TOKYO — In one of the most anticipated head-to-head showdowns of the Games, Sydney McLaughlin set another world record, beating her closest rival and the defending gold medalist, Dalilah Muhammad, in the women’s 400-meter hurdles by a razor-thin 0.12 of a second. On a fast track at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium, McLaughlin, 21, finished in a time of 51.46 seconds, shaving 0.44 of a second off her own world record.
Muhammad’s silver-medal winning time was her personal best at 51.58 seconds, and Femke Bol of the Netherlands won bronze, finishing with a time of 52.03 seconds.
Five of the seven finishers beat their personal-best times.