Paris: American Gabby Thomas finally claimed the global title she has promised for so long when she delivered a dominant performance to take Olympic 200 metres gold on Tuesday, denying silver medallist Julien Alfred a sprint double.
Thomas, 27, took bronze in Tokyo and silver in last year’s World Championships, but she was in control throughout the final, coming home in 21.83 seconds.
Alfred, who claimed Saint Lucia’s first Olympic medal when she won the 100m on Saturday, was a clear second in 22.08, with Brittany Brown taking bronze for the US in 20.20.
There was more frustration for British duo Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita who finished fourth and fifth.
American Cole Hocker delivered one of the all-time Olympic shocks when he won the 1,500 metres gold with a stunning finish to blast past world champion Josh Kerr as defending champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen faded to fourth.
The race had been billed as a showdown between Ingebrigtsen and Kerr and the Norwegian set a hot pace as he led coming into the last 200.
Briton Kerr, just as he did in the last Worlds, surged past him and looked set for victory, only for Hocker to find a way through on the inside.
His winning time of three minutes 27.65 was an Olympic record and a massive personal best by more than three seconds.
Kerr posted a national record 3:27.79 and Yared Nuguse took bronze for the US in another huge personal best of 3:27.80.
Ingebrigtsen finished fourth in a time faster than his Olympic record set in Tokyo.
Bahrain's Winfred Yavi won the women's Olympic 3,000 metres steeplechase gold medal, dethroning Uganda's Peruth Chemutai who had to settle for silver.
Yavi jumped for joy after crossing the line, having overtaken Chemutai with an explosive final sprint that left the Ugandan who had led most of the race unable to respond.
Chemutai was in tears after Yavi, 24, stole the finish to add the Olympic title to last year's World Championship, setting an Olympic record of 8 minutes 52.76 seconds.
Kenya's Faith Cherotich, 20, claimed bronze on her Olympic debut.
Kenyan world record holder Beatrice Chepkoech was shoulder-to-shoulder with Chemutai but faded in the last lap and ended sixth, while France's Alice Finot was delighted with a fourth-place finish in a very fast race.
Chepkoech holds the world record of 8:44.32 but has never won an Olympic medal in the event.
Greece's Miltiadis Tentoglou retained his Olympic title in the men's long jump.
Jamaican Wayne Pinnock took silver and Italy's Mattia Furlani claimed bronze.
The world champion clinched the title with his second attempt of 8.48 metres in a sombre effort, as he only cracked a grin once he was able to embrace his team in the stands.
Tentoglou became only the second man to retain his long jump title after American great Carl Lewis, who won four straight from 1984 to 1996.
