By Frank Gogola | @FrankGogola
RIO DE JANEIRO — Dalilah Muhammad won the gold medal and Ashley Spencer took bronze in the women’s 400-meter hurdles on Thursday at Olympic Stadium. Both are first-time Olympians.
Their double-medal performance came one night after the U.S. swept the podium in the women’s 100-meter hurdles.
Muhammad ran a time of 53.13 seconds, while Spencer posted a personal best 53.72. Denmark’s Sara Slott Petersen won silver, crossing the line in a national record 53.55.
Muhammad had finished first in her semifinal and first overall with a time of 53.89 on Tuesday. She ran a 55.33 in her first-round heat on Monday.
Spencer’s time of 54.87 placed her first in her semifinal and fifth overall on Tuesday. She ran a 55.12 in her first-round heat on Monday.
Spencer’s bronze marked Team USA’s 100th medal of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Frank Gogola is a student in the Sports Capital Journalism Program at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.