Hurdler McLaughlin nails first world record of Eugene championships

Sydney McLaughlin broke her own world record to win the women's 400m hurdles final at the World Championships on Friday after the American powered home in 50.68 seconds.

The Olympic champion had the lead before the back turn and finished several metres clear of silver medallist Femke Bol of the Netherlands and US compatriot Dalilah Muhammad.

The 22-year-old slashed 0.73 seconds off her previous mark of 51.41 set at the same springy, speedy Hayward Field last month, becoming the first woman to run under 51 seconds in the event.

It was the first world record of this meet, but the sixth time in three years that the women's 400m hurdles world record has been broken, after Russian Yulia Pechonkina's mark had stood for 16 years.

Bahamian double Olympic gold medallist Shaunae Miller-Uibo added another jewel to her crown on Friday by winning her first world 400m title in the fastest time of the year.

The field never had a fighting chance as Miller-Uibo came charging down the back straight and had the lead coming out of the final turn before slowing through the finish.

She crossed the line in a blazing 49.11, nearly half a second clear of Dominican Republic's Marileidy Paulino, who passed Sada Williams of Barbados to take silver.

Resting flat on her back on the Hayward Field track, she breathlessly told the crowd in Eugene, Oregon, that the moment was "a blessing".

"To get this one I'm really happy," she said. "It's a very tough race to run ... I'm very happy with the performance."

She had previously collected silver in Beijing and Doha and 200m bronze in London.

Australian Kelsey-Lee Barber retained the women's javelin title on Friday as her world-leading third-round throw of 66.91m gave her an emphatic victory.

American Kara Winger launched her final throw of 64.05 to take silver, while Haruka Kitaguchi also pulled out a superb final throw as her 63.27 effort made her the first Japanese woman to win a javelin medal in a world championships or Olympics.

Peru's Kimberly Garcia Leon bagged her second world championship gold medal after winning the women's 35km race walk on Friday, adding to last week's 20km race walk triumph.

Garcia Leon won the inaugural women's 35km race walk at the worlds, held on a closed loop at Autzen Stadium north of Eugene city centre, after crossing the line in a time of 2:39:16, which was over four minutes faster than her previous personal best.

She finished 47 seconds ahead of silver medallist Katarzyna Zdzieblo of Poland, while China's Qieyang Shijie took the bronze as all three athletes mirrored their results from the 20km race walk.

"I have always dreamed of making history in a sport I am so passionate about, that I have been practising since I was five," said Garcia Leon.

"After my 20km win, I tried to stay well hydrated, to eat well to get ready for the 35km. I trained to finish strong in the last 5km."

Garcia Leon and Zdzieblo battled shoulder-to-shoulder and shared the lead until the halfway mark before the Peruvian pulled away at 19km, gaining a seven-second lead.

Zdzieblo tried to stage a comeback in the final 10km, but the Peruvian coped well with the pressure, securing the second gold medal for her country at this year's championships.

"My plan was to set a steady pace until 20km and gradually up the pace from there. That's what I did today," the 28-year-old race winner added. 

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