Hima Das stormed to the 400 metres title at the ongoing Under-20 IAAF World Championships being held at the Ratina Stadium in Tampere, Finland on Thursday.
Das clocked a 51.46 metres in the final, a shade below her seasonal and personal best of 51.13 metres. The 18-year-old Assamese sprinter started conservatively as her rivals opted for the early burst in the final.
Going into the final stretch, Hima produced a trademark surge to over-take Andrea Miklos of Romania in second place, who finished with a time of 52.07 seconds. Taylor Madson of the United States came third with a time of 52.28 seconds.
The sprinter from Assam’s Dhing village was the favourite going into the final, as she qualified first in the semi-finals in 52.10 seconds. Hima had first shown glimpses of her ability at the Federation Cup in March, where she ran 51.97 seconds to seal a place at the Commonwealth Games.
At Gold Coast, she qualified for the final and finished fifth with a personal best of 51.32 seconds.
With this gold, Hima became only the fourth Indian ever to win a medal at the Under-20 World Championships and only the second to win a gold after Neeraj Chopra won the Javelin Throw at Bydgoszcz in 2016.
