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Reigning Olympic champion Steven Gardiner has withdrawn from the men’s 400m.
The Bahamian sprinter’s lane three was left vacant in heat four of round one, leaving a sense of shock at the Stade de France.
The 28-year-old has been struggling with injuries recently but remained a strong contender at Paris 2024. He won gold in Tokyo, running 43.85secs to beat out Anthony Zambrano and Kirani James.
Gardiner pulled up injured in his World Championship 400m semi-final in Budapest last year.
“It was pretty bad,” Gardiner reflected about the injury, diagnosed as a two-millimetre tear in his right tendon. “It’s a good thing that I didn’t keep on going because I could have torn it right off the bone. So I’m happy to get through it and can compete again.”
Elsewhere, Great Britain’s Matt Hudson-Smith began his bid for gold with a smooth run to qualify for the semi-finals.
More to come...
