms.
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Michelle Bonja
Contributing Writer
(Image courtesy of NBC)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
