TOKYO -- 25-year-old Raven Saunders won the first individual event medal of the Tokyo Olympic Games for Team USATF, and ten more athletes advanced to the next round in their events during the morning session of day three at Olympic Stadium.
On demand coverage of this session’s events
Women’s Shot Put final
Rio fifth-place finisher Saunders (Tuscaloosa, Alabama / USATF South Carolina) had the best series of her career and became only the third American woman ever to medal at the Olympic Games, taking silver with her fifth-round 19.79m/64-11.25. Saunders who had blasted her fifth-best throw ever to open the competition, landing the steel ball at 19.65m/64-5.75, then followed up with a massive foul that was well over 20m. In round three she almost matched her first mark with a 19.62m/64-4.5.
Going into the final three rounds in silver position she reached 19.49m/63-11.5 on her fourth attempt before unleashing the throw that clinched her first senior global championship medal. Her final effort was also a foul past 20m, but Saunders reveled in joining 2016 gold medalist Michelle Carter and 1960 bronze medalist Earlene Brown in the elite club of U.S. medalists. Trials champion Jessica Ramsey (Boynton Beach, Florida / USATF Florida) had three fouls and did not receive a mark.
Women’s 3,000m Steeplechase 1st round
Rio bronze medalist and 2017 world champion Emma Coburn (Boulder, Colorado / USATF Colorado) stayed near the front of the lead pack over the first few laps of heat one and then went with two other women as the lead trio established a notable gap on the rest of the field.
With 1,200m to go, the front three had a 10m lead over fourth and that margin only increased into the bell lap. Coburn was content to remain in the third automatic qualifying position on the final circuit, dropping back a bit as she safely cleared the last two barriers and finished in 9:16.91. Ahead of her, Winfred Yavi of Bahrain won in 9:10.80, the fastest first round time ever.
American record holder and 2017 world silver medalist Courtney Frerichs (Beaverton, Oregon / USATF Oregon) ran just off the shoulder of world record holder Beatrice Chepkoech of Kenya through the first half of the second heat, with four other challengers in close proximity. Frerichs ran in lane two much of the way to avoid trouble at the barriers and with two laps left she pushed to the front and picked up the pace a tad. At the bell Frerichs had a gap of almost 10m and she held on to win in 9:19.34. Val Constien (Boulder, Colorado / USATF Colorado) made it three-for-three Americans advancing to the final, placing fourth in the final heat in 9:24.31 to go forward as a time qualifier.
Women’s Hammer Throw qualifying
As expected, all three American women qualified for the final, one of them automatically. After hitting 71.32m/234-0 on her first throw in flight A, Brooke Andersen (Manhattan, Kansas / USATF Inland Northwest) surpassed the automatic qualifying mark with a 74.00m/242-9 in round two to end her day early. Gwendolyn Berry (The Woodlands, Texas / USATF New York) saved her best effort for her final attempt in flight B, recording a 73.19m/240-1, and American record holder DeAnna Price (Carbondale, Illinois / USATF New York) made it to the final with a best of 72.55m/238-0.
Men’s 400m 1st round
The top two finishers at the Trials advanced to the semifinal without trouble. Dominating heat three from the inside, Michael Cherry (Inglewood, California / USATF Southern California) won in 44.82 and looked like he had a lot left in the tank. After a speedy first 200m in the final heat, Trials champion Michael Norman (Sherman Oaks, California / USATF Southern California) shifted into middle gear and was an easy second in 45.35.
NCAA champion and 2021 world leader Randolph Ross (Burlington, North Carolina / USATF North Carolina) was in lane nine of heat two and had a lot of ground to make up coming off the final turn. After pushing into third with 15m left, he appeared to ease off just a bit and ended up fourth in 45.67, missing out on advancing to the semifinal.
Women’s Long Jump qualifying
Collegiate record holder and double NCAA champion Tara Davis (Agoura Hills, California / USATF Southern California) was one and done, sailing out to 85m/22-5.75 in round one to better the automatic advancement mark. Jumping in the same group, 2012 Olympic champion Brittney Reese (Chula Vista, California / USATF San Diego-Imperial) needed two tries to top the auto standard, spanning 6.52m/21-4.75 in round one and then 6.86m/22-6.25 in the next stanza to join Davis in the final. Quanesha Burks (Baton Rouge, Louisiana / USATF Southern) had a best of 6.56m/21-6.25 and did not advance.
Full session results are available on the World Athletics website. The next session begins at 6:10 A.M. ET with the Men’s High Jump final. Fans in the U.S. can watch here via NBC properties.
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