American hurdler Dalilah Muhammad got off to a fast start in the final of the 400 meter hurdles, and the margin gained during that stretch led to Muhammad taking gold by a comfortable margin.
Muhammad finished the race in 53.14 seconds, beating Denmark’s Sarah Petersen by more than four tenths of a second. While the rest of the field may have entertained hopes of Muhammad tiring out from that fast start she never did, taking gold in her first Summer Olympic appearance. Muhammad was one of two Americans to medal in the final, with Ashley Spencer taking bronze with a time of 53.