Nike Closes Worlds Decked in Gold
August 24, 2009
Over the weekend, Berlin continued to explode with excitement as Nike athletes finished at the top of their game. Dominating the world arena once again, Nike Elites captured four out of the five individual finals on the last day of events.
On day 7, American Lashawn Merritt edged out the competition to take home the gold in the men’s 400m dash. 2008 Trials gold medalist and Beijing-qualifier Nick Symmonds advanced to the 800m final, and fellow Americans Shannon Rowbury and Anna Willard earned a spot in the women’s 1,500m. In the men’s high jump, Yaroslav Rybakov grabbed gold while Raul Spank and Sylwester Bednarek tied for bronze.
On day 8, Abel Kirui of Kenya not only garnered gold in the marathon, but his 2:06:54 finish broke a world meet record! Congrats Abel! Tsegaye Kebede of Ethiopia took bronze.
On the final day of championships, China powered through the women’s marathon to complete an impressive 1-4-5 finish. 20 year-old Bai Xue took the lead with a late surge to capture the gold in 2:25:15. Congratulations ladies!
Other highlights from the last days in Berlin included:
-Kenenisa Bekele held off Bernard Lagat in the 5,000m run in a thrilling home stretch duel, with Bekele getting the nod. Both athletes left the worlds with two medals each; two gold medals for Bekele, and a silver and bronze for Lagat.
-In the women’s 1,500m, Maryam Jamal battled to take first while Beijing-qualifier Shannon Rowbury grabbed the bronze.
-Brittney Reese lead a 1-2-3 Nike sweep in the women’s long jump with Tatiana Lebedeva and Karin Mey Melis taking second and third, respectively.
-In the 4×400m relays, USA won the gold in both the women’s and men’s finals with Sanya Richards and LaShawn Merritt running the anchor legs. Richards and Merritt left the games with an incredible 2 gold medals each!
As the championships in Berlin came to an end, the final gold medal tally for Nike athletes proved impressive: 25 individual golds, including 16 in running events, 8 in field events and 1 in multi event—Nike’s highest total ever! Congratulations to all the athletes that competed in the games. You inspire us all!
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