Great Britain’s Amy Hunt won a stunning silver medal in the women’s 200m final at the World Athletics Championships, marking her arrival on the global stage. The 22-year-old, making her first world final, recovered from a slow start to storm down the final straight, beating defending champion Shericka Jackson by just four-hundredths of a second. American Melissa Jefferson-Wooden won gold in a world-leading 21.68s, becoming the first woman since Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in 2013 to complete the sprint double.
Hunt, who holds a 2:1 degree in English literature from Cambridge University, described the achievement as “pretty lit”. She said: “I have not stopped smiling or crying! As soon as I saw my mum I just burst into tears. I knew I could do it.” Hunt added that she wanted to show young athletes they can balance education and sport: “I am showing you can do anything, if you set your mind to it you can be the best at anything.”
Dina Asher-Smith finished fifth in the final, behind American Anavia Battle. She expressed disappointment but praised her teammate: “I am a bit disappointed in my race. I could have done better with executing. Overall, I am very happy. I wish I could have executed that better but it is what it is.”
In other events, Olympic 800m champion Keely Hodgkinson won her semi-final, with compatriot Georgia Hunter Bell also progressing to the final. Noah Lyles stormed to a fourth straight world 200m gold in 19.51s, beating Kenny Bednarek and Bryan Levell, while Britain’s Zharnel Hughes ran a season’s best of 19.78 for fifth.
