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Beijing Olympics 400m Hurdles – Runner Angelo Taylor Wins Gold Medal
By Ally White
The American athlete Angelo Taylor has recently won his second gold medal in the track and field discipline known as the 400 meter hurdles despite the low probabilities he had a few months ago to be a strong contender to win the race. Taylor defeated world champion Clements by only .73 seconds timing 47.25 seconds while Clements arrived in second place with 47.98 and Bershawn Jackson in third place with 48.06.
For Taylor and his professional career this is an incredible triumph as he obtained his maiden gold medal during the Olympic Games in Sidney eight years ago but he was also disqualified in the 4x400 m relay category during the same event.
The US track and field Olympic team has not quite fulfilled the expectations except for Taylor’s win. They do not seemed ready for the challenge and even Tyson Gay who was one of the leading names to win the 100 meter sprint did not manage to qualify for the final.
"It was a great run. I feel like I'm on top of the world right now. To lead the sweep means so much…The USA hasn't had a great showing so far so we wanted to prove something." stated Taylor after his great performance.
Taylor also referred to the situation he faced in Sidney when his team was disqualified due to three of the runners testing positive for the use of prohibited substances to enhance the athletes’ performance. It was a very uncomfortable situation for Taylor as he was also questioned but the very fact the name of their country was polluted was what hit him most deeply. At that moment Taylor and Michael Johnson were the only ones to be completely cleared of any mistrust.
Back in 1999 was when Taylor began his running career while participating in the World Championships; he ended third in his heat at the 400 meter hurdles and won the gold medal with the 4x400 relay team. During the World Championships in 2001, Taylor was disqualified in the 400 m hurdles semifinals due to flu but days later, he won the gold medal with the 4x400 relay team. During 2003 Taylor did not qualified to the World Championships but he tried to do his best in the Athens Olympics in 2004, however he only reached the semifinals.
Three years later, during the 2007 World Championship Taylor won the gold medal with the 4x400 relay team once again and won the bronze medal in the 400 meter flat. More recently in Beijing Taylor has crowned himself as the best hurdles runner in the world due to the fact that Edwin Moses was not able to compete and measure up with Taylor’s timing.
For the United States as a country, to have athletes such as Michael Phelps in swimming and Angelo Taylor in the track and field category, is a supreme honor. These athletes are still very young and it is likely that we will continue to hear their names as they stand on the podium to receive those gold medals; most American fans hope for them to win.
About the Author
Ally White has been a prominent writer on Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, sport news and the online betting industry for many exceptional sports web sites. You may reprint this article in its full content, please note no modifications to it are accepted.
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