American 400-meter hurdles sensation Rai Benjamin would not be denied this time.
Three years after running a preposterous 46.17 seconds, only to lose the gold to Karsten Warholm’s world record of 45.94 seconds in the Tokyo Olympics, Benjamin exacted revenge on his great Norwegian rival to become the Olympic champion in Paris. The wet conditions did not lend itself to the possibility of a new world record, but Benjamin’s 46.46 seconds was still tied for the fifth-fastest in history, and he won in a rout.
Warholm had to settle for the silver medal in 47.06 seconds, while Brazil’s Alison dos Santos repeated his bronze medal from Tokyo with a time of 47.26.
The rivalry between Warholm and Benjamin has consistently favored Warholm in major championship competitions. He beat Benjamin in the 2019 World Championships in Doha, the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, and the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. Even when Warholm didn’t medal in the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, Benjamin still lost out on gold to Alison dos Santos. After three silvers and a bronze and several years of 1990s Buffalo Bills-esque pain for the native of Mount Vernon, New York, Benjamin has finally broken through for his first individual gold medal.
There have been signs that Warholm’s dominance was waning in recent times. After winning last year’s world title, he dropped consecutive Diamond League races to the British Virgin Islands’ Kyron McMaster (who was fifth in Friday’s final) and Rai Benjamin to end the year. In 2024, Warholm was bested by dos Santos in his native Norway, while Benjamin defeated both men in Monaco just before the Olympics began.
This victory for Benjamin may be the signal that we’re witnessing a changing of the guard, seven years removed from Warholm’s first global title. Benjamin entered Friday’s final with an undefeated record for 2024, as well as the best time of the season, and he left the other two fastest men of all-time well behind.
Benjamin will have the opportunity to add to his gold medal collection on Saturday, the final day of track and field competition of the Paris Olympics, when he competes in the 4×400 meters relay. He was the anchor leg for the gold medal win in the Tokyo Olympics, as well as the 2019 and 2023 world titles, and he’ll be strongly favored to bring home the gold in what is well on pace to be the greatest track and field medal haul in Team USA history.
