Olympics: Grenadan teenager James romps to historic 400m gold
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Grenada's Kirani James celebrates after winning the men's 400m final at the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium August 6, 2012. The board shows his run time of 43.94sec. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON (AFP) - Teenager Kirani James powered to gold in the men's 400m on Monday to win Grenada's first Olympic medal of any colour and become the first non-American winner of the event since 1980.
James, 19, the reigning world champion, dominated the field, winning in 43.94sec. Luguelin Santos, also 19, of the Dominican Republic, took silver in 44.46sec while Trinidad and Tobago's Lalonde Gordon took bronze.
The Grenadan made his move in the final 150m, coming off the bend with a clear lead and never looked like being caught.
His time was a new national record for the Caribbean island nation and he also became the first non-US athlete to dip under 44 seconds for the one-lap race.
