(L-R) Priscilla Lopes-Schliep of Canada, Dawn Harper of the United States, Brigitte Foster-Hylton of Jamaica and Virginia Powell of the United States in the women's 100m hurdles at the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics (© Getty Images)
Brigitte FosterHylton made history as the first Jamaican to take a global sprint hurdles title and became the oldest ever winner of this title as she kept her nerve to clinch gold in a season's best 12.51.
She also completed the full set of medals at the championships (silver in 2003 and bronze in 2005) to prove Jamaicans can also prosper not only at the pure speed events but also the more technical disciplines, too.
Behind her Canada's Priscilla Lopes-Schliep went one better than at the Olympic Games last year by taking the silver medal in 12.54 - just 0.01 clear of Foster-Hylton's countrywoman Delloreen Ennis-London, who secured her third successive World Championship 100m hurdles medal (silver in Helsinki 2005 and bronze in Osaka 2007).
Derval O'Rourke set an Irish record of 12.67 for a surprising fourth place finish but there was disappointment for pre-race favourite Dawn Harper.
The Olympic champion made a sluggish start and her chances of gold vanished at hurdle two, which she clipped and lost crucial momentum. From that point on she was always fighting a losing cause and the US athlete wound up seventh in 12.81.
But this was Foster-Hylton's hour, finally.
The 34-year-old Jamaican reached the semi-finals at the 2001 edition of the championships and two years later in Paris she finished just 0.04 behind the champion Perdita Felicien of Canada to take the silver. At the 2005 event in Helsinki she slipped back a place lower on the podium to take bronze behind Michell Perry of the USA.
"I have waited many years for this title, it has been six years since Paris, since I found myself in gold medal shape," said a delighted Foster-Hylton. "I still cannot believe that I am World champion. It is very special for me because after the Olympics I was retiring and my coach persuaded me to continue."
The silver medallist revealed she kept her composure despite suffering a late hiccup to her preparation.
"I had a little bit of a setback as I was called for drug testing just after the semi-final, said Lopes-Schliep. "That was a bit of a distraction but I think I handled it pretty well."
For the bronze medallist Ennis-London, she too landed precious metal after overcoming difficulties.
"I am very happy for this medal because all season long I have been fighting with injuries," she said.
It was an even break at the start, although Harper was slightly slow out of the blocks and Lopes-Schliep, O'Rourke, Foster-Hylton and Australia's Olympic silver medallist Sally McLellan were prominent.
Harper then smashed through the top of hurdle two, twisted in the air and lost crucial momentum. She had already lost two metres on the field and the US athlete was effectively out of the medal hunt.
As the race progressed Foster-Hylton began to emerge from the pack with Lopes-Schliep, O'Rourke and Ennis-London in the outside lane also in the medal picture.
At the final hurdle the race was still wide open but it was Foster-Hylton who grasped the opportunity. Lopes-Schliep just held off a late charge from Ennis-London to win the race for silver. O'Rourke was fourth, and although frustrated with the finishing position had the consolation of setting a national record.
A strangely out-of-sorts McLellan placed a modest fifth in (12.70) with Virginia Powell (12.78) defeating her training partner and compatriot Dawn Harper into sixth.
Harper, who had set a personal best of 12.48 in the semi-final a time which would have been good enough for gold had she repeated that time in the final, was a forlorn seventh in 12.81. Felcien, who also got caught up in a hurdles tangle, was eighth in 15.53.
Steve Landells for the IAAF
