Guliyev wins dramatic 200m final

One of the most eagerly anticipated events of the athletics World Championships, the men’s 200m final, was won by Turkey’s Ramil Guliyev.

The race received more coverage than usual, over controversies surrounding the Botswana athlete, Isaac Makwala. He was initially withdrawn from the race following an outbreak of norovirus but was allowed to run by himself to qualify for the semi-finals.

The Botswana team complained that his withdrawal from the competition was not communicated clearly to them and that Makwala was fit to run. Following his successful individual run against the clock, he made a point to the IAAF by immediately dropping to the floor to execute several push-ups.

He was given rapturous applause during the introductions to the final, as the crowd lapped up the entertainment value generated by the scandal. Most of the London Stadium were also behind South Africa’s Van Niekerk too, who was attempting the first 200m-400m double since Michael Johnson 22 years ago.

But the fairy tale was not to be. Makwala faded to finish sixth, with Van Nierkerk losing out on gold by a whisker to Guliyev.

The Turk, originally aligned to his native Azerbaijan, took the first gold medal for the nation at the World Championships.