Dina Asher-Smith became the first British female to win a world sprint title when she took gold in the 200 metres final at the World Athletics Championships in Doha on this day in 2019.
Asher-Smith, then 23, set a British record with a time of 21.88 seconds that was enough to beat American Brittany Brown, upgrading the silver she had taken in the 100m final earlier in the meeting.
“I know I was tired and woke up today knowing this was the last individual chance and this was the moment I did all my work for,” Asher-Smith said after the race.
“This is what we knew we could achieve if the season went well, and the tiredness just disappeared when I needed it to.
“It means so much. There’s so many British fans here. I know lots of Brits live in Doha but lots have travelled and for my mum to be here, my dad, John and his wife and my physios… it means so much.”
Asher-Smith had been elevated to favourite in the race after a number of rivals pulled out of the event, with then Olympic champion Elaine Thompson, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Marie-Josee Ta Lou and Dafne Schippers all missing.
Asher-Smith’s performances in Doha boosted hopes that she could contend for a medal at the Tokyo Olympics as she had broken her own British record in the 100m final.
After the postponement of the Games by 12 months amid the coronavirus pandemic, Asher-Smith was selected to race in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.
However, she failed to get through qualifying in the 100m and later revealed she had suffered a hamstring injury, forcing her to pull out of the 200m.
Nevertheless, Asher-Smith was able to compete in the 4x100m relay and helped Great Britain win bronze.
