02 October 2019

Australia's Kelsey-Lee Barber makes history by taking javelin gold with final throw

Australia's Kelsey-Lee Barber created history with her final throw to win a javelin gold at the World Athletics Championships.

Chinese pair Shiying Liu and Huihui Lyu looked locked in for a one-two finish, but Barber's last-ditch effort reached 66.56m.

Lyu had one attempt remaining, but her throw of 62.61m meant she had to settle for bronze and Liu took silver.

Barber became the first ever Australian to win javelin gold at a world championships and it was all the sweeter because of her doing it right when it mattered most.

Elsewhere, Dina Asher-Smith continued to show serene form as she progressed through to the final of the 200m.

The 100m silver medallist clocked a time of 22.16 seconds in her semi-final and the scary thing for the rest of the field was that there was still a huge gap. Her incredible start enabled her to relax at the end.

With Elaine Thompson having withdrawn and there being no Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, no Dafne Schippers, no Marie-Josee Ta Lou and no Blessing Okagbare, Asher-Smith is in prime position to win the gold medal.

Britain has never had a world champion, either male or female in the 200m distance, so the 23-year-old is well on her way to making history.

But fellow Brits Jodie Williams and Beth Dobbin will not join Asher-Smith in the final after failing to qualify with times of 22.78 and 23.11 seconds respectively.

Team GB will have no representatives in the 400m final after Laviai Nielsen and Emily Diamond failed to qualify.

Nielsen finished in last place in her heat with a time of 52.94 seconds and even a season best of 51.62 could not prevent Diamond from going out.

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