TOKYO, Japan – Janieve Russell ran a personal best 53.08 seconds for fourth in the women’s 400m hurdles final at the Olympic Games in Tokyo on Wednesday morning, her best ever finish in a global championships.

Russell was, however, a distance fourth in the deepest field ever.

American Sydney McLaughlin lowered her weeks old world record to win with a new time of 51.46 seconds; former world record holder and winner at the last Olympics, Dalilah Muhammad, was second in a personal best 51.58 seconds, also under the old world record 51.90 seconds; and Holland’s Femke Bol was third in an area record 52.03 seconds in what was the four fastest times ever run in an Olympic final.

Bol lead early before Muhammed took over but McLaughlin, who just completed her college career, powered her way off the final hurdle to win the gold medal.

Russell, who beat her previous personal best of 53.46 seconds set in 2018, was seventh in Rio in the 2016 Olympic game and fifth in the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, China.

-Paul A Reid